First Automobile Works
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First Automobile Works is China's first automobile manufacturer. FAW is one of the "Big Five" Chinese automobile manufacturers along with Dongfeng Motor Corporation, Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation, Chang'an Motors, and Chery Automobile. The company was established in 1953 with ranges such as Jiaxing mini MPVs, Xiali saloon cars and Hongqi luxury cars.
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[edit] History
The construction of the First Automobile Works was started in 1953 with the assist from Zavod Imeni Likhacheva and finished in 1956. During its first 30 years, its major product was Jiefang CA-10 medium truck, the first mass-produced automobile in China based on ZIS-150. The next generation of Jiafang truck, CA141 rolled out in 1988. In 1991, FAW formed joint venture with Volkswagen and began to focus on car manufacture. Since then, it has formed joint ventures with other automobile giants such as Toyota and Mazda. In the same time, FAW maintained its own car brand Hongqi since 1958. Through purchasing and expanding, it has become one of top three automobile manufacturers in China. (The other two are Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation and Dongfeng Motor Corporation) By 2004, its car sales had passed 1 million units.[1]
[edit] Logo interpretation
[edit] Symbol
The symbol represents the combination of Chinese word "一汽"(meaning "China FAW Group Corporation") which was transformed visually, Chinese character "一" means "first" and "汽" means "automobile", depicting the visionary of a hawk spreading its wings.
[edit] Meaning
FAW flies throughout the vast skies of the world, spreading its wings and soaring high and far into the bright blue sky.
[edit] Technology
In 1988, Chrysler sold much of the machining equipment, as well as a license to the design, of their K-car 2.2 L straight-4 engine to First Auto Works.
[edit] Joint ventures
FAW operates many joint venture manufacturing concerns in China. Sichuan FAW Toyota Motor (Changchun City, Jilin Province) produces the Toyota Prius for the Chinese market.
FAW-Volkswagen and Audi produce in Changchun City the FAW-VW Jetta, Bora, Sagitar, Audi A4 and Audi A6L (a long wheelbase version of the A6).
FAW also has a joint venture in Russia with Hebei Zhongxing at Altaysky Kray to produce a local version of the Zhongxing Admiral.
Tianjin Xiali produces the Miles ZX40, an electric version of the Daihatsu Move which became the first Chinese-built vehicle sold in the United States when it was offered in Mid 2006 by Miles Automotive.
[edit] List of joint-ventures
- FAW Jiefang Automobile Company
- FAWER Automobile Parts Company
- FAW Car Company
- FAW Haima Motor Co
- Tianjin FAW Xiali Automobile Company
- Changchun FAW Sihuan Automobile Company
- FAW-Volkswagen Automobile Company
- Tianjin FAW Toyota Motor Company
[edit] Haima
The FAW Haima Motor Co, is an offshoot of FAW based on Hainan Island in South China ("Haima" meant Hainan Mazda). Originally the Hainan Auto Works firm was a venture with Mazda, and produced Mazda based vehicles such as the 323 based Hainan CA7130 of the early 1990s.
However the company was taken over by FAW in the late 1990s, who had another venture with Mazda producing the Mazda6 in Jilin Province. Due to this, Haima was relaunched as a separate brand similar to Xiali and Hongqi, with its own range of self-designed models. The first one will be the Haima Family II, a 4 door saloon based on the mechanics of the Mazda Protege.
[edit] Hongqi
Hongqi ("Red Flag" in Chinese) is a luxury unit of FAW. It began in 1958, at first building a version of the Soviet limousine but later contracting with Audi and Lincoln for designs. The company will add production of the Hongqi HQ3 (based on the Toyota Crown) and recently added the the Hongqi C301, also known as FAW Benteng (based on the Mazda Mazda6). The company showed the Hongqi HQD concept car (very similar in design to the Rolls-Royce Phantom) at the 2005 Shanghai Auto Show, but production was not announced.
