Visitors at the Beijing Auto exhibition booth in the Beijing Auto Show in this file photo taken in 2006. [Asianewsphoto]

Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Corp (BAIC), the No 5 Chinese motor group, is pushing ahead with plans to start its own passenger car brand despite the arrest of its employee Yu Xiangdong, who was indicted in the US last month and charged with stealing trade secrets from Ford Motor Co.

A source from BAIC familiar with the case said the company’s plans are not affected because Yu, who joined its research institute last November, was only engaged in "some basic research activities" and not involved in the automaker’s development of its own-brand cars.

The partner of Daimler AG and Hyundai Motor Co, BAIC will unveil several of its own passenger car models at the Beijing motor show next April, the source said, and plans to begin commercial production later in 2010.

BAIC will revive its own brand named Beijing for the models, which will include medium and high-end sedans, SUVs and hybrid vehicles, according to the source.

The Beijing badge was created in 1958 but graced only a handful of cars due to limited production.

Beijing Automobile Works later went on to help form Beijing Jeep Corp in 1983, the nation’s first Sino-foreign joint vehicle venture.

The State-owned auto group recently agreed to help fund supercar maker Koenigsegg AB’s purchase of Saab from General Motors.

It now plans to build up an annual production of capacity of 100,000 passenger cars under the Beijing brand.
                                                                                                      Source: China Daily