| Guangxi Automobile Group Co., Ltd | |
| Native Name: | Chinese: 广西汽车集团有限公司 |
| Type: | State-owned enterprise |
| Industry: | Automotive |
| Predecessor: |
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| Location City: | Liuzhou, Guangxi |
| Location Country: | China |
| Area Served: | Worldwide |
| Products: | Electric vehicles, trucks, buses, engines |
| Owners: | State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of Government of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region |
| Subsid: |
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Guangxi Automobile Group, previously known as Liuzhou Wuling Motors (柳州五菱), or Wuling Group (五菱集团), is a state-owned automotive enterprise based in Liuzhou, Guangxi, China, established in May 2015 and with a history dating back to 1958.[1] It engages in automobile manufacturing, engine manufacturing, and auto parts manufacturing.
Guangxi Automobile Group currently operates Wuling brand (commercial branch), and Linxys brand, an electric commercial vehicle centered brand.
Guangxi Automobile Group also licenses Wuling brand to SAIC-GM-Wuling, the joint venture, to build passenger vehicles. [2]
Over the course of more than 60 years, the company underwent three transformative phases, evolving from tractor production to minivan manufacturing and then to group-based operations. In 1958, Liuzhou Power Machinery Factory officially settled in Hexi Village, a suburb of Liuzhou. It began to produce marine engines, and later independently developed and produced tractors.[3] The predecessor of Guangxi Automobile Group was the Liuzhou Tractor Factory, established in 1961, initially focused on producing the Fengshou 37 tractor. By the mid-1970s, the Liuzhou Tractor Factory had become the only local factory among the top eight tractor factories nationwide. However, with the Reform and Opening-up of China, tractor sales declined, leading the factory into difficulties. In the face of adversity, the Liuzhou Tractor Factory successfully transitioned from tractor manufacturing to minivan production.[4]
In the early 1980s, the Chinese minivan market was still in its infancy. In 1980, the Liuzhou Tractor Factory director, Ding Shu, secured a minivan prototype. Despite lacking precise measurement tools and manufacturing equipment, Wuling employees, through persistent efforts, manually measured, drew blueprints, and machined parts using mismatched machine tools. After two years of reverse engineering of Mitsubishi Minicab, they developed and produced China's first minivan, the Wuling LZ110. This achievement granted Wuling the domestic production qualification for minivans, leading to the renaming of the Liuzhou Tractor Factory to Liuzhou Light Vehicle. Wuling minivans quickly rose to prominence in the domestic market, becoming a leading enterprise in the Chinese minivan industry.[5] From 1988 onwards, after Liuzhou Light Vehicle purchased license from Mitsubishi, Wuling vans are no longer illegal copies made on a large scale.[6] In 1988, Wuling manages to take over the remaining stock and production line of Citroen Visa when the production comes to an end. The first 200 Visas have bodywork from Europe, but Citroen does not send any engines, so a 1-liter three-cylinder engine from Tianjin Xiali is mounted. Just under 1000 Chinese Visas are sold between 1991 and 1994, after which Wuling's passenger car production comes to a halt again.[6]
In 1996, Liuzhou Wuling Automobile Co., Ltd. was established, signifying the formal establishment of Wuling Group. In 1998, Wuling minivans reached a production and sales volume of 100,000 units, making it a leading enterprise in the domestic minivan industry.
With intensified market competition, Wuling Group faced challenges in terms of funds, management, and technology. To adapt to market changes, Wuling Group collaborated with SAIC Motor Corporation and General Motors to establish the first three-way joint venture in China, the SAIC-GM-Wuling Automobile (SGMW).
SGMW was formally established on November 18, 2002. The shareholding ratio of the three parties is: SAIC 50.1%, GM 34%, and Wuling Group 15.9%.
In 2009, Wuling Group sold GM an additional 10% in the joint venture order to introduce passenger car technology from GM for the Baojun brand. The current shareholding ratios of the three parties are SAIC 50.1%, GM 44%, and Wuling 5.9%.[7]
After the establishment of SGMW, the original vehicle manufacturing-related assets of Wuling Group were moved into the joint venture. Wuling Group set up a new company the Liuzhou Wuling Automobile Industry (Wuling Industry 五菱工业), to undertake auto parts manufacturing for SAIC-GM-Wuling and became a downstream enterprise of SAIC-GM-Wuling.
