Founded in Shiyan in 1969,[4] the ultimate parent company Dongfeng Motor Corporation was headquartered in Wuhan, the provincial capital of Hubei since 2003.

[6] DFAC acquired 51% stake of Zhengzhou Nissan Automobile (Chinese: 郑州日产汽车有限公司) in 2005 for CN¥352 million from two other state-owned companies: CITIC Automobile (of CITIC Group) and Zhengzhou Light Vehicle Works (Chinese: 郑州轻型汽车制造厂).

[8] On 13 June 2017, DFAC announced to sell Zhengzhou Nissan to the direct parent company Dongfeng Motor Co., Ltd. for about CN¥788 million, subject to the approval of extraordinary general meeting.

DCEC), a joint venture of Cummins and Dongfeng in Xiangyang (formerly called Xiangfan), was established in 1995.

The Chinese Government also owned an additional 2.74% shares via their sovereign wealth fund Central Huijin as the second largest shareholder of Dongfeng Automobile Company.

The light commercial vehicle products of Dongfeng Automobile Company are sold under the DFAC brand.