Brilliance Auto

Brilliance China Automotive Holdings Limited

Type	Public
Traded as	FWB: CBA, SEHK: 1114
Industry	Automotive
Headquarters	Shenyang, Liaoning, China
Key people	Qi Yumin (Chief Executive Officer and President)
Products	Automobiles, automotive components
Website	www.brillianceauto.com

Brilliance Auto (officially Brilliance China Automotive Holdings Limited) is an automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Shenyang, China.^[1] Its products include automobiles, microvans, and automotive components.^[2] It operates a car-making joint venture with BMW and uses Toyota technology in some of its microvans.^[3]

In 2010, it is reported that Brilliance Auto has an annual production capacity of 800,000 vehicles^[4] although capacity additions may have come on-line since. In 2012, the company manufactured 944,000 vehicles, the 8th largest production of any Chinese vehicle maker that year.^[5] Roughly 70% of production was consumer sedans.

Brilliance Auto is listed on the Frankfurt and Hong Kong stock exchanges.^[6]

History

The origins of today's modern Brilliance can be traced to a state-owned auto factory which, under Yang Rong, became a leading Chinese maker of minibuses between 1991, the year Yang invested in the company, and 2002, when he fled into exile.^[7]

In 2003, BMW and Brilliance signed a deal for the production of BMW-branded sedans in China.^[8] Its models are, alongside FAW Group Audis, Beijing Benz Mercedes Benzes, and Lexuses, some of the only Western luxury cars to have gained popularity in the Chinese market.^[9]

Alongside many Chinese automakers looking to enter the US market, Brilliance postponed such plans in 2008 but has briefly sold cars in Europe.^[10] Sales in several European countries stopped in 2010.^[11]

Brilliance divested itself of the loss-making Zhonghua branch on December 31, 2009,^[12] to its ultimate shareholder Huachen Automotive Group Holdings Company Limited, which continues to sell the vehicles Zhonghua makes.

In 2009, the company was the eighth-largest automaker in China.^[13] That year it sold over 150,000 passenger cars and nearly 80,000 minibuses.^[8]

In 2010, Brilliance was one of the top ten most-productive carmakers in China coming in ninth and selling a half million units.^[14]

It produced 523,500 whole vehicles in 2011, ranking eighth among Chinese vehicle maker in terms of production volume.^[15]

Products

Brilliance Auto currently sells passenger cars under the Brilliance marque and minibuses under the Jinbei marque.

Brilliance marque products

Brilliance Auto currently sells the following products under the Brilliance marque:^[16]

• FRV (Junjie) (1.6 1.8 and 2.0 litre)^[17]
• FRV Cross (1.5 and 1.6 litre)
• FSV (1.5 and 1.6 litre)
• H230 (1.5 litre)
• H320 (1.5 litre)
• H330 (1.5 litre)
• H530 (1.5 and 1.6 litre)
• M1 (Zunchi) (1.8 and 2.0 litre)
• M2 Wagon (1.8 and 2.0 litre)
• M3 (Kubao) (1.8 litre)
• V5 (1.5 and 1.6 litre)

• 

  A Brilliance FRV

• 

  A Brilliance FRV Cross

• 

  A Brilliance FSV

• 

  Brilliance FSV SPORT-FRONTAL

• 

  Brilliance FSV SPORT-POSTERIOR

• 

  A Brilliance H530

• 

  A Brilliance V5

Jinbei products

For detailed information about Jinbei products, see Jinbei

Brilliance Auto currently sells the following products under the Jinbei marque:^[16]

• Geruisi (2.0, 2.4 and 2.7 litre)
• Haise (2.0, 2.4 and 2.7 litre)
• Haise long wheelbase (2.4 litre)
• S30 (1.5 litre)
• S50 (2.0 and 2.4 litre)

• 

  A Jinbei minibus in service with the Chinese police

• 

  A Jinbei Haise van in use as an ambulance

Operations

Subsidiaries

While the company also manufactures gasoline engines and other automotive components, automobile manufacture is performed by the indirectly held subsidiaries Shenyang Brilliance JinBei Automobile Co Ltd and BMW Brilliance Automotive Co Ltd of which Brilliance has 33% and 50% ownership respectively.^[18] As of June 2011, the company may actually have far less than 33% ownership of Shenyang Jinbei Automotive Co Ltd (SSE: 600609).^[19]

Production bases and facilities

BMW-branded autos are made at a production base in the Northeastern Chinese city of Shenyang completed in 2004, and ongoing construction may see this base increase its production capacity to 200,000 units/year by 2012.^[20]

An engine-making production base may be located in Mianyang, Sichuan province.^[4]

