GM to assemble microvan in Egypt with kits from China venture
General Motors will start assembling a microvan in Egypt in the third quarter of 2012 using kits supplied by its Chinese joint venture, SAIC-GM-Wuling Automobile Co.
The vehicle, dubbed the Chevrolet Move, can be used to carry passengers as well as goods. GM plans to produce about 5,000 units annually.
In China it is known as the Wuling Rongguang. Fitted with a 1.2-liter engine, the five-seat microvan is 4,105 mm long, 1,620 wide, and 1,900 mm tall.
It has a starting price of 40,000 yuan ($6,300) in China; GM has yet to disclose the Move's price in Egypt.
The Move will be the joint venture's second product in the Egyptian market. In 2009, GM started exporting the eight-seat Chevrolet N200 microvan (also known as the Wuling Hongtu) to Egypt and other African countries.
GM also plans to sell locally built versions of the Wuling Hongtu and the Wuling Hongguang -- a 5-seat microvan that is larger than the Ronguang -- in India next year.
SAIC-GM-Wuling, which is headquartered in the southwest China city of Liuzhou, is a joint venture between GM, SAIC and the city of Liuzhou.
As China's largest microvan maker, the partnership sold 895,483 microvans and microtrucks in the first ten months of this year, down 2 percent year-on-year, according to J.D. Power and Associates.
