A Chinese partner of Japanese companies Toyota and Honda,[3] GAIG owns Chinese production bases that produce Chinese-market versions of the Japanese carmakers' models,[citation needed] which sell well in Southern China as of 2010.

[citation needed] Formerly the Guangzhou Automobile Industry Group Company, it was renamed in 2003.

[5] In 2007, GAIG began putting in motion plans to sell automobiles under its own brand and to further this goal had acquired a controlling share in an R&D center at South China University of Technology.

[6] By 2010, it was selling its own vehicles under the GAC Trumpchi brand.

Guangzhou Automobile Group Co Ltd (SEHK: 2238) was founded in 1997,[4] and by 2005[8] it had become a holding of GAIG.