When a new brand arrives in South Africa, “where is Changan made?” is one of the first questions buyers tend to ask. It matters because manufacturing origin affects build quality, parts availability, shipping lead times, and how a warranty claim is handled. Changan is a name many South Africans are only starting to get familiar with, but the answer is surprisingly well-documented.
The short version: Changan Automobile is headquartered in Chongqing, China, and operates 21 manufacturing bases and 76 plants worldwide. The longer, more useful answer is the one that tells you where your specific South African model was built and why that matters.
By the end of this article you will know:
- Where Changan is headquartered and when it started making cars
- How many factories Changan operates globally
- The role of Chongqing as the main production hub
- The joint ventures (Changan Ford, Changan Mazda) and sub-brands (Avatr, Deepal) in the picture
- Where the SA-bound Changan vehicles are actually built
- Why the country of manufacture matters for local buyers
Let us dive in.
Who Manufactures Changan? A Quick Company Profile
Changan Automobile is one of China’s “Big Four” state-owned automakers, and it is the country’s fourth-largest automotive group by production volume. The company traces its industrial history back to 1862, though automobile manufacturing specifically began in 1984, giving it more than 40 years of car-building experience.
Today, Changan Automobile is formally known as China Changan Automobile Group, formed through the consolidation of Changan Automobile, Chenzhi Group, and Changan Auto Finance into a dedicated automotive entity in July 2025. Headquarters are in Jiangbei, Chongqing, where the group is directly managed by China’s central government.
The Chongqing Factory: Changan’s Global Heart
Chongqing is the anchor of the entire Changan production network. The city is home to Changan’s primary manufacturing complex, its main R&D centre, and the flagship Liangjiang plants. It is also where the company’s 30 millionth vehicle rolled off the line in December 2025, making Changan the first independent Chinese automaker to cross that milestone.
The Liangjiang No. 2 Factory in particular has become a showcase for Chinese intelligent manufacturing, implementing digital twin technology, 90% welding automation, and quality management systems aligned with the international IATF 16949 standard. When people search for “Changan Chongqing factory”, this is essentially the operation they are picturing.
Changan Production Worldwide: The Full Factory Footprint
Beyond Chongqing, Changan’s production network extends across both China and overseas markets. According to Changan’s global about page, the company operates 21 manufacturing bases and 76 plants worldwide.
The domestic bases are spread across multiple Chinese provinces, including Chongqing, Hebei, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Anhui, Guangdong, Heilongjiang and others. Internationally, Changan has built out a growing overseas footprint including:
- A passenger vehicle plant in Karachi, Pakistan (joint venture with Master Motors), which produces right-hand drive vehicles
- The Rayong new-energy vehicle plant in Thailand, which began production in May 2025 with annual capacity of 100,000 units
- Additional facilities in Russia, Vietnam, and elsewhere under the company’s “Vast Ocean Plan” globalisation strategy
The plan is to build out around 20 overseas plants in total by the end of the decade, supporting Changan’s expansion into more than 100 countries.
Joint Ventures and Sub-Brands: Changan Ford, Changan Mazda, Avatr, Deepal
Changan’s manufacturing story gets more layered when you add in its joint ventures and sub-brands. Changan Ford is a 50:50 joint venture with Ford, producing Ford-branded vehicles in China at plants in Chongqing, Hangzhou and Harbin. Changan Mazda is a similar joint venture producing Mazda-branded vehicles for the Chinese market.
The sub-brands work differently. Avatr is a premium EV brand co-owned by Changan with battery giant CATL and technology partner Huawei, while Deepal is Changan’s new-energy vehicle brand that became independent in 2023. Both sit under the broader Changan Group umbrella but are positioned for different segments. In the South African context, the Deepal S07 electric SUV is the most relevant of these sub-brand offerings, sitting alongside the core Changan-badged models distributed by Jameel Motors.
Where SA-Bound Changan Cars Are Actually Built
For South African buyers, the practical question is: where is the Alsvin, CS75 Pro, Hunter or Deepal S07 physically manufactured?
The current SA-spec Changan lineup is built in Changan’s Chinese plants, centred in the Chongqing production complex, and shipped to South Africa via Durban. The first consignment of Changan vehicles arrived at the Port of Durban on 6 October 2025, covering the Alsvin sedan, CS75 Pro SUV and Deepal S07.
Changan is distributed locally by Saudi-founded Jameel Motors, which has rolled out a network of around 25 dealerships across South Africa and established a local parts warehouse in Pomona, Gauteng to support after-sales service.
Why Manufacturing Origin Matters for SA Buyers
Knowing where your car is made is more than a trivia question. Three things flow from it:
Quality control consistency. Changan’s Chongqing plants operate under the international IATF 16949 automotive quality standard and have been recognised at China’s national-level quality conferences. That is a different picture from some of the older “Chinese car” stereotypes and translates into more consistent build quality on the cars shipped to SA.
Parts availability. Because all SA-spec Changan models currently come from the same global production network, parts ordering runs through a centralised supply chain. Jameel Motors’ local parts warehouse is the first line of support; longer-lead items come via Changan’s global logistics operation.
Warranty backing. The 5-year / 150,000 km warranty on every SA-spec Changan is underwritten by a manufacturer that built 2.7 million vehicles in 2024 and crossed 30 million cumulative units in late 2025. Production scale at that level is a meaningful signal that the brand is engineered for long-term operation rather than short-term market sampling.
The Bottom Line on Changan Manufacturing
So, where are Changan cars made? For South African buyers in 2026, the answer is China, with Chongqing as the primary production hub, and a global support network of 76 plants standing behind the cars you see on local roads. That is a different picture from the fringe-brand assumption many buyers still carry around, and it is worth factoring in when you weigh Changan against more familiar names on your shortlist.
