17th March 2010

Today morning, a total investment of 2.5 billion diversified Shanghai Automotive (600104) Group Co., Ltd. Nanjing Pukou base of its own brand announced the completion of two alterations put into production now, SAIC already has the "Nanjing Pukou base, Lingang port base, Yizheng base" the three major production bases of their own brands. This marks the SAIC own brand platform strategy layout basically completed the development of its own brand mention

Related stock movements:
Shanghai Automotive stock 20.46 +0.542. = 71% for a strong support.

It is reported that Pukou 2 put into operation after the conversion, will become its own brand SAIC Class A models and small-displacement engine manufacturing base, production, and MG Roewe brand products A-Class car. According to plan, the future Pukou base will be an annual production capacity 200,000 vehicle engine capacity and 25 million units. Correspond with the three major production bases is that SAIC already owns the "Shanghai Anting Automobile Technology Center, base, branch and overseas R & D center in Nanjing," the R & D system.

The morning, together with the debut of the new plant, as well as the new Roewe 350 model. This is the "integration of the South" after the first true sense of the new strategic model, is SAIC's largest independent brands to enter the capacity, the fastest growing A-segment market, the strategic plan. SAIC relevant responsible person said, "SAIC Roewe 350 off the assembly line will be selling its own brand in 2010 leapt to a new scale to provide strong support." In 2010, SAIC plans to launch its own brand covers B-, A-class, SUV and A0-level segment of the four new models, full year sales of 180,000 sprint goal. For the base case of Nanjing, this strategy is its implementation cost-effectiveness model of hope for a fundamental turn for the better.

SAIC said in 2010 is the third year on the South cooperation will also be NAC has achieved leapfrog development and the economic benefits of a fundamental turn for the better turn of the other.

SAIC said that after more than two years of actual operation, all is progressing smoothly. From the scale of production and marketing point of view, the former Nanjing Automobile Coorporation in 2008 achieved sales of 117,000 vehicles, in 2009 achieved sales of 196,000, nearly 200 thousand units, compared with previous to the NAC-SAIC cooporation, vehicle sales nearly doubled.

The Pukou Roewe 350 is based off the assembly line on the NAC fusion of the first truly new strategic model, is SAIC's largest independent brands to enter the capacity, the fastest growing A-segment market, the strategic plan, but also Nanjing base to achieve a fundamental improvement in economic hope for.

As another SAIC own-brand products, SAIC Roewe 350 equipped with simultaneous increase in the effectiveness of self-developed 1.5 engine, 90km / h constant speed fuel consumption of just 5.9L; 2650mm long wheelbase, so Roewe 350 has a lead in the same The super-car space; 10 features high-specification airbag safety equipment, so that Roewe 350 as a major competing products, the only five-star design criteria to meet CNCAP models.

SAIC Roewe 350 off the assembly line will be selling its own brand in 2010 leapt to a new scale to provide strong support for the A-car platform, while to lay a solid foundation for follow-up product launches.

Great to see the 350 in Production. Will we see an MG version (produced at Longbridge) any time soon?

Great pics by the way

Doc

docjunior2008 wrote:Great to see the 350 in Production. Will we see an MG version (produced at Longbridge) any time soon?

Great pics by the way

Doc

not this year I shouldn't think, if the MG3 is not even launched in China yet.

Don't put any deposits down!



This reminds me of a series - not Battle of the Planets, Thundercats or the Tomorrow People?

patpending wrote:

docjunior2008 wrote:Great to see the 350 in Production. Will we see an MG version (produced at Longbridge) any time soon?

Great pics by the way

Doc

not this year I shouldn't think, if the MG3 is not even launched in China yet.

Don't put any deposits down!



This reminds me of a series - not Battle of the Planets, Thundercats or the Tomorrow People?

I don't think a deposit will be going down any time soon. I'm actually still doing my driving lessons.

Love the look of the Roewe 350. Is the MG3 going to be based on this car?

Doc

docjunior2008 wrote: I don't think a deposit will be going down any time soon. I'm actually still doing my driving lessons.

Love the look of the Roewe 350. Is the MG3 going to be based on this car?

Doc

My understanding is "yes" and the small cars of what I believe to be called "SAIC Motor" - or what Ash IIRC first called, but the above press release now refers to as, "MG Roewe" - will all be made in Pukou just as the bigger cars Roewe 550/MG6 and Roewe 750/MG7 are made in Lingang.



So look out for September!

Here is what Pat has been waiting for:



Now he just needs to translate it


Does it fit?

