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Yulon Motor Co., Ltd. () is a Taiwanese automaker and importer. Taiwan's biggest automaker as of 2010, Yulon is known for building
Nissan , trading as Nissan Motor Corporation and often shortened to Nissan, is a Japanese multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Nishi-ku, Yokohama, Japan. The company sells its vehicles under the Nissan, Infiniti, and Datsun bra ...
models under
license A license (or licence) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit). A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another party (licensee) as an element of an agreeme ...
. The original
romanization Romanization or romanisation, in linguistics, is the conversion of text from a different writing system to the Roman (Latin) script, or a system for doing so. Methods of romanization include transliteration, for representing written text, a ...
of the company's name is Yue Loong, but in 1992 the company renewed its logo and switched to the shorter ''Yulon'' name. Historically, it is one of Taiwan's "big four" automakers. The company has over time evolved as a holding company that encompassed multiple public entities such as Yulon-Nissan Motor, Yulon Financial, Yulon Rental, Carnival Industrial Corporation and others. The group currently has a rivalry with
Hotai Motor Hotai Motor Co., Ltd. () is a Taiwan-based automotive centric conglomerate. It is the largest automobile company and appliance distributor, and one of the largest financial holding companies in Taiwan. Traditionally, Hotai is regards as one of th ...
Group as the two largest Taiwanese automotive companies. Yulon created a new brand to sell self-designed cars, Luxgen, in 2010. As of 2017 it had a Revenue of NT$99 billion (US$3.4 billion) and about 12,680 employees.


History

Incorporated in September 1953 as a machinery
company A company, abbreviated as co., is a legal entity representing an association of people, whether natural, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common purpose and unite to achieve specific, declared ...
by Ching-Ling Yen, today Yulon Motor Co., Ltd. is part of the Yulon Group, a Taiwanese
conglomerate Conglomerate or conglomeration may refer to: * Conglomerate (company) * Conglomerate (geology) * Conglomerate (mathematics) In popular culture: * The Conglomerate (American group), a production crew and musical group founded by Busta Rhymes ** ...
. The company is associated with the creation of a Taiwanese auto industry aided by its government. This pattern is being again realized by Malaysia's
Proton A proton is a stable subatomic particle, symbol , H+, or 1H+ with a positive electric charge of +1 ''e'' elementary charge. Its mass is slightly less than that of a neutron and 1,836 times the mass of an electron (the proton–electron mass ...
. During 1953–1960 an era of "passive protection" reigned and Yulon grew with the assistance of protectionary tariffs of 40–60%.Chen, Chia-wen, p. 24 Parts and components received substantially lower tariffs to help fledgling carmakers. Early on, Yulon looked for foreign partners, but it wasn't until 1956 that an American company,
Willys Willys (pronounced , "Willis" ) was a brand name used by Willys–Overland Motors, an American automobile company, founded by John North Willys. It was best known for its design and production of World War II era and later military jeeps (MBs ...
, agreed to share technology. The next year Yulon began its long-lasting partnership with Nissan.Chen, Chia-wen
, p. 26
While the first Yulon model was a 1956 jeep, with engine production beginning in September of that year, passenger car assembly only started in 1960 with the
Bluebird The bluebirds are a North American group of medium-sized, mostly insectivorous or omnivorous birds in the order of Passerines in the genus ''Sialia'' of the thrush family (Turdidae). Bluebirds are one of the few thrush genera in the Americas. ...
after an agreement with
Nissan , trading as Nissan Motor Corporation and often shortened to Nissan, is a Japanese multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Nishi-ku, Yokohama, Japan. The company sells its vehicles under the Nissan, Infiniti, and Datsun bra ...
was signed in 1957. While primarily building Nissan models and other cars under license, Yulon has designed and produced at least one original family car, the 1986 Feeling 101. (Yulon began producing wholly original products again starting in 2009 with the debut of its Luxgen brand.) Until the introduction of the Nissan branded Cefiro A32 (in February 1996), the various license-built Nissans had all been branded Yue Loong (Yulon after 1992).


Assembler

With production bases located in China,
Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...
and
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the no ...
, Yulon makes license-built versions of many automakers' models. The companies it manufactures in cooperation with include
Chrysler Stellantis North America (officially FCA US and formerly Chrysler ()) is one of the " Big Three" automobile manufacturers in the United States, headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan. It is the American subsidiary of the multinational automotiv ...
,
Geely Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co., Ltd (ZGH), commonly known as Geely (吉利 "auspicious"), is a Chinese multinational automotive company headquartered in Hangzhou, Zhejiang. The company is privately held by Chinese billionaire entrepreneur ...
, GM,
Mercedes Benz Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to as Mercedes and sometimes as Benz, is a German luxury and commercial vehicle automotive brand established in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a Mercedes-Benz Group subsidiary established in 2019) is headquartere ...
,
Mitsubishi The is a group of autonomous Japanese multinational companies in a variety of industries. Founded by Yatarō Iwasaki in 1870, the Mitsubishi Group historically descended from the Mitsubishi zaibatsu, a unified company which existed from 1870 ...
and
Nissan , trading as Nissan Motor Corporation and often shortened to Nissan, is a Japanese multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Nishi-ku, Yokohama, Japan. The company sells its vehicles under the Nissan, Infiniti, and Datsun bra ...
. It assembles most of the vehicles from complete knock down kits. The company has used its design and engineering expertise to localize its manufactures to suit Taiwanese tastes. While Yulon continues to manufacture vehicles for sale on the Taiwanese market, as of 2010 it also imports
Nissan , trading as Nissan Motor Corporation and often shortened to Nissan, is a Japanese multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Nishi-ku, Yokohama, Japan. The company sells its vehicles under the Nissan, Infiniti, and Datsun bra ...
, Infiniti, and
Renault Groupe Renault ( , , , also known as the Renault Group in English; legally Renault S.A.) is a French multinational automobile manufacturer established in 1899. The company produces a range of cars and vans, and in the past has manufactured ...
models for sale in the domestic Taiwanese market.