This marked a new development stage for Wuling Group, presenting both challenges and opportunities as it split into "two Wulings" (SAIC-GM-Wuling and Wuling Group) during this transformative period. SAIC-GM-Wuling is responsible for vehicle manufacturing, and Wuling Group (through Wuling Industry) is responsible for parts supply
For Wuling Group, the establishment of SAIC-GM-Wuling (SGMW) has sparked widespread controversy. [8] [9] [10] [11]
However, the joint venture also brought new chances.
After Wuling Motors has largely sold its automotive branch to SGMW, in the following years, Wuling Group built a large industrial complex. It splits its activities into three major groups.[6]
In 2001 Wuling Motors United Development was formed. This is the branch that focuses on making all kinds of auto parts. It sets up several joint ventures with reputable international suppliers in the following years, the most famous probably being the French Faurecia company.
In 2003, Liuzhou Wuling Special Vehicle Manufacturing was set up. This business unit makes all kinds of vehicles, also under the Wuling name. This concerns ATVs, carts you encounter on the golf course, airport, or amusement park, modifications of commercial vehicles, and electric buses.
In 2006, the Liuzhou Machinery Factory was renamed as Liuzhou Wuling Liuji Power Company, the company grows into a major supplier of combustion engines. The main customers are the various companies and joint ventures of the SAIC conglomerate, but Wuling Liuji also supplies numerous other Chinese car manufacturers.
In 2007 a major restructuring and partial privatization of Wuling Group followed. The three business units mentioned above consolidated into an umbrella holding company called Liuzhou Wuling Automobile Industry Company, 49% owned by Wuling Group (Guangxi Province) and 51% by Hong Kong investment company Dragon Hill.
In May 2015, under the guidance of Guangxi Government, with Wuling Group as the main entity, several companies including Liuzhou Fangxin, Liuzhou Chantu, Liuzhou Yinhai Aluminum Industry, Guilin National Investment, and Liuzhou Weipeng were introduced as participating shareholders. Wuling Group was officially reorganized and renamed as Guangxi Automobile Group. It controls 60.5% of the shares in the Wuling Automobile Industry. Dragon Hill retains about 13.5%, and the remaining 26 % is traded on the exchange.
Guangxi Automobile Group has now established manufacturing bases in Liuzhou, Guilin, Qingdao, Chongqing, and Guiyang, forming a coordinated network between the northern and southern China. The company has also set sail internationally, establishing overseas component production bases in Indonesia and India.[12]
See main article: article and Wuling Motors. Wuling Motor Group Holdings (Wuling Motor), a listed entity of Guangxi Automotive Group in Hong Kong (HK.00305). Currently Guangxi Automotive Group holds 56.54% of the stake.[13]
Liuzhou Wuling Automobile Industry was founded in 2007, it is a company jointly established by Guangxi Automobile Group and Wuling Motor Group Holdings (Wuling Motor) by integrating its original auto parts, engines, and commercial vehicle manufacture bossiness. As of 2023, Guangxi Automotive Group holds 60.9% of the stake.
Founded in 2021, Wuling New Energy is the subsidiary for developing and producing electric vehicles. New Energy. Guangxi Automobile Group holds 72.04% of the stake, Wuling Motors holds 13.76%, and Wuling Automobile Industry holds 13.51%.
On September 4, 2022, Wuling New Energy and Japan ASF Co., Ltd. held the mass production contract signing ceremony of the G050 microvan project, which marks Guangxi Automobile Group vehicles entering the Japanese market for the first time. Deliveries started in May 2023. [14]
The Linxys brand was officially released at the end of June 2023.
See main article: article and SAIC-GM-Wuling. SAIC-GM-Wuling is a joint venture between SAIC Motor, General Motors, and Guangxi Automotive Group.
See main article: article and Wuling Motors.
Linxys (菱势) is a brand operated by Wuling New Energy for electric commercial vehicles.
| 2010 | 33,636 | 33,636 | - | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 37,000 | 37,000 | - | |
| 2012 | 40,000 | 40,000 | - | |
| 2013 | 47,000 | 47,000 | - | |
| 2014 | 41,000 | 41,000 | - | |
| 2015 | 43,000 | 43,000 | - | |
| 2016 | 43,000 | 43,000 | - | |
| 2017 | 50,000 | 50,000 | - | |
| 2018 | 110,200 | 110,200 | - | |
| 2019 | 116,000 | 116,000 | - | |
| 2020 | 115,000 | 115,000 | - | |
| 2021 | 98,000 | 98,000 | - | |
| 2022 | 75,900 | 67,600 | 8,300 | |
| 2023 | 43,800 | 33,800 | 10,000 |