Chongqing Changan Automobile Co. and its Mexican partner Autopark Group plan to start assembling Changan's vehicles in Mexico in the second half of 2010 - according service autonewschina.com. They will first start selling imported vehicles there later this year.

They aim to sell the vehicles in the broader South American and North American markets. A market manager from Changan who is familiar with the project says the joint venture will start by selling Changan's vehicles imported from China. He adds the models to be sold there will be "inexpensive cars," such as the V101 compact sedan which soon be launched into sales in China and the Z-Shine midsize sedan.

The market manager also says the joint venture will later entrust a third party Mexican company to assemble the Changan vehicles using knocked down kits shipped from China. He expects the outsourced assembly to start in the second half of 2010. But he declines to name the third party company.

Changan sold 378,239 light vehicles in China last year, but total sales of its four passenger vehicle models were only 43,287 units, according to Automotive Resources Asia, a unit of J. D. Power and Associates. The four passenger vehicles are the Benni (Benben) mini car, Z-shine (CV8) compact sedan, Joice van and CM8 small van.

Changan also builds cars in China with Ford Motor Co.

Source: Auto News China

Latest news about Changan:

• Changan Auto to launch Benben Mini car in March
• Four Chinese astronauts buy Volvo S80L cars
• Changan Auto to sell 1,000 Jiexun-HEVs in '09
• Changan Auto gets $2.9m for hybrid car making
• Electric Changan CV6 this year in Canada
• Two hybrid cars to be launched by Changan
• Changan Motor going to start production in Iran
• New Chinese cars designed by… Pininfarina!