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NEW YORK -- A newlyformed company led by auto entrepreneur Malcolm Bricklin and the investment banking firm Allen & Co. has signed the first-ever deal to import cars made in China for sale in the United States.
Bricklin, known best for bringing the ultra-cheap Yugo car to the U.S. market in the 1980s, is expected to announce the agreement today between New York-based Visionary Vehicles LLC and Chery Automobile Co., one of the fastest-growing players in the fledgling Chinese auto industry.
The deal to import up to 250,000 Chinese-made cars annually beginning in 2007 was finalized Dec. 16 at Chery's corporate headquarters in Anhui Province in eastern China, Bricklin told The Detroit News in an interview.
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Investment banker William McGrail, who has known Bricklin for 20 years, cautioned against betting against him.
"Malcolm is controversial, but his energy is incredible," McGrail said. "He can take more disappointment and heartache and keep coming back than any entrepreneur or businessman I've ever met."
Bricklin expects the automotive world to be skeptical of Chinese imports in the United States, just as it was when he brought in Subarus and Yugos. But with the signing of the Chery agreement, the aging automotive impresario believes he can make history.
"You know, if we don't make sure these cars are among the best in the world, we're going to get our ass handed to us," he said. "But if we do what we're supposed to do, this could be the deal that changes the industry."
NEW YORK -- A newlyformed company led by auto entrepreneur Malcolm Bricklin and the investment banking firm Allen & Co. has signed the first-ever deal to import cars made in China for sale in the United States.
Bricklin, known best for bringing the ultra-cheap Yugo car to the U.S. market in the 1980s, is expected to announce the agreement today between New York-based Visionary Vehicles LLC and Chery Automobile Co., one of the fastest-growing players in the fledgling Chinese auto industry.
The deal to import up to 250,000 Chinese-made cars annually beginning in 2007 was finalized Dec. 16 at Chery's corporate headquarters in Anhui Province in eastern China, Bricklin told The Detroit News in an interview.
...
Investment banker William McGrail, who has known Bricklin for 20 years, cautioned against betting against him.
"Malcolm is controversial, but his energy is incredible," McGrail said. "He can take more disappointment and heartache and keep coming back than any entrepreneur or businessman I've ever met."
Bricklin expects the automotive world to be skeptical of Chinese imports in the United States, just as it was when he brought in Subarus and Yugos. But with the signing of the Chery agreement, the aging automotive impresario believes he can make history.
"You know, if we don't make sure these cars are among the best in the world, we're going to get our ass handed to us," he said. "But if we do what we're supposed to do, this could be the deal that changes the industry."
