According to Inside Line, Saab may be ready to re-start production at its factories in as little as 8 weeks, after being sold to two Chinese automakers for $142 million. While Saab was valued at $660 million this summer, both Pang Da and Zhejiang Youngman Lotus Automobile Co. managed to purchase the company at a rock...
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U.S. private equity firm North Street Capital will give Saab a $70 million investment, including an equity stake worth $10 million and a $60 million loan to the ailing car maker. With Chinese-backed financing looking increasingly unlikely, the investment from North Street Capital, a firm run by auto enthusiast Alex Mascioli, will give Saab the...
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The administrator in charge of the Saab bankruptcy proceedings has told a Swedish court that the process must stop. “The money is not enough to continue the reorganization,”said Guy Lofalk in an interview with Reuters. “Now, an application [to terminate the reorganization] has been mailed. It should be on the court’s desk tomorrow.” Lofalk said...
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It’s not clear if Chinese automaker BYD is more famous because of its billionaire investor Warren Buffet, or because of its continued failed promises to sell cars in North America. Soon, however, you might recognize the brand as your emissions free transportation to and from the office. That’s because BYD is preparing to launch its...
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Saab‘s days as an automaker might not yet be numbered. According to a recent report a Chinese automaker may be interested in purchasing the bankrupt automaker. “I’ve heard this one before,” you’re probably thinking to yourself. But this time it’s different…. we promise. According to Sweden’s Dagens Industry, the interested Chinese suitor is none other...
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Fiat CEO and the auto industry’s wise old grandpa, Sergio Marchionne, warned the industry that “the day of reckoning is inevitably coming,” when Chinese automakers begin exporting on a massive scale. Marchionne is usually regarded as being “usually four steps ahead of everybody else,” according to Chrysler executives. It’s no surprise then that his warning,...
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The masses have spoken, and they are numerous: China’s rapidly-growing car consumers are more likely to choose European brands than two years ago, instead of Japanese and homegrown Chinese cars. J.D. Powers surveyed China’s buying habits, and found that 32% would buy a European car—up from just 25% in 2009. The figures for Japanese car...
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Warren Buffett and Chinese carmaker BYD have raised 1.4 billion yuan, or $219 million, in their initial public offering in Shenzhen. While seemingly impressive, the figure was below expectations. Investors were worried over how well the company would perform, and lacked confidence for the company. BYD had hoped to raise 2.19 billion yuan, or another $34...
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As part of Spyker’s capital-raising efforts for its ailing Saab brand, the Dutch automaker is entering into talks with Chinese automotive company Pang Da, and will have to rename itself as Swedish Automobile N.V. as part of the deal. In return, Saab will get a $42 million cash payment, ostensibly to help pay Saab’s substantial...
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Volkswagen will partner with Chinese automaker FAW to launch a new brand, which will build and sell electric cars for Chinese consumers. Plans were submitted to the Chinese government, although details of the vehicle weren’t publicly disclosed. Honda, Nissan and General Motors have recently expanded into creating their own Chinese market brands in partnership with...
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China’s largest carmaker, Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC), is among a bunch of Chinese automakers looking to expand into the American market. Before they can form more concrete plans, however, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration official David Strickland visited China to explain U.S. safety standards, and touring the SAIC plant. Despite the reputation Chinese automakers currently have...
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Following the lead of General Motors, Honda and Nissan, Volkswagen is looking into creating a sub-brand for the Chinese market, which would sell ultra-affordable compact cars in the world’s biggest auto market. “A local brand is our opportunity to participate in segments where Volkswagen is not represented yet,” said Volkswagen China’s CEO Wolfgang Neumann, in...
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Although Volvo is traditionally associated with all things Swedish, but Volvo’s new chairman is hoping to put down serious roots in China as well. “We are looking at a strategy of making China a second home market. Today we mainly only have one home market, in Sweden,” Volvo Cars China Chairman Freeman Shen said, in...
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You may have never heard of Guangzhou, China, but with nearly 12 million people, the industrial metropolis is a major player in the Chinese auto market. Making its debut at the show is one of China’s most anticipated new cars, the MG3 hatchback and MG6 sedan. Although Chinese cars are a laughing stock in much...
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China is looking at doing away with their mandatory rule forcing automakers to enter into 50/50 joint ventures with local Chinese auto makers. This arrangement allows Chinese automakers to gain knowledge from auto makers that are already established, allowing for a an accelerated learning curve while keeping some of the profits at home. However, the...
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General Motors upcoming IPO is attracting a lot of attention, not least from Chinese car manufacturer SAIC. A long time partner of the General, SAIC is looking to buy a significant portion of GM’s IPO, and with nearly $6 billion in cash reserves, the company is in a good position to do so. According to...
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Citroen is going to enter the large luxury car market with a production version of the Metropolis concept car. The Metropolis will likely be badged as a DS9, and be positioned as a flagship to the company’s DS range, which currently markets a line of premium hatchbacks in Europe. The Metropolis is unique in that...
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General Motors’ Chinese division is on track to outsell its American unit, a not entirely surprising development in light of the sheer enormity of China’s auto market. GM China has been bolstered by the strength of their two domestic nameplates, Baojun and Wulin (seen above), which are popular in export markets as well as in...
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The Chinese market has a series of peculiar tastes, the most well-known being their love of stretched mid-size sedans. While China gets cars like the BMW 7-Series, Mercedes-Benz S-Class and other full-size luxury cars, stretched versions of everything from the BMW 5-Series to the Skoda Superb come in long-wheelbase versions, ostensibly for budding executives who...
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Nissan has announced a new brand for the Chinese market, known as Venucia, or Qi Chen in Chinese. The cars will be developed, launched and sold in partnership of Dongfeng Nissan, the local arm of the Japanese automaker. “In the future, we aim to sell more than one million vehicles annually and the new brand...
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China’s Ministry of Commerce and its National Development and Reform Commission has signed off on a deal that will let Chinese carmaker Geely to purchase Volvo from Ford for $1.8 billion. “We have received all approvals required from the central government,” Ning Shuyong a spokesman from Geely, told Reuters. “We are currently working on closing...
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A former GM employee and her husband have been indicted by a federal grand jury in Detroit in an industrial spying case. Ex-GM worker Shanshan Du and her husband Yu Qin are accused of photocopying thousands of documents relating to hybrid vehicle technology. Prosecutors allege that the couple attempted to pass the documents on to...
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The Ford Escape has been around for nearly a decade now, but it may live on even after it leaves the North American market. Reports say that Chinese automaker Jiangling will acquire the tooling for the first generation Ford Escape, which was sold in certain world markets as the Ford Maverick. The rumors have appeared...
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The Chinese auto market has a strange fascination with stretched versions of compact and mid-size sedans, the the stretched BMW 5-Series (pictured), the Audi A4L and the stretched Mercedes-Benz E-Class to name a few. BMW wants a bigger piece of the action and is teaming of with Chinese automaker Brilliance (yes, that Brilliance) to build...
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