There were rumors that VAZ would assemble Dongfeng at its plant in Izhevsk, but “VAZ is not getting along very well with its Chinese partners.”
Sergei Tsyganov, an auto expert and author of the Telegram channel “Russian Automobile,” announced that the Motorinvest company will begin assembling Dongfeng gasoline crossovers in Lipetsk in 2024 at its plant, where Evolute electric cars are currently produced.
“ Apparently, the business on pure electric trains is not working out very well. But Motorinvest has a SPIC and localization obligations, right down to batteries ,” wrote Sergei Tsyganov.
The insider provides a list of models: these will be crossovers DFSK Glory 600 and Glory 500, DFSK IX5 and IX7.
The dimensions of the DFSK Glory 500 are 4385 x 1850 x 1645 mm, the wheelbase is 2655 mm. This is something like an analogue of the Hyundai Creta. Under the hood is a naturally aspirated engine with a power of 116 hp, and the equipment includes a panoramic roof, light and rain sensors, and automatic parking.
DFSK Glory 600 is larger, dimensions are 4720 x 1865 x 1710 mm (7-seater crossover). There is already a 1.5-liter turbo engine with a power of 150 hp, paired with a 6-speed automatic transmission. The equipment includes two 12.3-inch screens, a surround view system, adaptive cruise control, and a panoramic roof.
DFSK iX5 is a coupe-crossover that acts as an alternative to the Haval F7x and Geely Tugella. We wrote in detail about this car: iX5 has already begun to be produced at Avtotor.
DFSK iX7 is also produced at Avtotor. This is a larger model – an analogue of the Nissan Murano and Volvo XC90.
“ I don’t know how to feel about the presence of the iX5 on this list, because the media have already written about its assembly at Avtotor. But according to my source, all four listed models will be assembled at the Motorinvest plant ,” explained Sergei Tsyganov.
“ But the Dongfeng assembly project in Izhevsk is not going well yet. The first cars were supposed to be assembled in December, but this obviously will not happen. It seems that VAZ is not getting along very well with its Chinese partners ,” the insider added.