Nanjing Automobile is a state-owned enterprise with a history that dates from 1947,Nanjing Automobile (Group) Corporation
businessweek.com making it the oldest of the

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

automobile manufacturer The automotive industry comprises a wide range of company, companies and organizations involved in the design, Business development, development, manufacturing, marketing, and selling of motor vehicles. It is one of the world's largest industry ...

sRover sold to Nanjing Automobile
bbc.com, Saturday, 23 July 2005, 09:36 GMT although the comparatively younger FAW Automotive was the first to make cars. The group's products have included cars, trucks, and buses. Nanjing Auto merged with the much larger SAIC in 2007REFILE-UPDATE 2-SAIC to make MG 6 in UK, upbeat on own-brand car
reuters.com, Wed Nov 25, 2009 5:04am EST becoming a subsidiary of that company.

History

Civil-war era

The history of the corporation dates to 1947 during the

Chinese Civil War The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led government of the Republic of China and forces of the Chinese Communist Party, continuing intermittently since 1 August 1927 until 7 December 1949 with a Communist victory on m ...

. In the July 1949, a repair service center attached to the East China Field Army (which later became the Third Field Army) took control of an automobile workshop in

Nanjing Nanjing (; , Mandarin pronunciation: ), alternately romanized as Nanking, is the capital of Jiangsu province of the People's Republic of China. It is a sub-provincial city, a megacity, and the second largest city in the East China region. T ...

, Jiangsu province, former capital of the Republic of China, after the People's Liberation Army had conquered the city.

Early light-truck production (Yue Jin brand)

In the 1950s, oversight of the small automobile workshop that would become Nanjing Automobile was transferred to China's First Ministry of Industrial Machinery. It began making China's first domestically produced light-duty trucks in 1958, the 2½ ton NJ-130, based on the

GAZ-51 The GAZ-51 (nickname ''Gazon'') was a Soviet truck manufactured by GAZ. Its first prototypes were produced before the end of World War II and has been influenced by Studebaker US6. The mass production started in 1946. A 2.5 ton 4×2 standard var ...

from the Soviet Union. The Ministry branded the truck ''Guerin'' (跃进牌汽车 - literally meaning "Leap Forward") and approved the establishment of Nanjing Automobile Works that same year. Truck production continued until July 1987 at which point 161,988 units of various models including the NJ-130, NJ-230, NJ-135, and NJ-134 had been built. ''Guerin'' later became Yue Jin while the Mandarin name remains ''跃进''.

Technology transfers

Nanjing Auto has repeatedly used

technology transfer Technology transfer (TT), also called transfer of technology (TOT), is the process of transferring (disseminating) technology from the person or organization that owns or holds it to another person or organization, in an attempt to transform invent ...

s to make the company more

competitive Competition is a rivalry where two or more parties strive for a common goal which cannot be shared: where one's gain is the other's loss (an example of which is a zero-sum game). Competition can arise between entities such as organisms, indivi ...

Mid-1980s

In the mid-1980s, Nanjing Auto purchased designs and moulds from Isuzu and obtained technology from the Italian Iveco, the commercial vehicle unit of Fiat, participating in a spate of technology transfer deals circa 1980 that saw Japanese designs and machinery sold to Chinese buyers.Globalization of the automobile industry: the United States, Japan, and the People's Republic of China Pg. 140
By Xiaohua Yang, Google Book Search, 1995 The Iveco purchases allowed Nanjing Auto to produce a version of the Iveco Daily.

2000s

In 2000 the design, and possibly the tooling, for SEAT's first generation Ibiza was purchased and the car sold in China as the

Nanjing Yuejin Soyat The Soyat is a subcompact hatchback built by the Wuxi Soyat (南汽新雅途) branch of Nanjing Automobile (Group) Corporation. The car is based on the original 1984 ('System Porsche') version of the SEAT Ibiza Mark I (1984-1993). History ...

.SEAT Ibiza celebrates 25th Anniversary
seatcupra.net, Friday, 08 May 2009

MG Rover

Acquisition of MG Rover Group assets

Nanjing Auto acquired some assets of

MG Rover Group MG Rover Group was the last domestically owned mass-production car manufacturer in the British motor industry. The company was formed when BMW sold the car-making and engine manufacturing assets of the original Rover Group to the Phoenix Con ...

and Powertrain Ltd in 2005 after the group had entered

administration Administration may refer to: Management of organizations * Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal ** Administrative Assistant, traditionally known as a Secretary, or also known as an administrative officer, admini ...

