‘Le Ssangshwe’ Aims for Rebound This Year... Promotions, Production Increase, New Car Launch

Promotion Starts Simultaneously from the 2nd
Aiming to Recover Last Year's Performance through New Car Launches and Increased Production of Key Models

[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Gyumin] The three mid-sized automakers known as ‘LeSsangShoe’ (Renault Korea Motors, SsangYong Motor, and Korea GM) are aiming for a rebound this year. Along with promotions to boost sales, they plan to offset last year’s poor sales performance through new car launches and increased production of key models.

These companies struggled last year. According to Kaizu Data Research Institute, the cumulative domestic sales volume of LeSsangShoe from January to November last year (based on new car registrations) was 146,807 units, which is 7,455 units less than the 154,262 units sold during the same period in 2021. Genesis sales from January to November last year reached 121,433 units. In other words, even combined, the three companies’ sales are only 25,374 units more than Genesis sales.

They plan to accelerate performance improvement through aggressive promotional events and sales strategies. Korea GM offers up to 4 million KRW cash support when purchasing a Traverse through a combo program. The remaining amount, excluding the cash support, can be paid in installments for up to 72 months at an interest rate of 6.0%. Additionally, when purchasing a Tahoe or Colorado with a lump sum payment, they provide 3 million KRW and 2 million KRW respectively for vehicle registration fees.

Korea GM is currently preparing to launch a new vehicle. They plan to begin mass production of a new crossover utility vehicle (CUV) from the first quarter and release it within the first half of the year. They aim to produce 250,000 units annually by investing 900 billion KRW in the Changwon plant.

Renault Korea Motors introduced a 2.9% installment plan (up to 12 months and for installment principal over 10 million KRW) for all models including QM6, SM6, and XM3 on the 2nd. The interest rates are 5.9% for 36-month installments, 6.9% for 48 months, and 7.9% for 60 months. Renault Korea is focusing on increasing production of the XM3 hybrid model, which was launched in the second half of last year. About half of the approximately 100,000 XM3 export units are hybrid models, showing strong overseas popularity. Signs of success are also appearing domestically. Domestic sales of this model increased about tenfold from 83 units in October to 800 units in November. A Renault Korea official stated, "We will officially start domestic sales of the hybrid model this year."

SsangYong Motor is simultaneously strengthening warranty services and promotions. For the first time in the domestic industry, the warranty period for the body and general parts will be extended to match the engine and powertrain warranty period of 5 years/100,000 km. Depending on the purchased model, customer-tailored purchase benefits such as interest-free installments and support for general consumable replacements will be provided.

Along with this, SsangYong Motor will improve its brand image through a name change. At the regular shareholders’ meeting in March this year, the company name will be changed to ‘KG Mobility’ and the logo will also be updated. Additionally, they plan to launch an electric vehicle (U100) based on the sports utility vehicle (SUV) Torres, which was released in the second half of last year, in the second half of this year. Torres recorded cumulative sales of 20,000 units (domestic and export combined) over four months after its launch.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.