[dockap]

Wow, closed since 10 years but in the above photos it looks like time has stood still and you get the feeling that the workers are out for the weekend and will return on monday morning and work will go on as usual.
we had 2 cars from Daewoo in our family. My dad had a Cielo which was given to me to me in 2001 end when he purchased a Sonata. I used it for a year or so until i purchased a Scorpio
My sister had a 1999 Daewoo Matiz which was lying in the garage unused for the last 2 years and was sold off last year for 60k. I find the Matiz to be a timeless beauty which can hold its own looks wise even against modern hatchbacks. Gm really messed up its looks by releasing it as spark.

[rubicon]

"sidindica" , this thread deserves a 5++ star rating.

Thanks a lot for bringing in the old memories. Have be driven around a lott in a Cielo GLX in 1999 during college days. One of my classmates owned it and our college was about 25kms from the city. Was simply in love with the car with its amazing suspension, pick-up and most of all, the grand presence it had in those days.

I am sure, if these parts were to be sold, there would be a lot of happy takes (including me).

Hats off to the maintenance guys who are taking care of the factory.

And once again, excellent report "sidindica".

[AKB]

Very often successes in an industry are highlighted and sadly the failures forgotten. Daewoo, LML, PAL - they are forgotten but most new players with low volumes and high ambition would be facing the same challenges few years down from now. Its basis finance that combination of low production volume, large number of models/variations, high fixed costs is a recipe for disaster. However, even the likes of Honda did not see it coming and failed to take corrective action in time. Today they are atleast 2-3 years behind competitors and with low volumes that they are seeing these days, I assume that profit, if any, would be meager. Similarly, Fiat, has repeatedly failed to have a profitable existence in Indian Market.

Thankfully Indian market has adopted the concept of only assembling and procuring sub-assemblies(Bought out finished or bought out semi-finished). That said, the margins have been further reduced due to this AND product differentiation ( which according to me is important) is minimal in mass segment.

The verdict on the operating model is still not out ( Maruti Vs AMW model) but Maruti model requires huge volumes ( whcih only 1-2 players will get in a market) where as AMW model is unable to grow profitability with increase in volumes (which happens in Maruti model).

[sidindica]

Its often said....to be successful, you must build a great foundation for yourself.
Truth be told, a great foundation had been built in the mid 90s...but, today....alas...that great foundation lies isolated...deserted...awaiting to be rebuilt...

Some random pics of the plant from video screenshots. The area and size is humongous.

--CURTAINS--

[BurningHeart]

Really nostalgic. I still own a Spark which is rejigged Matiz. And I can tell that they some fantastic cars at that time. Nexia was a great car, compared to the Ambassador that we had earlier.

BH.

[mac187]

Very Nostalgic thread.
These spare would definetly find alot of takers in the market. Wonder why its not been sold off!

I remember reading about closing down of Yezdi factory in 2004. Brand new 250's were sold between 12k-18k a piece and 350's were sold at 15k-20k per piece. The bulk of the spares was bought by a Bangalore based shop owner at Rs.75 per KG, he bought spares worth 7 lakhs. The two guys from the factory broke rest of the spares to be sold as scrap!

A similar set of pictures of the Yezdi factory was on the net, have been trying to find it for a long time now. If anyone has that link, please do share it.

[samsag12]

Originally Posted by mac187

Very Nostalgic thread.
These spare would definetly find alot of takers in the market. Wonder why its not been sold off!

I remember reading about closing down of Yezdi factory in 2004. Brand new 250's were sold between 12k-18k a piece and 350's were sold at 15k-20k per piece. The bulk of the spares was bought by a Bangalore based shop owner at Rs.75 per KG, he bought spares worth 7 lakhs. The two guys from the factory broke rest of the spares to be sold as scrap!

A similar set of pictures of the Yezdi factory was on the net, have been trying to find it for a long time now. If anyone has that link, please do share it.

Here are some links to the Yezdi/Jawa factory, hope its the same one you are referring to.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/motorb...roduced-4.html

ABANDONED: /// Jawa/Yezdi Factory


BTW Sid thanks for sharing some eyeopener pics & such a nostalgic thread.

