PARIS — SsangYong Motor, Korea's smallest automaker, unveiled its C200 compact crossover at the 2008 Paris Auto Show, with plans to kick off sales in Asia and Europe in late 2009.
Controlled by China's Shanghai Motor, SsangYong has focused mainly on production of body-on-frame trucks, SUVs and cars, many of them licensed earlier from Mercedes-Benz.
The C200 breaks ground for the company in several respects. The vehicle was designed by Italdesign/Giugiaro and is SsangYong's first monocoque-bodied product, as well as the first to feature front-wheel drive.
The Paris concept was powered by a new 175-horsepower 2.0-liter turbodiesel mated to a six-speed automatic transmission. The production version of the C200 also will offer a gasoline engine, as well as a four-wheel-drive option.
Shanghai Auto now effectively controls the patents and intellectual property of the former MG Rover group, after acquiring rival Nanjing Auto earlier this year. Shanghai Auto expects to use several Rover platforms and engines in future SsangYong products, with Giugiaro said to be providing exterior designs.
What this means to you: Shanghai Auto has promised a massive injection of capital and technology into SsangYong, with 20 new models said to be planned, but sources in Korea say there is little evidence so far that the investment funds have started flowing from China. — Paul Lienert, Correspondent
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