Autoblog

PSA: Chevy owns 94% of Uzbekistan car market for make benefit glorious nation

Chris Shunk — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 08:28:00 EST

Filed under: Car Buying, Chevrolet, GM, Daewoo

General Motors has been the largest automaker in the United States since before many of your parents were born. And The General managed to keep its sales lead in spite of a very public government-assisted bankruptcy and the loss of four brands. But while GM's 20 percent market share remains impressive, it doesn't come close to the success the automaker has achieved in... Uzbekistan?

Inside Line reports that GM currently owns 94 percent of the Uzbekistan market, with 59,000 of the 63,000 vehicles sold so far this year. Impressive, right? Well, if you remove commercial trucking from the equation, GM's share of the market is 98.6 percent; a healthy temperature by any measure. You're probably (not) wondering how The General managed to secure the entire Uzbek market. The answer is simple: GM is part owner of a join venture plant that is capable of producing 250,000 vehicles per year. The facility was a joint venture between UzAvtoSanoat and Daewoo, and since GM controls the Korean automaker, the plant basically makes Daewoos with Bowtie badging. The facility currently produces the Chevrolet Matiz, Lacetti and Captiva (shown above).

So it appears the Uzbekistians (Uzbekistanis?) are a very loyal bunch that go to great lengths to support local jobs. Now the competition knows what to do to break Chevy's dominance; provided anyone can find Uzbekistan on a map.

[Source: Inside Line]

PSA: Chevy owns 94% of Uzbekistan car market for make benefit glorious nation originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 06 Jul 2010 08:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Spy Shots: Chevy Beat caught testing in China

Dan Roth — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 07:29:00 EST

Filed under: Concept Cars, Spy Photos, China, Chevrolet, GM

We saw the Chevy Beat concept unveiled a year ago, and now a camouflaged mule has been caught testing in China, fueling speculation that the Beat will succeed the Spark in that market. The Beat is certainly far less dowdy than the Spark, which is also sold, sometimes gratuitously, as the Matiz in other markets. When the Beat debuted as one in a trio of concepts, it was the sportiest of the three and described as a "tuner car" offering substantial levels of customization at the retail level, much like a Scion. That rhetoric may not be for world-wide consumption, however, and the Beat could wind up looking sharp on the outside and offering you roll-your-own windows and milk jug-quality plastics in the cabin. Of course, GM could pull a Ford and deliver a deliciously stylish small car everywhere but the United States, just as our fuel costs skyrocket ever further. Thanks for the tip, Kevin!

[Source: China Car Times]

Spy Shots: Chevy Beat caught testing in China originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 01 Apr 2008 07:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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VIDEO: There's a Chevy Matiz in this ad, somewhere (NSFW)

Noah Joseph — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 20:01:00 EST

Filed under: Europe, Marketing/Advertising, Videos, Chevrolet

Click above to view video

You may not want to watch this at the office if you work in a puritanical professional environment, but we swear there's a car in this commercial somewhere. We just don't seem to notice it, no matter how many times we watch the video. (Believe us, we've tried.)

The commercial airs on Greek television supposedly to advertise the newly redesigned Chevrolet Matiz. The first-generation Matiz started life as a Daewoo, the Korean carmaker that General Motors took over and now uses its cars across Europe with Chevrolet badges. The original design was penned by Giorgetto Giugiaro's Italdesign as the Lucciola, originally proposed to Fiat for a new Cinquecento. (We're glad Fiat passed.) The ad, as you can see for yourself in the video after the jump, relies heavily on the old adage "sex sells". But while the commercial certainly makes us want something, like the Nissan ad of which it reminds us, we're not sure it's a car.

[Source: Carscoop]

Continue reading VIDEO: There's a Chevy Matiz in this ad, somewhere (NSFW)

VIDEO: There's a Chevy Matiz in this ad, somewhere (NSFW) originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 19 Mar 2008 20:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Chevy Matiz blooms in Britain

Alex Nunez — Sun, 16 Jul 2006 09:03:00 EST

Filed under: Budget, Etc., Europe, Marketing/Advertising, Hatchback, Chevrolet, Misc. Auto Shows

The car above was once a garden-variety Chevrolet Matiz. Then, British celeb florist Paula Pryke got her hands on it. Bouts of madness and wanton flower-slaying ensued, and that's how the Chevrolet Matiz "Car In Bloom" was born.

You see, in the UK, one in three women think style and color are the most important factors when buying an automobile. The "Car In Bloom" was commissioned to (somehow) be a physical manifestation of this sentiment. The flowers? 100% real, potentially creating a difficult car care decision: Come wash time, which hose attachment do you use -- Mr. Clean Autodry or Miracle-Gro Liquafeed?

If you attend the British Motor Show, you can ask someone at the Chevy display where the "Car In Bloom" will be next week. Its creator, celeb florist Paula Pryke, made two more just like it. She'll use one as the delivery vehicle for her business. No word on what's happening to the other. We just hope someone remembers to water it.

(More info plus a pic of a "naked" Matiz after the jump)

[Source: Chevrolet UK]

Continue reading Chevy Matiz blooms in Britain

Chevy Matiz blooms in Britain originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 16 Jul 2006 09:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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