Changan starts construction of its Nanjing plant
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Changan starts construction of its Nanjing plant
- Chinese automaker Changan has started construction of its Nanjing plant, which will specialize in electrified vehicles (HEV, PHEV, BEV) from its first SOP in June 2020. The plant will be able to produce up to 240,000 electrified vehicles per year. Changan plans to assemble SUVs, the most popular category in China, but also high performance sedans and coupes. In addition to the assembly lines, the site will also include a research and development center dedicated to electrified vehicles.
- The Nanjing project is part of Changan's "Shanghri-La Mission" strategy, which aims to build three factories for electrified vehicles and halt the sale of thermal engine models starting in 2025.
- Changan is currently the second largest independent Chinese car manufacturer in terms of sales and production, behind Geely which became the first Chinese automaker in 2016. Changan delivered 1,315,000 vehicles in 2017, of which only 61,000 electric (BEV) cars and hybrid rechargeable (PHEV) cars. It must accelerate its production of electrified models to meet the quotas that China will impose on automotive manufacturers in 2019. Next year, Changan is expected to sell 150,000 electrified vehicles and more in the following years. By 2025, Changan's goal is to offer 21 electric models and 12 rechargeable hybrids, for a complete line up of 33 different electrified models.
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Inovev expects 125,000 annual sales for the new Audi A1
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Inovev expects 125,000 annual sales for the new Audi A1
- Audi (a subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group) has unveiled the next generation of its B segment sedan, the A1, whose origins date back to 2010. More than 900,000 Audi A1s have been manufactured since that date.
- The new Audi A1 is based on the MQB-A platform already used by the recent Volkswagen Polo, Seat Ibiza and Seat Arona. It does not rely on the platform MQB-B that uses the Audi Q2 and the Volkswagen T-Roc. The new Audi A1 is a little longer (4.03m), a little wider (1.74m) and a little bit lower (1.41m) than the old A1.
- Notably, the new Audi A1 will no longer be manufactured on the Belgian site of Forest, but on the Spanish site of Martorell, alongside the Seat ... and Audi Q3 whose production should however stop this autumn, at the time of the presentation of the new generation of Q3 (which will be manufactured on the Hungarian site of Gyor).
- The production transfer from the Audi A1 from Forest to Martorell will be offset by the arrival of the Audi Q6 electric in 2019. Other Audi electric models are expected to be produced on the Belgian site in the years 2020-2022.
- The engines of the new Audi A1 are: no diesel but 1.0 TFSI (3-cylinder) petrol engines of 95hp and 115hp, 1.5 TFSI (4 cylinders) of 148hp and 2.0 TFSI (4 cylinders) of 197hp. Note that the 3-door version will not be renewed. Inovev expects 125,000 annual sales of the new Audi A1.
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Opel produces less than Porsche in Germany in 2018
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Opel produces less than Porsche in Germany in 2018
- For the first time in its history, Opel produced less than Porsche on German territory in 2018. According to the figures calculated by Inovev for the first five months of the year, Opel produced 106,000 cars during this period while Porsche has produced 111 000. Over the year, Opel will produce 250 000 cars while Porsche will produce more than 260 000 cars.
- In the year 2000, Opel was a big producer in Germany, since the brand that was still GM's subsidiary at that time was producing 650,000 cars while Porsche made only 32,000 cars.
- The decline in Opel's production in Germany reflects the brand's loss of influence on the European continent (its market share fell from 10.5% in 2000 to 5.7% in 2018) and also the result of its successive relocations (to Spain and Poland in particular) which ultimately led to the closure of the German Bochum plant in 2014.
- For its part, Porsche, acquired by the Volkswagen Group, continued to expand its range, resulting in the launch of two SUVs (Cayenne and Macan) and a sedan (Panamera), while avoiding relocation to low labor cost countries. The manufacture of the Boxster and Cayman was even relocated in Germany in 2011 (from the Valmet plant in Finland). The transfer of Opel Grandland from Sochaux to Eisenach in 2019 could, however, help the Opel brand to produce a little more than Porsche next year.
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Inovev expects production of 50,000 units per year from the new Volvo S60
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Inovev expects production of 50,000 units per year from the new Volvo S60
- Volvo (a subsidiary of the Geely Group) unveiled the new generation of the S60 sedan (D-segment), just months after unveiling the new V60 station wagon. Unlike the V60 wagon, which is manufactured at the Ghent site in Belgium, alongside the V40 and XC40, the S60 sedan, much less popular on the European market than the V60 wagon, will be manufactured at the new Volvo site in Charleston, in the USA ,which will be its first market.
- The Swedish manufacturer takes advantage of the fact that the Europeans prefer to buy the Volvo estate and that the Americans prefer to buy the Volvo sedans to distribute the S60 and V60 production according to the tastes of the customers. Note that for Volvo E segment, production is also separated between sedans and station wagons, since the S90 sedan is produced in China and the V90 in Sweden.
- The engines of the S60 are: no diesel but petrol engines, such as the T5 (250hp) and T6 (310hp), as well as rechargeable hybrids T6 Twin Engine (340hp) and T8 Twin Engine (390hp) all derived 2.0 petrol.
- The competitors of the Volvo S60 are mainly Mercedes C-Class, BMW 3 Series, Audi A4, Jaguar XE, Lexus IS and Alfa Giulia. Inovev expects a production of 50,000 units per year on the Charleston site, including 35,000 for North America and 15,000 for Europe. The S60 will be produced in China for local demand.
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Inovev expects 30,000 units per year for the BMW 8 Series
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Inovev expects 30,000 units per year for the BMW 8 Series
- BMW unveiled the new 8 Series coupe that replaces the Series 6 coupe, this 6 Series is now dedicated to the 5-door GT version of the Series 5. An 8 Series convertible should be unveiled in the coming months to replace the current 6 Series convertible, and it is likely that a Gran Coupé (4-door sedan) version will complete the 8 Series lineup next year.
- This large two-door coupé (4.84 m long, 1.90 m wide, 1.34 m high) takes the name of the first 8 Series which was produced from 1989 to 1999 for 33 000 units in total (3 000 per year on average).
- The choice of engines is the 840d (gasoline engine six cylinders 3.0 320h) or the M850i (new V8 4.4 biturbo 530hp), with an automatic Steptronic eight-speed gearbox and an xDrive all-wheel drive. The new BMW 8 Series will be marketed in Europe starting November 2018.
- This new model, as well as its future convertible and Gran Coupé versions, will be manufactured at the German Dingolfing site, dedicated to BMW's premium models (5, Series 6 Series, 7 Series, 8 Series).
- Inovev expects production of 30,000 units per year (including future cabriolet and Gran Coupé versions), while the 6 Series has never exceeded 26,000 units. The main competitor of the BMW 8 Series coupe is the Mercedes S-Class coupe.
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