The sales of passenger vehicles in China have dropped for five straight months, and in this late summer all Chinese automaker have felt the cold spells affecting the auto market. With the auto sales peak in March far behind, the ordeal for China's auto industry has just begun. All automakers are wondering how to weather the more severe winter this year.

Xuzhou Construction Machinery Science & Technology Co., Ltd. (SZSE: 000425), a leading engineering equipment manufacturer in China, has announced its plan to purchase a 60% stake in Nanjing Chunlan Auto Manufacturing Co., Ltd., for 170 million yuan ($24.9 million), said caijing.com.cn today.

Zhengzhou Yutong Group Co., China's largest bus-maker, has begun shipping 42 buses code-named ZK6130H to Chile from Shanghai, according to Shanghai Securities news on August 26.

China’s third largest automaker Dongfeng Motor Group announced that its first independent brand sedan, called Dongfeng BF, will roll off line in the company’s passenger car plant in Wuhan by the end of this year and the new model will be launched to the market in the first half of 2009, said Yao Rui, general manager of Hunan Dongfeng Automobile Sales Service Co. to Xiaoxiang Morning Herald on August 28.

Heavy duty truck production in east China's Shandong province now accounts for more than 30 percent of the country's total heavy truck output, Xinhua reported.

Haima Investment Group Shareholding Co., parent company of FAW Haima Automobile Co., will build a new sedan production base in Zhengzhou, National Business Daily reported today.

China's biggest privately-owned carmaker Geely Automobile announced that it will fix the first batch of 30 Eagle brand dealers by the end of September among hundreds of dealers that have applied, reported 21st Century Business Herald today.

FAW's Hongqi will be relaunched at the beginning of October after production is suspended for months, reported China Business New Wednesday, citing a source from FAW Car.

With the inflation, rising oil price and stock market downturn, the post-Olympics auto sales in China may slip into a short-period stagflation, but the auto market is still promising for a long time, with the fuel-saving and low-emission high-performance vehicles likely to keep growing by 20% to 30% annually, said Tan Yuesheng, president of BorgWarner China.

In the run-up to its 12th anniversary celebration, Beiqi Foton Motor has completed the second phase of its new-energy bus project and announced the facility was officially put into operation on August 28, reported Beijing Business Today.

Shanghai, September 1 (Gasgoo.com) Dongfeng Yueda Kia, a joint venture between Chinese automaker Dongfeng Group and Korean automaker Kia Motor, will start to make and sell the new Forte compact sedan in China next year, reported the Beijing News.

Following the launch of the Chery A3 model next month, Chery Auto will also put the 1.5L model of its Chery A5 onto the market at a price of 60,000 yuan ($8,770) or so, said xinhuanet.com today, citing sources from the company.