. According to the purchase agreement, Nanjing Auto bought MG, Austin, and some other dormant British car brands, and the production technology and equipment for the

MG ZT The MG ZT is a car which was produced by MG Rover from 2001 to 2005. It was offered in saloon and estate versions, the latter designated as the MG ZT-T. Styling is similar to the Rover 75, upon which it was based, although various modifications, ...

and MG TF models. Some equipment and

blueprint A blueprint is a reproduction of a technical drawing or engineering drawing using a contact print process on light-sensitive sheets. Introduced by Sir John Herschel in 1842, the process allowed rapid and accurate production of an unlimited number ...

s were repossessed by

Honda is a Japanese public multinational conglomerate manufacturer of automobiles, motorcycles, and power equipment, headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Honda has been the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer since 1959, reaching a producti ...

, as its

intellectual property Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, cop ...

was used in some of MG Rover vehicles, in particular, the

Rover 45 The Rover 400 Series, and later the Rover 45, are a series of small family cars that were produced by the British manufacturer Rover from 1990 to 2005. The cars were co-developed as part of Rover's collaboration with Honda. The first-generation ...

and

MG ZS The MG ZS is an automobile nameplate of MG used for two different vehicles: * MG ZS (2001), a small family car manufactured between 2001 and 2005 by MG Rover * MG ZS (crossover), a subcompact crossover manufactured since 2017 by MG Motor, a subsi ...

, which were based on the

Honda Domani The () is a car made by Honda and marketed in east Asia, including Japan. The car was mutually developed during Rover's collaboration with Honda. It was introduced in November 1992, replacing the Concerto in Honda's lineup, although that mo ...

MG production plan

Nanjing Auto decided to establish production bases for MGs at Longbridge and

. A plan to open another factory in Ardmore, Oklahoma, USA was not realized. The production of engines, transmissions and medium and low end vehicle products would be transferred to China, where a supply chain would also be set up. A production facility would be retained in the UK, with the original Longbridge site integrated to resume the production of MG TF sport cars. Meanwhile, by making use of the R&D capability and personnel in the UK as well as that of China, the

Euro IV The European emission standards are vehicle emission standards for pollution from the use of new land surface vehicles sold in the European Union and EEA member states and the UK, and ships in EU waters. The standards are defined in a seri ...

engines and a new generation of vehicles would be developed and then produced in both China and the UK. In 2007, Nanjing Auto planned to build 13,000 cars based on the Rover 75 / MG ZT sedan, renamed

MG 7 The MG7 is a mid-size sports sedan that was built by MG Motor between 2007 and 2013, derived from its British predecessors, Rover 75 and MG ZT to suit Chinese manufacturing and sales. The name was resurrected in 2022 with the launch of the seco ...

. These cars would be mostly sedans (saloons), plus some MG 7T estate cars. It also planned 3,000 MG TF convertible sports cars.

Pukou plant

The MG Factory of Nanjing Auto is located in the High-level New Technology Economic Development Zone in

Pukou Pukou District (), is one of 11 districts of Nanjing, the capital of Jiangsu province, China, lying northwest across the Yangtze River from downtown Nanjing. The district was formerly the southern terminus of the Tianjin-Pukou Railway; railcars ...

(a new district of

). The capacity of the Nanjing-MG Factory will reach 200,000 autos, 250,000 engines and 100,000 gear-boxes. The initial MG range consisted of just the MG 7 and the MG TF. Nanjing Auto also started production of the

Rover Streetwise The Rover Streetwise is a compact British car made by MG Rover. It was based on the Rover 25, but had an increased ride height and chunkier bumpers. The car was marketed by Rover as an 'urban on-roader'. Production ended in April 2005, due to t ...

-based

MG 3 The MG3 is a small car produced by the Chinese automotive company SAIC. The first generation, marketed as the MG3 SW, is based on the British made Rover Streetwise, which itself was based on the Rover 25, while the second generation, introdu ...

SW in 2008.

