Trademarks registered in Malaysia, what are Changan, Deepal, and Avatr?

You must be an exceptionally nerdy person if you recognise the three brands in the title immediately. To those who don’t, they are Chinese carmakers and made a huge splash at the ongoing 2024 Bangkok Motor Show among a slew of other brands from the Middle Kingdom.

Changan might be a familiar name in Malaysia as it is present in the commercial vehicles sector though the company has rebranded itself as Kaicene.

Its line-up of small trucks are essentially licensed versions of the older generations of the Suzuki Every/Carry but the Changan shown at Bangkok over the weekend was far from industrial grade.

At the 2024 Bangkok Motor Show, Changan unveiled the tiny Changan Lumin which is a rival to the Wuling Hongguang Mini EV as well as the Wuling Air.

The latter made its launch in the Kingdom last year following a world debut in Indonesia but this miniscule battery electric vehicle (BEV) isn’t the one we’re paying attention to.

Also read: Thai distributor EV Primus announces plans to launch Wuling Air in Malaysia in 2024

Instead, it’s Changan’s other line-up of cars that were on display at its booth – the Deepal L07, Deepal S07, and Avatr 11. Deepal and Avatr are sub-brands of Changan with the latter a collaborative effort between the Chongqing-based automaker, Huawei, and battery provider CATL.

Deep in Deepal

Though Deepal is the older of the two brands, having been established in 2008, it only started producing its own model in 2022 with the Deepal L07 sedan. In Thailand, the L07 is available in two variants:

• Deepal L07 S – 218 PS/320 Nm
• Deepal L07 – 258 PS/320 Nm

The standard S variant is juiced by a 58.89-kWh battery and has a maximum driving range of 475 km (NEDC).  Meanwhile, the L07 is equipped with a larger 66.8-kWh battery with a 540 km range (NEDC). Deepal’s rival to the BYD Seal range between THB 1,239,000 (~RM 161k) and THB 1,329,000 (~RM 173k).

The second Deepal model available in Thailand is the Deepal S07 electric SUV. One look at the S07’s design and you might see hints of the Toyota Harrier but that also is perhaps due to the similarities in dimensions shared between the two SUVs.

Like the L07, the S07 is available in Thailand in two variants though the variants’ positions are switched. The base S07 is the more powerful of the pair and shares the same 66.8-kWh battery as the L07 but has a lower 485-km claimed range (NEDC).

The S07 L meanwhile trades less power (218 PS/320 Nm) for a larger battery (79.9-kWh) which in turn gives a higher claimed NEDC range of 560 km. The S07 is priced between THB 1,399,000 and THB 1,499,000 (~RM 182k-195k).

Both Deepal models sit on Changan’s EPA 1 all-electric digital platform and are equipped with Qualcomm Snapdragon 8155 Automotive System. The Deepal BEVs are fully imported from China though there are plans for Changan to set up a production facility in Thailand to serve right-hand drive (RHD) markets.

If Huawei built a car…

The 2024 Bangkok Motor Show also served as the Thai public debut of the Avatr 11 which isn’t pronounced ‘eleven’ but rather ‘one one’. Avatr’s first model made its Thai appearance during its media launch back in November 2023 but the units shown at IMPACT Arena were RHD units.

This might be an interesting hint towards the Huawei joint venture’s imminent arrival in the Kingdom and other RHD markets. The Avatr 11 is a luxury fastback crossover with a unique rear design but an overall muscular shape.

The displayed units of the Avatr 11 were locked and they appeared to be pre-production units. Currently, the Avatr 11 is only available in China with 2 electric motor configurations – single-motor rear-wheel drive (310 PS/370 Nm) or dual-motor all-wheel drive (578 PS/650 Nm).

Two ternary lithium-ion batteries are also offered for the RWD variants, a 90-kWh pack or a 116-kWh battery. Only the latter is available for the AWD version while the 11 has a range of between 580 km to 730 km depending on the variant under CLTC ratings.

While you might be right in thinking that Huawei aids in the development of the software needed for connectivity, infotainment, and intelligent driving, the tech company also helped in developing the electric motors which it calls DriveONE.

As for the Huawei software built into the Avatr 11, these include the Harmony OS-powered infotainment unit as well as the intelligent driving system which comprises 34 sensors including 3 LiDAR sensors.

Changan Thailand has not revealed any information regarding the Avatr 11 that was shown at the 2024 Bangkok Motor Show. In China, the crossover is priced between CNY 300,000 to CNY 390,000 (~RM 196k-255k).

Malaysia soon?

So, what about its prospects in Malaysia? Well, the Changan and Deepal names have been registered for trademark with the country’s IPO offices (MyIPO) which came into effect in August 2023.

The names were registered by Chongqing Changan Automobile Co Ltd which owns the Changan and Deepal names. Following its launch in Thailand, it seemed possible that the Chinese carmaker could have its eyes set on Malaysia next.

However, Changan Automobile once reportedly inked a deal with a local company as early as January 2022. Two years ago, a company called Fieldman EV Sdn Bhd obtained exclusive rights to distribute Changan EVs in Malaysia and Southeast Asia.

Also read: Changan EVs confirmed for Malaysia, Melaka to get RM 1bil CKD EV plant

The company also planned to invest RM 1 billion in Melaka to set up an assembly plant in Jasin. However, things have gotten quiet and with groundbreaking works happening in Rayong, suffice to say that the Fieldman venture might sound more like a scam than reality.

Still, could we see the imminent arrival of Changan, Deepal, and maybe even Avatr into Malaysia?