End of the Daewoo
16 September 2004
General Motors (GM) is killing off the Daewoo name in the UK and replacing it with the Chevrolet badge.
General Motors (GM) is killing off the Daewoo name in the UK and replacing it with the Chevrolet badge.
GM already sells Daewoo models as Chevrolets in much of Eastern Europe, and will switch from the Korean to the American badge in the UK and all other markets from January 1 next year.
All Daewoo models now on sale will continue to be available as Chevrolets. They will be sold through a rebranded version of the existing network, which will also continue to offer the same after-sales service to new and current owners. Chevrolet hopes to see this UK network grow from 87 to 100 dealers by the middle of 2005.
The first new Chevrolet model to launch in the UK will be a face-lifted Nubira saloon, which will adopt the Lacetti name used on the hatchback that is already on sale. The Nubira estate will also adopt the Lacetti tag.
Next up is the three-door Kalos, which is to be unveiled at the Paris Motor Show next week. It will be joined by an all-new Matiz city car in April, which will appear in near-finished concept form in Paris.
A thinly veiled concept 4x4 called the S3X also makes its debut in Paris. It is similar in size to the Land Rover Freelander and will go on sale in the UK by the spring of 2006, when new 1.5- and 2.0-litre diesel engines developed by GM also arrive.
The company is writing to 115,000 existing Daewoo owners to explain that their warranty terms and conditions are unaffected by the switch to Chevrolet branding.
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