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The joint venture of Sichuan Nanjun Auto and Hyundai rolled out its first vehicle, a County minibus, at its Chengdu factory on August 8, a day deemed auspicious by many Chinese. Established in January this year, Sichuan-Hyundai aims to become a major commercial -vehicle manufacturer in China with 170,000 sales in 2017.
Besides the Wenjiang district of Chengdu, where County is made, the maker of buses and trucks will have a production capacity in Ziyang, which is less than 100km away from the capital of Sichuan. Investment in the Ziyang base, which is to open in April next year, was reported to total 20 billion Yuan by 2020, with annual capacity to reach 700,000.
The Sichuan-built Hyundai County is 7080mm long and provides 20 or 23 seating positions. It is powered by a diesel 3.9 liter (Hyundai D4GA-F) rated 110km/2500rpm and 579nm/1400rpm. Pricing for the minibus will be announced at the 2013 Chengdu Motor Show, which is to open on August 30. Hyundai County is pitted directly against Toyota Coaster, which is also produced in Sichuan (by FAW-Toyota).