And to update the plan Pat posted above:

Windy wrote:And to update the plan Pat posted above:

I noticed the Shangs under each of the MGs then noticed the exact same words under each of the Roewes. Is that "launched by SAIC Motor on"?*

As for the numbers, is that the retail price - so a TF costs the same as three 350s?

*EDIT in the picture I see "SAIC Motor" is "Shang something Steam something"(?) so this is "Shang something else!"

Windy wrote:Here is what Pat has been waiting for:



Now he just needs to translate it


Does it fit?

Hmm, 4.5 long , 1.8 wide and 1.5 high (or the other way round).

4.516 metres = 178", the length of a ZS saloon. So it's still maybe 20" longer than a Golf*!

What a shame. Why is it so big? - bigger than a ZS hatch?

*EDIT 17" longer than a 2010 Polo and 10" longer than a Sumo-size 2010 Golf!

EDIT AGAIN I think seeing the Betty Liu / Lucy Boo gang striding with their designer shopping bags towards their Roewes blinded me to the obvious fact that the 350 is a saloon! I hope the MG3 is at least 6" shorter, like the ZS hatch is 6" shorter than the saloon.

Mind you, I'm surprised that the 350 should be the size of the ZS when I had expected it to be more the size of the MG3SW (even though there was never a saloon version of bubble 200, 25 or ZR...)

The newly developed Roewe 350 1.5-litre VTI-TECH Engine

The new engine uses a Multi-angle continuously variable valve timing system for high-performance, its innovative independent double-layered cooling system provides for:

• Rapid warm-up
  
• Minimal cylinder friction losses
  
• A reduction in fuel consumption of 4% -6%

The engine provides ample power while achieving excellent fuel economy standards, its 90km / h constant speed fuel consumption being only 5.9L.

It is fitted to an AW Multi-Mode Automatic Transmission equipped to provide an Over Drive feature.

Roewe 350 NVH

The Roewe 350 is the first car from SAIC Motor to introduce the EXTREME SILENCE quiet design concept to optimise NVH.

The Extreme Silence concept uses wind-tunnel experiments and acoustic noise optimization analysis to reduce noise levels. The engine is equipped with an ultra-quiet timing chain in place of noisy belt drive, while the entire vehicle has over a hundred locations making use of noise mute sealing measures to create an ultra-quiet interior space.

Roewe 350 - Cloud Computing and the Internet era

With the Roewe 350, Shanghai Motor grasps the future automotive trends with the "full-time online mid-size sedan". The car uses digital internet push networking technology to provide the first automotive interactive information system based on cloud computing, it is expected to use information technology to promote a new round in the revolution of the automotive industry.

The Roewe 350 features intelligent traffic systems to achieve the full-time online car experience. An all-powerful and efficient driving experience throughout the whole area of communication and digital space:

• real-time information retrieval
  
• information personalization
  
• customized entertainment content
  
• massive expansion program
  
• Real-time traffic navigation
  
• button-type information services
  
• electronic guides
  
• SNS community and in-car mobile communication capabilities
  

This efficient and convenient intelligent network driving system meets the inner desire for fashion and technology of the target population of the Roewe 350.


Computing from the clouds

Changing consumer demands lead the development trends of the automobile, whether it is cars or the Internet, it has greatly changed people's lives, and now these two grafting together, will create new markets, "car information" will soon become the future development trends of auto industry. Roewe 350's success off the assembly line, reflecting the Shanghai Automotive Industry Development Trend grasp of this information technology to stimulate an industrialization wave of upgrades.

The Roewe 350 will be the forerunner of the Internet era cars.

March 17, 2010, at a high-profile ceremony in Nanjing, the SAIC Roewe 350 officially came off the assembly line in Phase 2 of the Nanjing Automobile Coorporation Pukou base.

This is not just a ceremony for a new car off the assembly line but it also means a new era in the automotive industry - the automotive information era curtain has now been raised.

So next time you are driving your R350 late at night and your wondering what that star up in the sky is - just press your customised SkyMap button and through its cloud computing system you will have your answer!

Windy wrote:So next time you are driving your R350 late at night and your wondering what that star up in the sky is - just press your customised SkyMap button and through its cloud computing system you will have your answer!

You found "Pleaides" - i.e. there was just a Subaru flying overhead!

The engine is equipped with an ultra-quiet timing chain in place of noisy belt drive

Android operating system

It is understood that the Roewe 350 will adopt the Google Android operating system.

The Android operating system is well-known from is use in mobile phones, the Roewe 350 will use the 2.1 version. In addition to integrated features like Google Maps, it can accept third-party software extensions, similar to computers using Microsoft Windows operating systems. Android is currently an operating system for mobile phones and other portable smart mobile devices.

