Kia Grand Carnival cars are loaded onto containers at the THACO - Chu Lai Industrial Park in Quảng Nam Province for export to Thailand. — Photo courtesy of THACO

HCM CITY — Trường Hải Auto Corporation, or THACO, has exported 40 Kia Grand Carnival cars to Thailand.

The vehicles, which have 2.2L diesel engines, were manufactured at the THACO Kia Plant in the THACO Chu Lai Industry Park in Quảng Nam Province.

This is THACO’s first shipment to the market, the first step in its goal to exporting more than 1,600 vehicles for US$50 million this year.

Yontrakit Kia Motor Co., Ltd, headquartered in Bangkok, an authorised importer and distributor of Kia passenger vehicles in Thailand, is the importer.

The cars were loaded on the ship at Cát Lái port in HCM City.

Kia Grand Carnival (known as Kia Sedona in the Vietnamese market), has unique and sophisticated design, modern features, comfort, and a spacious interior with 11 seats, and right hand drive to meet Thai traffic laws.

In addition, with its outstanding performance and exciting driving experience, Kia Grand Carnival can well serve the needs of Thai customers.

Many components used in the cars such as hub cabs, batteries, tyres, speakers, and horns are produced in the country or imported from Southeast Asia countries.

The production process has been put under rigorous quality testing in accordance with Kia’s global standards.  

The car bodies are painted in a colour coating line that uses the new wet-on-wet paint technology and automatic paint feeding system, meeting stringent requirements and offering a variety of customised colours.

Car components and bodies are assembled on conveyor belts that are 80 per cent automated. Large components such as the engine, gearbox and front and rear axles are assembled and tested on separate lines and transported by AGV (automatic guided vehicle) systems to connect to the vehicle body, ensuring precision during the assembly process.

The cars, before leaving the plant, are tested using advanced equipment to check the angle for placing wheels, lights, rotation speed, and brakes, and taken for a test drive on a 2.4km test track at the THACO-Chu Lai Industrial Park, which fully simulates actual terrain with ramps, slippery roads, gravel, winding stretches, and flat roads.

Meeting Kia Group’s global quality standards and having a local content rate of over 40 per cent, the Kia Grand Carnival cars meet the regional value content (RVC) of products, thereby enjoying preferential import tax rates of 0 per cent under the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement.

In the Thai market, the Kia Grand Carnival is a popular high-end multi-purpose car that enjoys consistent sales growth.

At the recent 2019 Thailand International Motor Show, Yontrakit introduced the Kia Grand Carnival model made in Vietnam and received positive feedback from customers.

In 2020 THACO plans to export 480 Kia Grand Carnival cars to Thailand, promote various Kia cars in Myanmar and Thailand and expand to other markets such as Malaysia, Cambodia and the Philippines.

To realise this goal, THACO is focusing on developing export products that meet the specific requirements of partners and markets as well as the standards and regulations of importing countries, and increasing the local parts rate to meet the regional value content criteria and reduce costs and participate more deeply in the global automobile production value chain. — VNS