AutoBeta(AutoBeta.net)05/03 Report--

Zhongtai Automobile enters the American market! Zhongtai's US subsidiary confirmed that its compact SUV T600 will be sold in the US market as the brand's first model.

Zhongtai auto executives said that the T600 will launch in the US market by the end of 2020 or the first quarter of 2021.

Zhongtai America was founded in the autumn of 2018 when its parent company HAAH Automotive Holdings and Chinese carmaker Zhongtai Automobile International Co., Ltd. (Zotye Automobile International Co.) Signed a distribution agreement.

Bob Pradzinski, senior vice president of Zhongtai USA and HAAH Formula sales, said the T600 was chosen as the first model because "the size and price of this car are really at the core of market competition." The price of the T600 on sale in the United States has not yet been announced.

Zhongtai's other medium-sized SUV and sedans will follow the T600 to the United States, but Zhongtai did not provide the timing or details of these vehicles. But the HAAH automotive website says the next generation of the T700 will be launched in the first quarter of 2022.

The US T600 is expected to be equipped with a four-cylinder in-line 1.6-liter turbocharged engine and a six-speed automatic transmission. Zhongtai said that as the certification work for the T600 is in progress, no other vehicle specifications have been announced.

"this T600 is the perfect model for the US market and I am very excited to announce that it will be Zhongtai's first product sold in the US," Duke Hale, chief executive of Zhongtai US, said in a statement. "this car is of high quality, outstanding safety performance, and will be equipped with a unique design to make it popular with American buyers."

Zhongtai is not the only Chinese carmaker planning to enter the US market. Guangzhou Automobile Group is recruiting dealers, but its listing in the US is likely to be delayed until the first half of 2020, in part because of a possible trade war with China. But in recent weeks, trade negotiations have made progress, and the Trump administration is optimistic about reaching a deal.

At the National Automobile Dealers Association (National Automobile Dealers Association) meeting in San Francisco in January, Zhongtai announced that it had signed agreements with dealers for 19 new car stores. Pradzinski said that dealers have signed up in advance or are selling at more than 80 points of sale. When it goes public, the T600 is expected to have about 300 stores in the top 100 US markets and eventually about 325 stores.

Zhongtai plans to sell at a uniform price in a consumer-friendly form, including online sales.

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