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Helping Chinese Consumers Realize Their Dreams of Car Ownership

General Motors Celebrates 15 Years of Success in China

2012-01-04

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SHANGHAI – With more than 40 models and 11.5 million Chinese consumers, General Motors will mark 15 years of success in China in 2012, fulfilling its commitment to offer cars for "every purse and purpose."

General Motors and its joint ventures have helped Chinese consumers realize their dream of buying a car and moving from two- to four-wheel transportation.

The global automaker that offers the greatest number of vehicles and brands in the China market, GM has been the leader in China for six consecutive years and expects to keep the title for the seventh consecutive year in 2011.

“We have gone from selling a single brand and model line to offering seven brands and more than 40 different products in a broad spectrum of segments,” said Kevin Wale, President and Managing Director of the GM China Group. “The growth of GM and its business in China has enabled more Chinese consumers to realize their dream of personal four-wheel transportation.”

Largest Product Portfolio in China

GM has followed the words of its legendary chairman from the past century, Alfred Sloan, by offering a “brand for every purse and purpose” in China. It began with Buick, a brand that was popular in China in the 1920s and 1930s. It has continually grown its portfolio, adding Chevrolet, Cadillac, Opel, Jiefang, Wuling and Baojun. The model offerings have also grown, ranging from mini-cars to luxury SUVs, and from mini-commercial vehicles to light-duty commercial vehicles.

GM and its joint ventures have been making an array of products with compelling designs and excellent performance for the people of China, many of whom are first-time buyers. The company has an extensive network of design and engineering resources based in China to ensure its products meet and exceed the expectations of the Chinese car-buying public.

In 1997, GM established its original passenger car joint venture with SAIC, Shanghai GM, and China’s first independent automotive engineering and design joint venture, the Pan Asia Technical Automotive Center. Since its opening, PATAC has been adapting GM’s global products for the China market. It worked with Shanghai GM to develop the first passenger car created by a joint venture for the domestic market, the Chevrolet New Sail, which went on sale at the start of 2010. PATAC’s growing team of local professionals has enabled GM to keep up with the changing demands and segmentation of the domestic vehicle market.

GM took another step forward with the opening of the GM China Advanced Technical Center (ATC) in Shanghai in 2011. This year, GM’s new Advanced Design Studio will open at the ATC to work with PATAC and GM’s other local and global engineering and design resources to enable GM to continue to meet the needs of its customers and China’s vehicle market.  

Numerous Product Milestones

Over the past 15 years, GM and its joint ventures have been responsible for a number of industry firsts in China. Shanghai GM was the first joint venture to manufacture a new global product when its original family of Buick sedans began rolling off the production line on December 17, 1998. In 2000, GM invented the executive wagon segment with the launch of the Buick GL8. More than 370,000 have hit the road, making it a popular model among business executives and families alike. Buick followed the success of the GL8 in 2001 with the original Sail, China’s first truly affordable family sedan, which was priced at about RMB 60,000. The Sail helped make owning an automobile a reality rather than a dream for many Chinese consumers.

The success of the first family of Buicks and the steady cadence of new models compelled other automakers to upgrade their product lineups as well. This spurred growing competition, leading to a greater number of products available at a greater number of price points. Coupled with rising incomes, it contributed to passenger cars becoming affordable to a greater number of China’s people.

GM’s other mainstream brand in China, Chevrolet, also was responsible for a number of industry firsts, including manufacturing the Spark – the first global mini-car introduced in China – starting in 2003.

More recently, GM helped redefine the entry-level passenger car segment with the introduction in 2011 of the first model from the Baojun brand, the 630, which is targeted at first-time car buyers in tier 2 and tier 3 cities. It is also helping meet the demand for affordable pickups with the Kuncheng from FAW-GM.

Unmatched Services

To enable more people to purchase a vehicle, GM and SAIC launched China’s first automotive financing company – GMAC-SAIC – in 2004. The joint venture has helped finance more than 600,000 vehicles through 2,000 dealers.

GM has also been a leader in offering in-vehicle safety, security and communication services through its Shanghai OnStar joint venture, which began providing service to owners of new Buick, Cadillac and Chevrolet models from Shanghai GM in 2009. Shanghai OnStar offers 14 services and a growing number of mobile applications to its more than 400,000 subscribers across China. 

GM products are now sold at about 2,700 dealerships in more than 300 cities in all Chinese provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities. The growth of GM’s dealership network in the country’s tier 3 and 4 cities is now a priority. GM products are backed by the industry’s most comprehensive range of aftersales services, including Buick Care – China’s first passenger car service brand – and the new Enhance Prestige – Cadillac Plus aftersales service brand.

Driving to the Future

In April 2011, GM announced its new five-year plan for continued success in China. Over the five years from 2011 to 2015, GM and its joint ventures will roll out more than 60 new and upgraded models. GM’s two mainstream brands, Buick and Chevrolet, will account for nearly half.

Buick will introduce 12 new and refreshed models as part of its mission to become the leading premium vehicle brand in China. The Buick Envision SUV concept that had its global premiere at Auto Shanghai 2011 offers a hint of things to come from Buick.

Chevrolet will bring 15 all-new and upgraded models to the market, ranging from stylish and affordable small cars to midsize sedans. Among the new models that car buyers in China will be able to purchase in 2012 are the revolutionary Volt extended-range electric vehicle and the all-new Malibu midsize sedan. 

The Volt is an important step forward in GM’s support of the move toward the era of electrification globally and in China. It will expand GM’s most comprehensive range of new energy products and technologies offered by any automaker in China. GM will leverage the ATC in Shanghai to grow local expertise in batteries, electric motors and power controls to ensure the best possible choice of electrification technologies for local consumers.

“Over the past 15 years, GM has continued to introduce new products, grow our brand portfolio, expand our sales network and venture into the field of electrification to become the leader among global automakers in China,” said Wale. “As China’s vehicle market grows further in the coming years, GM will continue to address the needs of our customers by following our strategy of working in China, with China and for China.”

General Motors traces its roots back to 1908. GM has 11 joint ventures, two wholly owned foreign enterprises and more than 35,000 employees in China. GM and its joint ventures offer the broadest lineup of vehicles and brands among automakers in China. Passenger cars and commercial vehicles are sold under the Baojun, Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Jiefang, Opel and Wuling brands. In 2010, GM sold more than 2.35 million vehicles in China, which represented 28.8 percent growth over the prior year. It has been the sales leader among global automakers in the market for six consecutive years. More information on General Motors in China can be found at GM Media Online.

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