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Great Wall Motor engages Ricardo to develop DCT gearbox

April 1, 2011 at 4:42 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, China, Great Wall

It looks like even the Chinese automakers are jumping onto the dual clutch transmission bandwagon! Ricardo has announced that it has signed a tentative agreement to provide Chinese automaker Great Wall Motor Co (which makes the Hover SUV above) design services for a 6-speed dual clutch transmission as well as an advanced gasoline engine. Ricardo has a Chinese technical center in Shanghai, and has over 20 regular customers in China which it provides consultancy services to. It’s other Chinese clients include Chery Automobile Co and Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp, both of which it assists in the development of hybrid powertrains.

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Next generation Nissan Tiida (Latio) hatchback spotted in China, and it looks good!

March 28, 2011 at 3:48 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, China, Nissan

It looks like China is the country to look at when it comes to checking out the latest and greatest stuff from Nissan for the average layman (not the expensive stuff like the 370Z, GT-R, etc). The new Nissan Sunny made its world debut in China, and we also saw a revised design for the Nissan Teana. And now we have this, an all-new Nissan Tiida, known as the Nissan Latio in Malaysia.

These images from Chinese website Auto Sohu show a very attractive looking new Nissan Tiida hatchback, whichh has now become a full fledged C-segment vehicle rather the B/C segment car that was the current generation Tiida. Nissan’s B-segment sedan and hatch offerings are now officially the March and the Sunny.

According to Auto Sohu, wheelbase for the new Tiida is now a Sylphy-matching 2,700mm, one of the longest in the C segment, which should translate into decent interior space. I wonder if this look will translate well onto a sedan body. A sedan based on this platform and wheelbase length can be used to replace the Bluebird Sylphy.

Apparently the Latio will also get a hot hatch version powered by the 1.6 litre turbo engine that you can currently find in the Nissan Juke. The MR16DDT makes 188 horsepower and 240Nm of torque, which will transform the new Tiida into an interesting competitor for the likes of the Golf GTI and the Mazda 3 MPS.
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GALLERY: Nissan Teana facelift in China, changes detailed

March 15, 2011 at 3:31 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, China, Nissan

We headed to the Guangzhou Motor Show in China last December to see the new Nissan Sunny, other world debuts and the hot stuff on display, but also encountered some unexpected new metal like the facelifted Chinese market Nissan Teana.

As you’ve read in our D-segment triple test, the Teana is a great all rounder that delivers good comfort and decent driving ability. This refreshed Teana sees revisions and/or differences compared to the CKD model sold by Edaran Tan Chong – let’s compare and see which do you prefer.

The headlamps are most obviously changed. From the rather plain looking units on our car, the Chinese Teana adds on projector headlamps and an LED strip for more flash. The elements have also been rearranged. Next up is the grille. From the five strips of chrome, Nissan has framed up the grille and gave the inside bars a different colour.

Rounding up the facelift is the reprofiled bumper from a ‘V shape’ to an ‘X shape’, a trick Toyota used for the current Camry. Also notice the disjointed lip to make the air intake more prominent. The result is a more aggressive and ‘sporty’ outlook.

There’s less change at the rear. The taillamps, which already have LEDs arranged in a ‘C shape’, are made more prominent as the ring of diodes are now behind a clear lense.

In our shootout, you may have noticed comments about the Teana’s dash looking a bit sparse, but this isn’t the case with the Guangzhou show car, which has a navigation system. The GPS controls occupy the panel just below the central screen, pushing the climate controls down below the stereo, a position most are used to.

In this Chinese Teana, the dominant cabin colour is still beige, but the main dash panel and the upper door panels are in a darker shade of brown. The wood grain trim is in a lighter hue. I prefer this colour combination over our local car, how about you? The push start button in this left hand drive car is nestled between the steering column and centre stack.

Exclusive hi-res live gallery from Guangzhou after the jump.
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2011 Nissan Teana facelift in China gets sportier design

March 15, 2011 at 1:12 am By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, China, International News, Nissan

We spotted this Nissan Teana on Dongfeng Nissan China’s website sporting a revised look, which leads us to believe this is either the Nissan Teana facelift or perhaps some kind of styling update exclusively for the China market.

The front end gets a big update that seems to focus on making the Teana look sportier – and check out those complicated headlamps, which now feature projector lenses instead of the current generation Teana’s reflector lenses.

The tail lamp also gets updated to this design. Frankly, I think the current look suits the character of the Teana more – this one looks a little like an elderly man having a mid-life crisis. I wonder if this is a global update.

Look after the jump for a full gallery of the China market 2011 Nissan Teana.
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Great Wall assembles Hover and Wingle in the Philippines

March 4, 2011 at 1:01 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, China, Great Wall

Great Wall Motor has started assembling vehicles in the Philippines, making it the first Chinese automaker to do so. The assembly plant is a joint venture between Great Wall and its domestic vehicle distributor Statemotor Corp.

The plant has a capacity of 10,000 vehicles a year, and will roll out Great Wall’s Hover SUV and Wingle pickup truck. If its venture with Manila based Statemotor goes smoothly, Great Wall will also proceed to assemble its Voleex sedan in the ASEAN country, a company spokesman revealed. By the way, the Hover scored a surprising 4-star crash test rating in the Australasian NCAP.

In 2010, Great Wall’s total sales exceeded 390,000 units, including 50,000 overseas sales. This year, the Baoding based carmaker aims to up sales to 500,000 units, including 70,000 overseas sales. News reports state that Great Wall operates CKD plants in Indonesia, Vietnam and Malaysia as well, although we’ve yet to hear anything about that. We have however seen the Wingle undergoing testing in Malaysia.

