The timing was perhaps unfortunate, given the UAW strike on the same day, but General Motors in the US and its Shanghai General Motors joint venture yesterday (24 September) signed a multi-year agreement worth more than $US800m to export US-built Buick Enclave premium crossover sport utility vehicles plus other vehicles and components to China beginning in 2008.
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The Enclave is built at GM’s Lansing Delta Township assembly plant in Michigan and was introduced earlier this year, receiving favourable reviews from local media. It “helped lead General Motors’ recent sales increase in its home market”, the automaker said.
Shanghai GM president Ding Lei said: “Shanghai GM has become a leader in the production and sale of passenger cars in China, driven largely by the success of the Buick brand. These new premium sport utility vehicles will strengthen our line-up and enable us to continue to meet the changing needs of our growing base of customers.”
The Buick agreement is the second of two China export agreements signed by GM this year. In May, it signed a deal to ship $700m worth of Cadillacs and automotive components to China from the United States. GM’s China operations have already imported about $3.5bn worth of vehicles, components, equipment, and machinery from North America over the past 10 years.
GM China Group president and managing director Kevin Wale said: “We appreciate the support that we received from the Chinese and US governments for this programme, which will benefit both countries. It will take the value of GM sourcing contracts from the United States for the China market to more than $1.5bn this year.”
The Enclave will be imported by Shanghai GM and sold through its network of about 400 Buick dealerships across China. The new model will complement the current lineup which includes the Park Avenue and LaCrosse premium sedans, Regal upper-medium sedan, Excelle family, and GL8 and FirstLand executive wagons.
GM operates seven joint ventures and two wholly owned foreign enterprises and has more than 20,000 employees in China.
Its vehicles are sold there under the Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Opel, Saab and Wuling nameplates. In 2006, sales of vehicles by GM and its joint ventures rose 31.8% year on year to a record 876,747 units.
