GM, Partners Open China Mini-Vehicle plant
April 01, 2008

SAIC-GM-Wuling, General Motors’ mini-vehicle joint venture in China, began mini-vehicle production Monday at its second assembly plant in the coastal city of Qingdao.

Its initial product is a new mini-commercial vehicle powered by a 1.2-liter double overhead cam gasoline engine. The facility has an annual production capacity of 300,000 vehicles and can manufacture multiple vehicles on the same line.

“The new plant will enable SAIC-GM-Wuling to meet the rising domestic demand for its Wuling brand products,” Kevin Wale, president and managing director of the GM China, said in a statement. “This will increase SAIC-GM-Wuling’s competitiveness in the mini-commercial segment, which is one of the largest and fastest growing in China.”

The five-year-old joint venture sold 552,788 vehicles in 2007. It ended the year with a 43 percent share of the mini-vehicle segment in China, making it the segment leader for the second consecutive year. The venture's products include a range of Wuling brand mini-trucks and minivans including the Wuling Sunshine, as well as the Chevrolet Spark, a minicar produced and sold in other emerging markets, such as India.

SAIC-GM-Wuling’s first manufacturing facility in Qingdao began production of Wuling products in 2005. It was the joint venture’s first vehicle-manufacturing facility outside its home base in Liuzhou, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, in southwestern China.

SAIC-GM-Wuling was launched in 2002. GM China holds a 34 percent stake; SAIC (formerly known as Shanghai Automotive Industries Corp.,) holds 50.1 percent and Wuling Motors holds 15.9 percent. The joint venture’s headquarters is in Liuzhou.•

Photos by GM
1 — Wuling Sunshine
2 — Chevrolet Spark

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