UzAuto Motors

Daewoo Nexia stamp

Daewoo Matiz stamp

Former logo before the renaming in 2019

Factory in Asaka before the renaming in 2019

The company was founded in 1992 between the Uzbek state-owned UzAvtosanoat and the South Korea-based Daewoo, and was initially known as Uz-DaewooAuto (Uzbek: O'z-DeuAvto).[3] The company began production of vehicles on 19 July 1996, at the new assembly plant in Asaka.[3]

The company produced vehicles under the brand name Uz-Daewoo.[3] The initiative to establish the Uzbek automobile industry goes back to the early 1990s and the administration of President of Uzbekistan Islam Karimov.[4]

Following Daewoo's collapse in 2001, and resulting change of ownership, GM Uzbekistan was eventually established in March 2008 as a new replacement joint venture, and the Nexia and Matiz were sold under the Chevrolet badge together with an extended range of GM Korea Chevrolet models produced at the Asaka factory.

Daewoo was acquired by General Motors and became GM Daewoo. Subsequently, the facility was renamed GM Uzbekistan in 2008. The joint venture was owned by UzAvtosanoat JSC (75%) and General Motors Corporation (25%).[5] GM Uzbekistan produced 106,334 units during the first half of 2011.[6]

Given the change in name and ownership, the model range changed, although the company continued producing Uz-Daewoo branded vehicles until 2015.[7] Some models based on these are still sold as Chevrolets.

GM Uzbekistan began production on 27 November 2008. The first assembled car on this day was a Chevrolet Lacetti which also was the 1,000,000th assembled vehicle out of the production from UzAvtosanoat. Chevrolet manufactured the Chevrolet Spark M300 in Asaka, a model for now intended only for export. The models are assembled as knock-down kits.

Following an agreement in 2008, GM Powertrain Uzbekistan opened an engine plant in Tashkent, 400 kilometres (248.5 mi) from GM Uzbekistan's vehicle manufacturing facility in Asaka, in November 2011. The factory is GM's first engine plant in Uzbekistan and has a production capacity of 225,000 1.2L and 1.5L Daewoo S-TEC engines per year for use in GM small passenger cars worldwide.[8]

Another plant produced 200,000 units of front- rear- and side windows for the vehicles of the Uz-DaewooAvto and the Chevrolet Lacetti.[9] A third production facility was opened in 2014 in Pitnak, Khorezm Region, manufacturing the Damas/Labo microvans and the Chevrolet Orlando minivan.[10]

In 2010, about 5,000 employees were employed at the GM Uzbekistan assembly plant. GM Uzbekistan sold 121,584 vehicles locally in 2011, making the country the eighth-largest market for Chevrolet and produced more than 225,000 vehicles. Its products are also exported to Russia and other CIS countries.[11]

In 2012, the Chevrolet Malibu and the Chevrolet Cobalt were added to the production line,[4][12] followed by the revised Daewoo Gentra model in 2013,[13] the Chevrolet Orlando in 2014,[14] and the Chevrolet Nexia T250 in 2015.

In 2019, the Government of Uzbekistan acquired the company and renamed it UzAuto Motors.[15]

In 2020, UzAuto began importing the Chevrolet Equinox, Trailblazer, Traverse, and Tahoe SUVs, with intent to produce them locally if there is sufficient demand.[16] UzAuto phased out the Ravon brand in 2020, merging it back into the Chevrolet brand as the Chevrolet Spark (R2), Nexia (R3), Cobalt (R4), and Lacetti (R5/Gentra).[17]

In April 2021, the company announced plans to produce Chevrolet-branded vehicles for the Russian market.[18]

In August 2021, Bo Andersson was named chief executive officer of the company.[19]

Ravon Nexia R3

Ravon R4

• Chevrolet Damas (1996–present)
• Chevrolet Labo (1996–present)
• Chevrolet Malibu 2 (2017–present)
• Chevrolet Spark (previously Ravon Spark/R2) (2010–present)
• Chevrolet Cobalt (previously Ravon Cobalt/R4) (2013–present)
• Chevrolet Lacetti (previously Ravon Gentra/G5) (2003–present)
• Chevrolet Nexia 3 (previously Ravon Nexia/R3) (2015–present)
• Chevrolet Tracker (2018–present)

• Daewoo Tico (1996–2001)
• Daewoo Nexia (N100, 1996–2008)
• Daewoo Nexia II (N150, 2008-2016)
• Chevrolet Tacuma (2008–2009)
• Chevrolet Epica (2008–2011)
• Chevrolet Orlando (2014-2018)
• Ravon Matiz R1 (2001-2018)
• Chevrolet Captiva (2008–2018)
• Chevrolet Malibu (2013–2018)

• Official website
• Uz-DaewooAvto homepage (Russian)