Carsome-owned CarTimes launches Wuling’s commercial vehicle brand Linxys in Singapore

The brand debuts with two electric vans, including the city-state’s first fully electric micro van

Linxys, a fully electric commercial vehicle brand from China, debuted in Singapore on Tuesday (Nov 11) with authorised distributor Quantum EV and sole authorised dealer CarTimes.

The brand introduced two electric light commercial vehicles at the launch, both vans costing S$98,800 with a Category C Certificate of Entitlement.

The G100R – a small van with a length of 4.5 m – has a range of 252 km, cargo space of 5.2 square metres (sq m) and maximum payload of 1,120 kg.

It also introduced the G050 Piccolo, the first EV in Singapore that competes in the micro van segment. The van is 3.4 m long, has a cargo space of 2.5 sq m and maximum payload of 350 kg.

CarTimes will also introduce a version with a second row of seats that can be registered as a goods-cum-passenger vehicle to individuals or companies.

Micro vans – also known as kei vans – are typically from Japanese manufacturers and petrol powered, including models such as the Suzuki Every and Honda N-Van.

BT in your inbox

Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox.

Eric Chan, chief operating officer and president of Carsome, told The Business Times that the move was part of group efforts to diversify beyond used cars and into new segments and that it would consider the dealership of more brands “if it makes sense”.

New links

In 2022, Malaysia-based, South-east Asia used car platform Carsome acquired a majority stake in CarTimes, the Singapore-based automotive group retailer of new and used cars.

Linxys is a new commercial vehicle brand from China launched by state-owned automotive manufacturer Wuling. Like other automotive brands from the country, it is focused on overseas expansion including in Asia-Pacific.

SEE ALSO

Pang Song Lin, Wuling New Energy’s regional manager for South-east Asia, Hong Kong and Macao said that the launch is a starting point to establish its roots in Singapore and a crucial step for it to deepen its presence in the South-east Asian market.

Founded in 2023, Linxys is a subsidiary of Guangxi Automobile Group (GAG). Formerly known as Liuzhou Wuling Automobile, it is controlled by the administration of the Guangxi region of China as well as Wuling New Energy Vehicle.

GAG is a minority shareholder in the SAIC-GM-Wuling joint venture, a major car manufacturer in China that produces passenger cars under the Wuling brand name.