Kaiyi Auto (official name Yibin Kaiyi Automobile Co., Ltd., Chinese: 凯翼, Kǎiyì) is a Chinese state-owned passenger vehicle manufacturer focuses on low-cost models. Founded in January 2014, it was originally a wholly owned subsidiary of Chery Automobile. In December 2017, after the equity change, it moved to Yibin City and was renamed Yibin Kaiyi Automobile Co., Ltd.[2] In 2022, the brand was renamed from Cowin Auto (named after the Chery Cowin) to Kaiyi Auto.
Kaiyi Auto is currently the only automobile manufacturer headquartered in Sichuan Province. The brand is specialized on offering low cost models, targeted to young buyers.
History
The origin of the Cowin name dates back to 2003 when it was introduced to identify the facelifted version of the Chery Fulwin (itself a licensed version of the first series of Seat Toledo as well as the first car produced by the Chery); subsequently, from 2009, Chery decided to reorganize its product range using this name to identify a sub-range of models that had reached end of the production cycle were still selling well; these were the Chery Cowin 1 (a facelifted QQ6), the Chery Cowin 2 (ex Chery Cowin / Fulwin), and Chery Cowin 3 (ex Chery A5).[3]
Cowin Auto was established as a subsidiary of Chery in 2014 with the aim of developing a new niche in China's dynamically developing car market, targeting young buyers from medium-sized and small towns with low prices.