Guangzhou Auto Group (GAIG), which has joint ventures with Honda and Toyota, is poised to become a major player in the Chinese auto industry. GAIG announced a merger with Gonow this week, having already taken Changfeng a year ago. Part of the strategy to accomplish this goal involves the launch of a self developed brand, which will be revealed in the Beijing auto show.
GAIG has shown several concepts in previous auto shows, but only this year they’ve announced the brand will be officially launched. Its first car, possibly a sedan based on the VIP-Lounge concept riding Fiat’s Alfa 166 platform will be put in production before the 2010 Asian Games, which GAIG is a partner of, in November of this year.
GAIG also has the Linian sub-brand, which was developed in partnership with Honda. The first Linian car was scheduled to be put in production this year, but reports indicate this launch will be delayed to the beginning of next year.
