Changa'n CV11 Minivan

CHONGQING, China — Chang'an Motor, the Chinese partner of Ford and Suzuki, has introduced the CV11 minivan, the latest in a series of homegrown designs.

The seven-passenger van is powered by a twin-cam 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine. Prices will be announced in the coming week. Designed in Italy by IDEA, the CV11 was first displayed in concept form at the 2003 Shanghai Auto Show.

Chang'an joins a growing list of Chinese automakers developing their own products both for domestic and export markets.

Chang'an last year assembled more than 700,000 vehicles, about half in partnership with Ford and Suzuki. It has ambitious export plans. The company, a former affiliate of the People's Liberation Army, said it plans to export 100,000 vehicles a year by 2010, and has set its sights — as have many of its counterparts — on eventually marketing vehicles in the United States.