GAC's Aion EV brand gears up against BYD in ASEAN; set to make Thailand as regional headquarters
Sanjay · Jun 30, 2023 11:17 AM
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GAC Aion, the battery-electric vehicle (BEV) subsidiary of GAC Group, have affirmed their plans on entering the ASEAN market, most recently appointing an official dealer for their vehicles in Thailand.
On 28-June 2023, the company penned an agreement with car dealership brand Gold Integrate to serve as their official distributor, as part of their plans on making Thailand the brand's regional headquarters.
The GAC Aion Y Plus
Earlier this year, GAC Aion outlined their plans to invest a whopping THB 6.4 billion (~RM 839 billion) into the country, a massive investment that also includes a plant in Rayong province that is capable of manufacturing 100,000 units of the brand's BEVs for both domestic and international markets.
Thai media speculates that the first model to be launched there will be the GAC Aion Y Plus. A crossover thereabouts the size of the popular BYD Atto 3 and MG ZS EV, there's three variants of it on sale in China:
Standard Range: 136 PS/176 Nm, 51.9 kWh Lithium-ion phosphate battery, 400 km range (NEDC)
Standard Range Plus: 204 PS/225 Nm, 61.7 kWh Lithium-ion phosphate battery, 480 km range (NEDC)
Long Range: 204 PS/225 Nm, 69.9 kWh ternary lithium battery, 580 km range (NEDC)
Prices for the GAC Aion Y Plus in China range from CNY 139,800 to CNY 179,800 (~RM 90k to RM 116k), right at the heels of the Atto 3 (sold as the Yuan Plus there), which goes from CNY 139,800 to CNY 167,800 (~RM 90k to RM 107k).
Consequently GAC Aion has been quite competitive and has grown very quickly indeed, shooting up to being the third top-selling EV brand in China after BYD and Tesla, only within 5 years of incorporation.
Closer to home, this is what we can expect to be here first
Meanwhile in Malaysia, GAC's presence here is via Tan Chong group's WTC Automotif, offering just one model for the time being: the GAC GS3. An all-new, CKD version is set to be sold here come 2024.
With humble beginnings collecting diecast models and spending hours virtually tuning dream cars on the computer, his love of cars has delightfully transformed into a career. Sanjay enjoys how the same passion for cars transcends boundaries and brings people together.
