Special coverage: Auto China 2006   Related publication:        Related readings: Chinese carmakers muscle competitors The man behind expo Demand for autos moves into high gear China to continue auto export expansion: Vice Premier

The explosion of homegrown brands in the Chinese auto industry in the five years since the country entered the World Trade Organization has made a mockery of worries expressed in 2001 that international competition would harm the fledgling local auto industry when the country cut customs duties and opened up its domestic market.
According to the organizers, homegrown brands account for one third of the 572 vehicles on display, the biggest share in the history of the biennial event.

First Automobile Works (FAW), the country's largest automaker, wheeled in 29 vehicles and 10 of them are homegrown brands. The luxury Red Flag HQ3 -- in its stretched and bulletproof versions -- was the highlight.

The new Red Flag, no longer based on the old Audi 100 designs, was developed to rejuvenate the country's image.

In 1958, it took FAW only 33 days to churn out China's first V8limousine - later known as the Red Flag CA72 - for late Chinese leader Mao Zedong. The model made a great stir when it appeared at the National Day celebration ceremony in the capital city in 1959.

Zhu Yanfeng, FAW general manager, said his company will sell two million vehicles in 2010, half of which will be homegrown brands, worth a total of 200 billion yuan (25 billion U.S. dollars).

Visitors look at a redflag3 during the 2006 Beijing International Automotive Exhibition in Beijing ,capital of China, November 19, 2006. [chinadaily.com.cn]

The state-owned auto giant plans to transform itself from a loss-making enterprise into a competitive one, with priority given to developing homegrown brands and earning profit, said Zhu.

At present, FAW's own brands are mainly cheaper models manufactured in a Tianjin-based plant and priced at about 50,000 yuan each, according to Shanghai Securities News.

Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC) took part in the exhibition with the highly anticipated Roewe sedan, the company's first own-brand high-end model. Up to now, SAIC's high-end models all came from its joint venture partners General Motors and Volkswagen.

SAIC expects to produce two million vehicles a year by 2010, including 600,000 cars marketed under local brands, said company president Hu Maoyuan.

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