Any news on what suspension set up it has yet?

Roewe 350 Under-bonnet



Comparing the Roewe 350 to the MG ZS shows a much neater layout with the New Small Engine moved backwards from the K-Series front engined location up against the radiator to a front mid engined location at the back of the engine compartment and mostly behind the front axle line giving better weight distribution and improved handling while removing the hard cylinder head away from the pedestrian impact zone.

Most of the fluid reservoirs are now located within easy reach in the space opend up at the front of the engine bay, brake fluid still being in its normal place.

Another item removed from the pedestrian impact zone are the suspension turrets

K-Series owners will be delighted to see the old K-Series oil filler cap being retained! Although it has been moved to the front for ease of access along with the oil dip stick which would now be inaccessible if still using its K-Series location.

Windy wrote:

Roewe 350 Under-bonnet



Comparing the Roewe 350 to the MG ZS shows a much neater layout with the New Small Engine moved backwards from the K-Series front engined location up against the radiator to a front mid engined location at the back of the engine compartment and mostly behind the front axle line giving better weight distribution and improved handling while removing the hard cylinder head away from the pedestrian impact zone.

Most of the fluid reservoirs are now located within easy reach in the space opend up at the front of the engine bay, brake fluid still being in its normal place.

Another item removed from the pedestrian impact zone are the suspension turrets

K-Series owners will be delighted to see the old K-Series oil filler cap being retained! Although it has been moved to the front for ease of access along with the oil dip stick which would now be inaccessible if still using its K-Series location.

Who wrote that text? It's interesting that it compares the 350 to the ZS, and the NSE to the K series.

What does the absence of suspension turrets in the pedestrian impact zone imply? Have they been moved further back, or have they been eliminated - clues to the suspension setup perhaps?

This saloon is the same length as the ZS saloon (substantially longer than I had expected) and the petrol filler is on the left like the MG3SW and the ZS...

is that a spare tyre on the right of the engine bay as we look at it?

on the right as you look at it, appears to be air filter box,fusebox?engine management? and battery.
if you look on the left at the back under plastic shroud is what appears to be the base of suspension turret.

roverman wrote:if you look on the left at the back under plastic shroud is what appears to be the base of suspension turret.

If that is the suspension turret then it is not above the centre of the wheel, and why is there not one in the same place on the right

patpending wrote:is that a spare tyre on the right of the engine bay as we look at it?

Guess you are looking at the battery which has an insulating jacket for use in the north of China and up on the Tibetan plateaus.

This will confirm Pat's suspicion that this is a saloon model:

From the inside this doesn't look dissimilar to a ZS rear suspension...

Roewe 350 Trunk

The performance of storage space in the Roewe 350 is also worth looking forward to. The luggage compartment has a flat bottom and long depth, visually appears more than the Roewe 750 luggage compartment volume (432L)! Rear seats can be 4 / 6 folded for spatial extension, it is learned that the Roewe 350 interior has 27 storage spaces in door panels, the central control panel, handrail boxes and other locations, have all designed integrated storage cells, in-house storage object space extensions similar to the delicate line of Japanese models.

suspension: presumably the (British) N/S turret is under / by the dark plastic thing that looks like a bar of chocolate.

I agree that the layout of the boot is not dissimilar to the ZS hatch - however, given that the ZS saloon has a much longer boot space than the hatch, presumably that means the 350 already has a ZS-hatch-sized boot and the new MG3 may not fit in my garage!



Yes, that must be the battery.

I am reminded of "Elephant On The Run" in which an elephant has only to don a hat and raincoat to disguise himself. From the Pukou assembly line pictures, I did (eventually) indeed spot the trunk!

Roewe 350 Android pictures


Touch Screen



Route Map


Satellite Map


3G mobile Internet


Address book for phone/SMS/email


SNS (phone) with multi-party voice chat room ability

patpending wrote:suspension: presumably the (British) N/S turret is under / by the dark plastic thing that looks like a bar of chocolate.

This tells us where the turrets are, the springs and dampers are angled backwards to attach at the rear of the engine compartment.
The rear dampers have no springs attached.

Under bonnet there are some bits that look the same as Rover 75 bits, but the suspension is different

Rear suspension is a "longitudinal arm torsion beam rear suspension" - isn't that what the Rover TCV was going to have?

Looks like the front may have too much angle for a MacPherson Strut? - They need to be vertical or the steering wont work.



For reference, MacPherson Struts are vertical over axle line:

Is it just the picture, or has that engine got a plastic cam cover?

PWR?

is there a pressurised water reactor under the bonnet? One way of getting low CO2 I suppose...