Nissan

Yulon has maintained a strong cooperative relationship with Nissan since 1957. After the 1985 passing of a Taiwanese act, the Automobile Industry Development Act (AIDA), Yulon accepted Nissan taking a 25% stake. Nissan maintained their ownership in Yulon until at least 2003 when a restructuring created Yulon-Nissan Motor Co Ltd, a separate company that focuses on complementing Nissan's mainland China activities with research, design, and manufacturing assistance.


Brands

Yulon has marketed cars under two in-house brands: Luxgen (released in 2009) and Tobe (released in 2010, ended 2013).


Luxgen

The first Taiwanese auto brand, Luxgen (), was created by Yulon in 2008. On 18 August 2009, Yulon revealed the first car for its new Luxgen brand. Luxgen cars are developed under Yulon's R&D center HAITEC, using engines and transmissions provided by other companies. As of 2010, Luxgen products are sold in Taiwan and
Oman Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of ...
.


Tobe

Yulon's second brand, Tobe (), was established in 2009. From 2010 to 2013, Tobe sells its only model, a re-badged, re-designed Geely Panda/LC called the Tobe M’Car, in Taiwan and Vietnam. Plans to enter other emerging markets exist. However, poor sales and the brand image of being a rebadged
Geely Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co., Ltd (ZGH), commonly known as Geely (吉利 "auspicious"), is a Chinese multinational automotive company headquartered in Hangzhou, Zhejiang. The company is privately held by Chinese billionaire entrepreneur ...
led to the end of the brand in 2013.


Production bases

Yulon has a number of production bases in several countries, including China,
Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
,
Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...
until 2013,
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the no ...
and probably
Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...
.


China

Initial production base investment in China for Yulon was buying 5% ownership in a Southern China production base in the 1990s. 2000 saw another, larger Chinese production base investment this time of 25%. The latter acquisition was probably in Fengsheng Motors, a Dongfeng Motors subsidiary. As of 2003, Yulon had 25% ownership in the subsidiary yielding access to production bases in Huadu District,
Guangzhou Guangzhou (, ; ; or ; ), also known as Canton () and Chinese postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Kwongchow or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, sou ...
, Guangdong and Xiangfan, Hubei.


Philippines

In 1999 Yulon bought a 75% ownership of Nissan's newly built production base in
Santa Rosa Santa Rosa is the Italian, Portuguese and Spanish name for Saint Rose. Santa Rosa may also refer to: Places Argentina * Santa Rosa, Mendoza, a city * Santa Rosa, Tinogasta, Catamarca * Santa Rosa, Valle Viejo, Catamarca *Santa Rosa, La Pampa * S ...
, Laguna state.Increasing Globalization and AFTA in 2003: What are the Prospects for the Philippine Automotive Industry?
Rafaelita A.M. Aldaba. Philippine Institute for Development Studies. Page 35, "Nissan: Worriedly Awaiting the Signal from Japan".
This occurred after the Nissan Motor Company pulled out of the Philippines after the Asian market crises caused poor sales in the country. In 2013, it was announced that Nissan Motor Company of Japan will be again taking over Nissan in the Philippines. This comes after dismal sales and poor model updates from Yulon Taiwan, which ranked Nissan Philippines well below local rivals from Toyota, Mitsubishi, and Hyundai—not reflective of its ranking as no. 6 global carmaker.


Joint ventures

All of Yulon's joint ventures in Mainland China are with Dongfeng Motor.


Dongfeng Yulon

A joint venture with Chinese automaker Dongfeng, called Dongfeng Yulon (or Dongfeng Luxgen), was set up in 2009 and will manufacture Yulon's Luxgen models in China after the completion of a planned production base in
Hangzhou Hangzhou ( or , ; , , Standard Chinese, Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), also Chinese postal romanization, romanized as Hangchow, is the capital and most populous city of Zhejiang, China. It is located in the northwestern part of the prov ...
in 2011. The cars will be sold in China. In July 8 of 2019 Luxgen signed MoU with Mongolian company AGT Auto to build its first car assembly factory in Mongolia. Dongfeng Yulon entered bankruptcy in 2020.


Fengshen Automobile

In 2003, Yulon had part ownership in a subsidiary of Dongfeng Motor, Fengshen Automobile Co Ltd.


See also

*
List of companies of Taiwan Taiwan maintains a stable industrial economy as a result of economic growth and industrialization during the late 20th century, being dubbed as one of the Four Asian Tigers along with Hong Kong, Singapore and South Korea. It is a member of both ...
*
List of Taiwanese automakers This page is about auto makers in Taiwan. This list does not include dealers or importing companies. This page only features vehicles and brands manufactured or assembled in Taiwan. Hotai Motor Hotai Motor, through its affiliate Kuozui Motors, ...
* List of Nissan vehicles Yulon Motors has built under license * List of motor scooter manufacturers and brands


References


External links


Yulon Motor
– English official site {{Automotive industry in Taiwan 1953 establishments in Taiwan Car manufacturers of Taiwan Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1953