YULON TOBE MOTOR CO. Is Taiwan's AUTO industry HEALTHY??

Uncle4edgar SG

BUMPY ROAD AHEAD: A Yulon Tobe Motor marketing manager said that sales would drop to 250,000 next year after the government ends a

NT$30,000 subsidy

By Jason Tan
STAFF REPORTER
Saturday, Dec 26, 2009, Page 12

Hong Kong actor Simon Yam poses next to a Maserati sports car yesterday at the 2010 Taipei International Auto Show.
PHOTO: WANG WEN-LIN, TAIPEI TIMES
Domestic automobile market should see car sales decelerate next year after the government ends its purchasing subsidy.

“Without the subsidy, we see a tough market ahead next year,” Steven Lo (羅明德), senior marketing manager of Yulon Tobe Motor Co (裕隆酷比汽車), said yesterday.

The market will return to normal next year, when carmakers will compete rather than slashing prices because of government incentives, he told the Taipei Times on the sidelines of the 2010 Taipei International Auto Show.

The government lowered the commodity tax on cars by NT$30,000 this year to boost consumer spending amid economic uncertainty, but the subsidy program is set to end on Thursday.

The subsidy scheme has successfully fueled vehicle sales, with this year’s total sales forecast to hit about 280,000 units, up from last year’s disappointing mark of 230,000 units, automakers said.

Uncle4edgar SG

By Jason Tan
STAFF REPORTER

Wednesday, Nov 18, 2009, Page 12

A model and two panda mascots introduce Yulon’s new Tobe M’car in Taipei yesterday. The EV, or electric vehicle, is designed based on the 1.3-liter Panda hatchback made by Chinese automaker Geely, and assembled in Taiwan with improved interior and safety features.
PHOTO: KAO CHIA-HO, TAIPEI TIMES
Following the launch of its first own auto brand “Luxgen” (納智捷) in September, Yulon Motor Co (裕隆汽車) yesterday unveiled a second brand — “Tobe” (酷比) — that will target the domestic and export markets.

The nation’s biggest automaker plans to start exporting Tobe cars to Vietnam next month, which will be followed shortly by sales to the Philippines, China and the Middle East, Hsu Kuo-hsing (許國興), president of Yulon Tobe Motor Co (裕隆酷比汽車), told reporters on the sidelines of the launch.

Yulon Tobe was founded with a capital of NT$200 million (US$6.1 million) and is 100 percent owned by Yulon Motor.

Hsu refused to reveal export figures, saying the company was waiting for market feedback after Tobe’s launch.

Tobe cars are a revamped model based on the Panda car of Chinese automaker Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd (吉利汽車), a technology partner of Yulon.

Hsu said more than 35 percent of the car parts — including the engine