[mac187]

Originally Posted by samsag12

Here are some links to the Yezdi/Jawa factory, hope its the same one you are referring to.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/motorb...roduced-4.html

ABANDONED: /// Jawa/Yezdi Factory

Thanks alot for the links.

Most of the pictures are the same. The one I had seen had pictures of a classic converted into a three wheeler (in a very crude fashion) to move engines in the shop floor. The bike was carrying engines on it when it was abandoned. This picture caught my eye then, felt as though something bad happened and people just left everything and walked-off, never to look back.

[InfinteLoop]

Really sad state of affairs. Any idea if we can source parts for existing daewoo cars on the road from the factory?

[Sisu]

I got shivers running down my spine seeing the pictures. Why can't the current owner sell the excess inventory like the brand new engines, body panels etc. to independent garages/workshops. I'm sure they can use these parts to service old daewoo cars. This would work out well for both the seller and the buyer.

[cognito.matrix]

Thanks Sid

Can't say more but it left a tear in my eye. It tells a story. I owned a Cielo for 5 years and I loved it. It was a 3-speed AT later converted to a 5-speed MT.

[LP640]

Really a sad enough sight for any petrolhead to drop in tears! So many unsused finished components. Such a huge loss of everything!
Just like Sisu said, so many people will be happy to get "geniuine" parts for their daewoo if these things are put on sale. College students can get finished engines for projects, imagine a 1.6L 101PS engine for a project! Also i guess farmers can put the engines to use in some agricultural function. Plus it will clean up the inventory!
Why is it not done? Any idea anyone?

[sparsh]

Friends I concur with your thoughts. In fact Cielo was an amazing car with a great performance and was truly India's luxury car below the sub 10-12 lakh category. It came with a great engine and the best A/C in the business. The only bug bear for the Cielo was its low fuel economy. The matiz was a great hatchback car with nice features some of them ahead of their time. Lets hope GM can bring back some of the magic with their cars. If I am not mistaken the Aveo 1.6 has a Nubira engine.

[Rajat]

This is one of those threads which I will keep coming back to. It has given me such an ironic view in my mind.

Just last year I had a chance to visit Skoda's Aurangabad Assembly Plant. Every corner of that place was buzzing with activity and ambition. Dashboards for Laura/Superb being assembled at one place, engine aggregates being completed at another. And each part being assembled, reaching in time to fit into the body shells moving on the main assembly line in a perfect orchestra. Outside at one place the vehicles were continuously being tested before they could be marked 'o.k.' for dispatch. It seemed like nothing could go wrong. A happily ever after story.

When I look at these pictures, my heart aches to see those complete engines waiting to be put where they belong. The body shells which never made it to the assembly line.

I really wish if those engines could be put in body shells and cranked just once. Just one round of spirited revving is all those engines are silently asking for.

[devarshi84]

Originally Posted by GTO

Sid,

This thread is a masterpiece! Man, I got goosebumps from seeing that factory full of parts & machinery, yet empty. As if the pictures weren't enough, your emotional write-up touches a nerve. The Matiz body-in-white really did me in. Two Koreans entered India in the nineties; their fate couldn't have been any more different. While Hyundai emerged far more successful, Daewoo was equally aggressive. Too bad that the management & financial crisis sealed the company's fate.

I'm surprised no one has bothered to pick this plant up, especially since so many new brands have entered the market since. GM might have excess capacity on its hands, else it would have been the most logical buyer for the Surajpur facility. Or maybe then, Subbu just had his own plans at the time.

Thanks for documenting what is a very important part of Indian automotive history.

BVR Subbu had purchased the Surajpur plant under Argentum Motors name along with a partner. They reportedly had a fallout some years ago.

I wonder why Argentum didn't proceed along the lines of resurrected Delorean with so much inventory at hand.

It would be profitable to run a small niche lifestyle company than let all that tonnes of inventory rot and book a loss on the books of accounts.

I am sure renamed Nexia's with a 1.6 ltr 110ps engine would still find takers if marketed the right way.