Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp (SAIC), China's largest carmaker, said Wednesday it will launch its first branded car based on defunct British carmaker Rover technology by the end of the year. The announcement follows news that Ford Motor Co bought the Rover name from BMW AG for six million pounds sterling (11.3 million dollars) in a move aimed at protecting the image of its British subsidiary Land Rover.
Ford bought Land Rover from BMW in 2000 as well as an option to acquire the Rover brand name.
Business papers had speculated about a possible sale of the Rover brand to China's SAIC for just over 11 million pounds.
SAIC, which has joint ventures with General Motors and Volkswagen and currently produces sedans mainly under the brands of its foreign partners, said it will announce the model name next month.
The car was "developed by our R and D team in Europe, based on the complete copyrights of the Rover 75 model," SAIC said.
The Chinese firm controls the intellectual property rights to two Rover models, the 25 and 75, though it lost to rival Nanjing Automobile Group in a bid for MG Rover Group Ltd.
Nanjing Automobile Corporation bought MG Rover, Britain's last major independent automaker, for 53 million pounds after it collapsed last year.
Source: Agence France-Presse
