SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea's second-largest carmaker, Kia Motors Corp., said Monday its Chinese joint venture launched a new passenger car to be made and sold only in China.
Dongfeng Yueda Kia Motor Co., a joint venture with China's Dongfeng Automobile and Yueda, unveiled the compact sedan Qianlima. The company expects to sell 2,000 units of Qianlima this month and aims to sell 50,000 units next year.
Dongfeng Yueda Kia hopes to take 5 percent of China's passenger car market with the new car. Kia has a 50 percent stake in the joint venture, and Dongfeng and Yueda hold 25 percent stakes each.
The company plans to produce another model of Qianlima, equipped with a slightly smaller engine, in July next year. It currently has production capacity of 50,000 units a year.