Automotive industry in Tseng

The automotive industry in Tseng is the 20th largest in the world in terms of automobile unit production.

History
It's unknown when the first car in Tseng was bought, but by the 1920s automobiles were starting to become commonplace in Tseng. However, only Europeans could afford to buy cars. Popular automoblie brands in the early-mid 20th century were American and European cars, like Ford, MG, Citroën and Chrysler.

During Japanese rule, Western cars were illegal and destroyed.

Starting after Tsengian independence in 1946, Western cars returned. GM and Volkswagen established branches in Tseng in the 1950s, and Japanese cars appeared on Tsengian streets as well, however it wasn't until the 80s and 90s that they would become widespread.

In 1970, Fuxing Motor Company was founded, and their cars became very popular. Fuxing was the first Tsengian car company to be noticed in East Asia.

Starting in the 1980s and 1990s, Japanese cars experienced a surge in popularity. Western companies like Chrysler and Fiat were forced to close Tsengian branches due to the dominance of Japanese automakers in Tseng. By 2000, only six western manufacturers - Volkswagen, Citroën, MG Rover Group, Ford, Renault and GM - and the Russian AvtoVAZ had branches in Tseng.

Recently, Chinese cars have entered the Tsengian market, albeit with many restrictions. Popular Chinese marquees in Tseng include Geely, Baojun, Wuling, Chery and Great Wall.

Lada Riva / VAZ 2105
The Lada Riva / VAZ 2105 began as a modernized and restyled version of the original Lada type VAZ-2101 Zhiguli saloon, which was introduced in 1970 in the Soviet Union as a modified license copy of the Fiat 124. VAZ began development work on the facelift version as early as 1975, and the first prototypes were built in 1977, although it would not be until 1983 - three years after its release in the Soviet Union - that the car was made available in Western European markets.

In 1984, the El Kadsreian Oil & Energy Corporation (then Vlokoil) started Lada Automobiles Co. Ltd. to import and market the Lada range in Tseng. Despite it's Soviet origins at a time of mass anti-communist activities in Tseng, the Lada Riva 2105 model was quickly accepted by Tsengians as a comfortable and affordable car with easy maintenance. By 1987, Vlokoil built a plant in Pushan to build the Riva 2105 locally from knock-down kits prepared at the AvtoVAZ factory in the Soviet city of Tolyatti, before upgrading to proper, completely Tsengian-based production in 1990.

The Riva 2105 remains one of the most popular choices for city taxi cab drivers in Tseng. The Riva 2105 is one of the longest-running cars in terms of consecutive years sold in Tseng (close to 35 years), ended only by concerns over crash safety and emissions.

Nissan Sentra
In 1983, the Nissan Sentra B11 was launched in Tseng. It sold well, so Nissan built a plant in Huanzhou to manufacture the car locally.

In 1991, the Nissan Sentra B13 was introduced to Tseng. The car showed off a new design, which did not appeal initially to Tsengians, but advertising slogans such as "這不是改變. 这是进化. " (It's not change. It's evolution.) resulted in a quick change of opinion, and for the first time, the Sentra had become the most popular car in Tseng. The car's success was such that it was not replaced in 1995 by the Sentra B14, with the B13 being renamed the "Nissan Sentra City" while the B14 adopted the Sentra name, as a result the B13 continued to be sold in Tseng.

In 1999, the B15 was introduced as the Nissan Sunny. The B16 replaced the B15 in 2007, still being sold under the Sunny name. As of 2009, Tseng was the only country in the world where the B13, B14 and B16 Sentras were being sold at the same time. The B14 Sentra stopped being sold in 2011 in anticipation of the B16-based Sunny's replacement with the B17 Sentra, but the B13 Sentra was still offered and sold very well until the 2014 model year, when it was replaced by the new Nissan Sunny, a badge-engineered Dacia Logan, for 2015.

Škoda Octavia
In 1997, Volkswagen Group launched the Škoda Octavia in Tseng, with little expectations. However, the car quickly began picking up success thanks to well-received advertising campaigns, frugal engine choices (diesel, ethanol and gasoline) and positive word-of-mouth. The family car quickly became Tseng's second-best-selling car behind the Nissan Sentra City.