The 1.5-litre turbocharged small crossover Uni-T falls in the category of Kia Sportage, Toyota CH-R, and Nissan Juke. Meanwhile, Oshan X7, which is also 1.5 turbocharged but a bit bigger and comparable to MG Motors’ MG-HS and Hyundai Tucson
The 1.9 litre Turbo Charged Hunter is comparable to Isuzu D-Max and Toyota Hilux. The company has confirmed that it has been testing the three vehicles on Pakistan roads.
Chinese Changan entered the country in partnership with Master Motors, introduced its sedan called Alsvin in January 2021. It is the cheapest sedan in the country. The plant has an annual production capacity of 30,000, twice that of KIA s.
Interview with Danial Malik, CEO, Master Changan Motors.
AURORA: In Pakistan, the automotive industry has been through a rough patch in the last two years. Going forward, what is the current situation?
DANIAL MALIK: The auto industry experienced its worst years in history in 2018 and 2019. Since then it has recovered, and faster than expected, thanks to lower interest rates and the stimulus the government is trying to bring to the economy. Historically, the auto-market has been subject to cycles of ups and downs and when it goes up, it really goes up and when it goes down, it goes down fast – sometimes by 40 to 50%. An automobile is the most expensive consumer durable people buy in their lifetime. Because it is a high involvement purchase, it is also easy to put off; every time there is a hike in interest rates or the economy hits a rocky patch, people hold off making the purchase. Since the introduction of the Automotive Development Policy 2016-2021, a lot of new entrants have c
KARACHI: A number of used imported vehicles are parked at the port on Saturday. Fahim Siddiqi/White Star
KARACHI: The 196 per cent hike in imports of completely built-up (CBU) cars to $94 million during the first half of the current fiscal year (1HFY21) has raised doubts in the auto sector if the import of new vehicles by recent market entrants is on the rise or the arrival of used vehicles is increasing.
Talking to Dawn, auto sector stakeholders offered different views, with some expressing fears that the facility of importing 100 units under concessionary duty by new entrants is being misused.
The Pakistan Automotive Manufacturers Association (PAMA) has also sought clarity from the Engineering Development Board (EDB) on incentives provided to the new entrants.