General Motor's mini-vehicle venture in southern China unveiled its first own-brand sedan on Sunday as it aims at the fast-growing moderately priced segment of the car market. The sedan, called the Bao Jun or treasured horse, is the first of a series of passenger cars that SAIC-GM-Wuling plans to roll out in the near future, said its general manager, Shen Yang.
"Bao Jun is just the beginning. We will launch one new model per year carrying the same nameplate in the next few years. We will also develop SUVs and MPVs," Shen told reporters in Shanghai.
GM-SAIC-Wuling is a three-way venture between GM, SAIC Motor Corp and Liuzhou Wuling Automobile, whose workhorses are Wuling brand minivans and pick-up trucks. Before Bao Jun, the Chevrolet Spark was the only car made at the venture.
Shen did not disclose the price of Bao Jun, which is scheduled to hit the market before the end of this year. Kevin Wale, president and managing director for GM's China operations, told Reuters that Bao Jun would compete with local brands. SAIC president Chen Hong also considers Bao Jun complementary to its own, much-pricier portfolio, which includes the MG 6, Roewe 550 among others.
The top Chinese automaker has virtually the only domestic brands that have made some inroad into the country's lucrative medium-to-higher end segment, which is dominated by foreign brands.
Wuling could now be a platform for SAIC to compete with cheap, local brands made by Geely Automobile Holdings and Chery Automobile, Chen said previously.