Foreign partner firms

A BMW 5-Series LWB produced by BMW Brilliance

BMW Brilliance

In 2003 BMW and Brilliance agreed to make select products of this German luxury carmaker in China.^[8] The joint venture makes the BMW 3 Series, the BMW 5 Series, and began producing the BMW X1 in 2012.^[21] Indigenously produced engines will appear in some offerings soon, and the company plans to bring total production capacity to 300,000 by 2013.^[22]

These vehicles may differ slightly from those sold in other markets under the same names. As of mid-2010 almost 60% of the components used to manufacture the China-built BMWs were imported to China.^[21]

Toyota

Brilliance has made microvans with Toyota technology since the early 1990s, but the two do not have a fully fledged joint venture.^[23] Their partnership has been described as "licensing arrangements and alliances."^[24]

Huachen Automotive Group Holdings

As of December 2009 Huachen Automotive Group Holdings Company Limited (Chinese: 華晨汽車集團控股有限公司) has majority ownership of Brilliance controlling 55% of the company.^[25] In 2011, Brilliance referred to Huachen as its "ultimate shareholder" and "the Group's major shareholder".^[26]

European exports

In 2007 Brilliance's BS6 sedan performed poorly in a crash test conducted by Germany's ADAC, receiving only one out of five possible stars in the Euro NCAP rating.^[27] Brilliance then redesigned the car, changing at least sixty components, and it saw a three-star performance in a crash test performed by Spain's Idiada.^[28] However, the price also rose considerably,^[29] and the importer (HSO Motors) went bankrupt in November 2009.^[30] Brilliance then tried to go it alone, but with high pricing and considerable market reluctance after the well-publicized crash test failures, exports to Europe were ended in April 2010 with no immediate plans for resumption.^[31]

Intellectual property and R&D

Brilliance operates a R&D center which is responsible for product development and designing of all Brilliance and Jinbei models. By the end of 2012, the R&D department had 1,500 employees. Additionally, Brilliance tries to promote its R&D efforts through cooperations with Chinese Universities. Its R&D efforts can also been seen from the number of Brilliance's patent and utility model applications. Between 2008 and 2010, it filed more than 30 patents and utility models^[32]

See also

• Jinbei

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Brilliance vehicles.

• Brilliance China Auto's official site
• Huachen Auto Group official site

v t e Automotive industry in China Automotive industry Economy of China Transport in China Chinese vehicle manufacturers Current Ankai BAIC BAW Beijing Auto Foton Weiwang BeiBen Brilliance Jinbei BYD Chang'an Changhe Hafei Chery CNJ Dadi Dayun Group Dayang Dayun Dongfeng Dongfeng Automobile Company Dongfeng Liuzhou Fengshen Etsong FAW Besturn FAW Bus and Coach FAW Car Company FAW Jie Fang FAW Jilin FAW Tianjin Hongqi Foday Fujian Motors GAC Changfeng Denway Gonow Trumpchi Geely Emgrand Englon Gleagle Great Wall Haval Green Field Haima Hawtai Heibao Hengtian Group Bonluck Bus Hengtian Auto JAC JMC Jonway Kandi King Long Golden Dragon Higer Bus Landwind Lifan Lishan Bus Mudan Auto Polarsun Qingling SAIC Maxus MG Roewe SG Changzhou Changjiang Bus China Flxible Huanghai Bus Shaanxi Shandong Huoyun Shuanghuan Red Star Sinotruk Sinotruk (Hong Kong) Soar Soueast Sunlong Bus Tengzhong Wuling Wuzhoulong Xinkai Yangtse Yaxing Yema Youngman Yutong Zhongtong Zotye ZX Auto Former Huayang Nanjing Shanghai Maple Sino-foreign joint venture vehicle manufacturers Current Beijing Benz Beijing Hyundai BMW Brilliance Changan Ford Changan Mazda Changan Suzuki Chery Jaguar Land Rover Denza Dongfeng Honda Dongfeng Motor Company Venucia Dongfeng Nissan-Diesel Company Dongfeng Peugeot-Citroën Dongfeng Renault Dongfeng Yueda Kia Dongfeng Yulon FAW-GM FAW-Volkswagen Fujian Benz GAC Fiat GAC Mitsubishi GAC Toyota Guangqi Honda Everus Qoros SAIC-GM-Wuling Baojun Shanghai GM Shanghai Volkswagen Sichuan FAW Toyota Motor Ranz Former Changan Ford Mazda Guangzhou Peugeot Nanjing Fiat Subsidiaries of foreign companies Honda Automobile (China) Company Volkswagen Group China Other Auto China Auto Guangzhou Auto Shanghai China Association of Automobile Manufacturers TJ Innova Wanxiang Weichai Power Zhongsheng Category