Longbridge plant

The plant at Longbridge was for many years one of the most important car making factories in Europe as well as the largest British-owned car manufacturing plant, making Austin cars for most of the 20th century. After the Abingdon plant closed in 1980, Longbridge was also from 1982 the home of MG and then of the Rover marque which gradually replaced Austin in the late 1980s. The site is owned by St. Modwen Properties which acquired in two deals in 2003 and 2004 for £57.5 million and leased it back to MG Rover Group. A 33-year deal was signed in February 2006 between Nanjing Auto and St. Modwen Properties covering the lease of 105 acres (a quarter of the total area of the Longbridge plant) but including the two main car assembly plants, the paint shop and administrative offices at a rent of around £1.8 million a year. £10 million was estimated to be needed to reopen the factory. With the merger of Nanjing Auto and SAIC, ownership of the Longbridge plant became a SAIC controlled facility.

Chang Da

Chang Da (畅达) is an NEV sub-brand of Nanjing Automobile and SAIC. Established in 2009, Chang Da has been developing electric light logistics vans for "the last mile" delivery. The first product, Chang Da H9 is based on the structure of FAW Jiabao V80 (佳宝V80) and took three years to develop before being launched in 2017. The Chang Da H9 could be either bought or leased in fleets.

Joint ventures

Nanjing Auto has had at least two joint ventures with the Italian automaker Fiat. First, there was a 50/50 joint venture set up in 1999 that collapsed sometime in 2007. This was followed by Naveco, a joint venture with Fiat's commercial vehicles unit, Iveco, established in 1996.

Naveco

In 1996, Nanjing Auto established Naveco (Nanjing Iveco Automobile Co LtdNANJING IVECO ROLLS OUT NEW YUEJIN LIGHT TRUCK FOR EXPORT
findarticles.com; AsiaInfo Services, 06-28-20077) with Iveco,The New Naveco is celebrated in Nanjing
Iveco Official Site, 29.10.07 Fiat's commercial vehicles unit. The joint venture initially manufactured a version of the Iveco Daily for sale in the Chinese market, and, as of 1995, it continued to make light trucks but had added diesel engines as well.Globalization of the automobile industry: the United States, Japan, and the People's Republic of China Pg. 159
By Xiaohua Yang, Google Book Search, 1995 The company acquired the truck manufacturing assets of Yuejin Motor Co sometime in 2007.Fiat's Fidis Sale Would Push Net Above EU1 Billion, Chief Says
bloomberg.com, September 14, 2006 10:25 EDT In July 2017, Naveco started production of the new Iveco China Daily in the new factory of Qiaolin,

Naveco products include are listed below: * Iveco Daily Ousheng ()- Facelift based on the fifth generation Iveco Daily. * Iveco Power Daily ()- Facelift based on the third generation Iveco Daily. * Iveco Xindeyi ()- Extended production of the second generation Iveco Daily *Iveco Ouba *Iveco Venice

Nanjing Fiat

Another joint venture was Nanjing Fiat, established with Fiat in 1999. This Italian automaker quit the company in 2007 citing a lack of investment on the part of its Chinese partner. As of 2006, it was producing four models: the Perla and

Siena Siena ( , ; lat, Sena Iulia) is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena. The city is historically linked to commercial and banking activities, having been a major banking center until the 13th and 14th centur ...

sedans,

Palio Palio is the name given in Italy to an annual athletic contest, very often of a historical character, pitting the neighbourhoods of a town or the hamlets of a ''comune'' against each other. Typically, they are fought in costume and commemorate som ...

, compact and Palio Weekend station wagon. Most of Nanjing Fiat's design and tooling was taken over by Zotye in 2008. The company was located in the

Jiangning District Jiangning District () is one of 11 districts of Nanjing, the capital of Jiangsu province, China. The District has a population of 1,025,000 and an area of 1600 square kilometers. It includes southern and south-eastern suburbs of Nanjing. Jiangnin ...

's Economic & Technological Development Zone in

Internal divisions

As the company further developed its management, four complete production ecosystems were created.

Yuejin Light Truck Co

A major manufacturing base of Nanjing Auto,Nanjing Auto gears up to expand
chinadaily.com, 2003-09-03 it makes light-duty trucks under the ''Yuejin'' brand. The production of Isuzu-based SUVs and pickups was transferred to the Wuxi Soyat branch in 2005. Sometime in 2007, Yuejin's truck-making business was merged with the Iveco-Nanjing Auto joint venture Naveco, which continued to sell under the ''Yuejin'' brand. Located in an economic development zone in

Huishan District Huishan District () is one of five urban districts of Wuxi, Jiangsu province, China. The total area of the district is 327.12 km2. In 2006 the population was 388,957. Administrative divisions In the present, Huishan District has 5 subdistric ...

