China takes baby steps to drive into Indian auto market

China is making a second attempt to drive into Indian auto market. Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation Group operates 8 joint-ventures in China and covers almost four GM brands Cadillac, Buick, Chevrolet and Saab and would bring two or three compact cars to India. SAIC’s new models that fit into the Indian hatchback space include small cars. SAIC also has a portfolio of affordable Soyat brand of cars and the sporty British brand MG Rover that is owned by its subsidiary Nanjing Automobile Group company. General Motors is believed to be developing a small car that will be slotted under the Chevrolet Spark in near future in India. Wuling’s vans are already sold in North Africa, South America and the Middle East as Chevrolet. The company will be launching Wuling’s global platform of N200 and N300 series that will help GM to penetrate the market which is currently dominated by the Maruti Omni and Maruti’s yet to be launched O2 segment vehicles.

Senior GM India officials reported that many of the Chinese cars that would hit the Indian market are still in the developing stage. GM India President and MD Karl Slym told that the Chinese cars for India are almost two years away. The company would be looking first at hatchbacks and followed by entry-level sedans from it's Chinese partner. General Motors India that is now a SAIC’s subsidiary, will double its R&D headcount to over thousand at its Bangalore facility to develop and customise new range of Chinese products for the Indian market. Mr Slym also stated that they have decided to utilise their Talegaon plant exclusively for cars manufacturing, while the smaller Halol plant in Gujarat, with a capacity to make 80K vehicles per year that will be dedicated for making utility vehicles and light trucks. GM India is also looking to triple its sales with the launch of the new Chinese products. The car maker aims to clock 70K units sales in calendar year 2009 and its combined capacity at its twin Halol and Talegaon plants stands at 3-lakh units a year. Volkswagen Polo and Chevrolet Beat are the upcoming cars in India.

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