Will the brand kick start operations in Malaysia this year and join counterparts Chery, Changan and Jinbei in the quest to seek acceptance from Malaysians? We’ve seen that low pricing can sway carbuyers – the Chery Eastar MPV found over 2,600 buyers in 2010 (more than the Toyota Rush and Fortuner) while the Era Jinbei is fast gaining popularity as an affordable passenger van. Click here to see what Great Wall has to offer.

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BAIC to launch its own sedan based on the old Saab 9-5

March 4, 2011 at 11:31 am By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, China

After showing off a previous gen Saab 9-5 with reworked looks last year, Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Co (BAIC) has announced that it will launch its first own-brand sedan before the end of this year. A prototype was completed in December last year and the car will go on sale either in late 2011 or early 2012.

Codenamed C70C, the upcoming sedan is based on the underpinnings of the old Saab 9-5 that Beijing Automotive purchased from GM in 2009. Then, Beijing Auto paid $200 million for the assets, which also included some technology from the current Saab 9-3. Not sure if the end product will look like the C71 concept, which had a Camry style nose stuck on the Saab’s angular body.

In China, Beijing Auto is the joint venture partner of Hyundai and Daimler AG. It also assembles Chryslers and makes SUVs and 4WDs based on old Toyota and Jeep designs. The company’s group sales totaled 1.4 million vehicles in 2010, making it the fifth largest automaker in China.

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Europestar SUV based on Proton platform spied in China

February 23, 2011 at 11:03 am By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, China, Youngman

Sometime last year we were informed that China’s Youngman was developing an SUV of their own together with Lotus Engineering based on the Proton GEN2 platform. Basically this was one of the first bespoke Youngman Europestar projects of hopefully many to come, a model that doesn’t exist in Proton’s existing portfolio.

Although the red and yellow Youngman Europestar logo on the exterior of the Tiguan-sized SUV is a little covered up, it’s clear to be seen on the interior. According to China Car Times, this Youngman SUV may make its debut at the Shanghai Auto Show sometime in April this year. Look after the jump for a gallery of spyshots of the SUV.
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MG returns to the UK, with MG6 fastback due in April

February 17, 2011 at 12:35 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, International News, Nanjing MG

While the Chinese connection for MG has been building up steadily, with SAIC aggressively marketing the marque in the country, it has all been rather quiet at the place where it all began, until now, that is.

The brand has just been relaunched in the UK, the return being ushered in at the company’s Longbridge facility in Birmingham. To chug things along, there’s a new website as well as an updated logo for the brand – the badge differs from the Chinese version and wil be used exclusively in Europe.

There’s also a product, of course, and this is the MG6, which will carry the flag for the brand’s return to European shores. The fastback version, based on the Roewe 550, is slated to go on sale in the UK sometime in the middle of April, with customer deliveries starting sometime in May. At this point, the car will ship only in 1.8 turbo form, with a five-speed manual gearbox.

Meanwhile, the sedan form is due into the UK around July, with keen interest ramping up its arrival from the third quarter of the year. Hopefully, it’ll be a happier time for the brand with its return home.

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China becomes GM’s largest market – 2.35 million units sold

January 26, 2011 at 12:35 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, China, General Motors, International News

For the first time in its 102-year history, General Motors’ largest market isn’t the United States, but China. The company sold more cars and trucks there than it did in the US in 2010, managing 2.35 million vehicles sold, 136,000 more than that shifted in the US.

Shanghai GM achieved 1.03 million of the total figure, with GM’s other joint ventures accounting for the rest. In total, the number is a 29% increase from 2009. China, of course, is the world’s biggest automotive market – passenger car sales in 2009 amounted to 13.7 million vehicles, with total vehicle sales registering above 18 million.

Total global sales for the US automaker was 8.39 million, up by 12% over 2009, and though it is still in the world No. 2 spot behind Toyota, it’s virtually a case of neck and neck – the Japanese automaker reported a global sales volume of 8.42 million units in 2010, just 30,000 more than GM. In China, Toyota managed to sell 846,000 units, just over a third of what GM accomplished.

GM reported double-digit jumps in five of its top 10 markets in 2010, including a 12.4% increase in Russia and a 10.4% jump in Brazil.

Still, China remains the bright star, and the company isn’t going to take its foot off the pedal, planning to export US$900 million in vehicles and parts to the country under a two-year agreement signed with Shanghai GM, its flagship JV.

Vehicle exports worth US$500 million and components worth US$400 million will come under the agreement, which was among various trade and investment deals signed in connection with Chinese President Hu Jintao’s state visit to the US.

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BMW and Brilliance to develop 5-Series based EV

January 24, 2011 at 12:50 am By Paul Tan Filed Under BMW, Cars, China, Hybrids and Alternative Fuel

BMW and its Chinese JV partner Brilliance China Automotive Holdings have agreed to team up to develop an electric vehicle for the Chinese market based on the platform of the BMW 5-Series, and a concept version of the new large EV will be displayed at one of the big auto shows in China this year.

There are no further details yet as of now, and BMW’s own EV efforts has so far been contained to smaller vehicles like the MINI EV, with its large vehicles mostly using hybrid technology instead of a pure EV solution. Brilliance has also dabbled with EVs in the past – shown in this story are two EV concepts that Brilliance has exhibited in the past in its own capacity without anything to do with BMW. We also don’t know for sure if the new BMW 5-Series based EV will be sold as a BMW or as a separate brand.

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