Wuxi Wuxi (, ) is a city in southern Jiangsu province, eastern China, by car to the northwest of downtown Shanghai, between Changzhou and Suzhou. In 2017 it had a population of 3,542,319, with 6,553,000 living in the entire prefecture-level city ar ...

, (about 150 km east of Nanjing) the Wuxi Branch of Yuejin Automobile Co is a Nanjing Auto production base, and it may be the newest having been built sometime after 2003. Production of the Junda SUVs and pickups was taken over from Nanjing's Yuejin brand in 2005. By 2008, after SAIC's takeover of Nanjing, Wuxi Soyat production came to a halt. The factory is now used by SAIC to build the

Maxus SAIC Maxus Automotive Co., Ltd. trading as Maxus and sometimes known by the pinyin transcription of its Chinese name, Datong (大通) is a Chinese vehicle brand. Currently, it is a commercial and passenger vehicle manufacturer being a wholly ...

commercial van. File:Yuejin NJ1080.JPG, Yuejin NJ1080 in Russia File:Yuejin NJ-1063 2008 (17326911033).jpg, 2008 Yuejin NJ-1063 flatbed in Chile File:Yuejin NJ-812 2011 (15750510596).jpg, 2011 Yuejin NJ-812 in Chile File:Yuejin NJ 713 Crew Cab 2014 (14038789260).jpg, 2014 Yuejin NJ-713 Crew Cab File:Yue Jin Shangjun X100 series 001.jpg, Yuejin Shangjun () X100 series in China File:Yuejin Xiaofuxing S50 front 8.16.18.jpg, Yuejin Xiaofuxing () S50 series in China

Brands

Car brands owned by Nanjing Auto include: * ''Soyat'' - the

, a Chinese version of the first generation

SEAT Ibiza The SEAT Ibiza is a supermini car that has been manufactured by Spanish car manufacturer SEAT since 1984. It is SEAT's best-selling car. The Ibiza is named after the Spanish island of Ibiza and was the second SEAT model to be named after a Spa ...

, is sold under the brand. Discontinued in 2008. * MG (MG Rover Group and Powertrain Ltd assets acquired by Nanjing Auto include other brands as well: Wolseley, Austin,

Morris Morris may refer to: Places Australia *St Morris, South Australia, place in South Australia Canada * Morris Township, Ontario, now part of the municipality of Morris-Turnberry * Rural Municipality of Morris, Manitoba ** Morris, Manitob ...

Vanden Plas Vanden Plas is the name of coachbuilders who produced bodies for specialist and up-market automobile manufacturers. Latterly the name became a top-end luxury model designation for cars from subsidiaries of British Leyland and the Rover Group, ...

(outside the US & Canada), American Austin,

Princess Princess is a regal rank and the feminine equivalent of prince (from Latin '' princeps'', meaning principal citizen). Most often, the term has been used for the consort of a prince, or for the daughter of a king or prince. Princess as a subs ...

and Sterling) * ''Yuejin'' - a commercial vehicle brand

Legal ownership

Sometime before the 1980s, Nanjing Auto was under the joint jurisdiction of both the central and local governments. As of 2003, this vehicle manufacturer was owned by

Yuejin Automobile Group Nanjing Automobile is a state-owned enterprise with a history that dates from 1947,

Jiangsu Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with its ca ...

, which held just over fifty-per cent ownership of the company at this time, and two State firms created to dispose of non-performing bank loans, China Huarong Asset Management and China Cinda Asset Management. Nanjing Auto is now a subsidiary of SAIC, having been merged with the much larger automaker in 2007.

SAIC merger

A result of Chinese State policy to encourage

mergers and acquisitions Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are business transactions in which the ownership of companies, other business organizations, or their operating units are transferred to or consolidated with another company or business organization. As an aspect ...

in the domestic automobile market, SAIC Motor and the state-owned parent company of Nanjing Auto, Yuejin Automotive Group, finalized a long-planned merger in December 2007.SAIC and Yuejin Auto merger creates Chinese car colossus
xinhuanet.com, 2007-12-26 Fitful merger negotiations between the two companies had begun in 2001, and the tie-up was widely anticipated. Prior to the merger, but bidding alongside SAIC, Nanjing Auto purchased the remaining assets of British group MG Rover for near US$100 million.AUTOSHOW-UPDATE 1-Brilliance plans US sales as early as 2007
reuters.com, Mon Apr 23, 2007 3:22am EDT