The Doninvest Orion was the Daewoo Nubira assembled at the Taganrog car plant in southern Russia. It was the middle car of the three Korean-derived models that Doninvest built there, and it stayed in production longer than its stablemates, from 1998 until 2002.
Doninvest Orion at a glance
| Maker | Doninvest, assembled at TagAZ, Taganrog |
|---|---|
| Also known as | Daewoo Nubira (J100) |
| Class | compact car |
| Body | four-door sedan, five-door hatchback and estate (base car) |
| Assembly in Taganrog | 1998–2002 |
| Assembly method | CKD kits from Korea |
| Design | I.DE.A Institute, Italy |
| Engines | 1.6-litre E-TEC and 2.0-litre D-TEC four-cylinders |
| Gearbox | five-speed manual; four-speed automatic |
| Platform code | J100 |
The Doninvest Orion is described in a single sentence of the English article and a short section of the Russian article on the Daewoo Nubira; the rest of the page uses the material about the Korean car.
History of the Doninvest Orion
The Daewoo Nubira
The Nubira was released in 1997 on the J100 platform, the second of the three cars with which Daewoo replaced its older, GM-derived range. The programme was led by Dr Ulrich Bez together with Daewoo’s own engineering centres in Korea, Worthing and Munich, and took under 30 months; Ricardo and GM Holden were among the outside firms involved. Styling was done by the I.DE.A Institute in Italy. The car was built at Kunsan in Korea in a factory equipped with laser-guided robots and was offered as a four-door sedan, a five-door hatchback and a five-door estate. Its name comes from the Korean verb nubida, to criss-cross, chosen to suggest a car that would be seen in every corner of the world.
Assembly at Taganrog
The Taganrog plant opened on 12 September 1998 and began putting together the Lanos, Nubira and Leganza from Korean kits. The Nubira was marketed as the Doninvest Orion; the Russian Wikipedia article on the Nubira gives the Taganrog run as 1998 to 2002. The English article describes the Russian work as CKD assembly, meaning the cars arrived largely pre-built and were finished locally.
Engines and update
International Nubiras used E-TEC 1.3 and 1.6-litre engines or Holden units of 1.8 and 2.0 litres; no diesel was ever offered in production. The Russian article lists the 1,598 cc A16DMS engine with 106 hp and the 1,998 cc X20SED with 133 hp, with five-speed manual and four-speed automatic gearboxes. In 1999 the range was revised as the Nubira II, coded J150: the hatchback was dropped, the front and rear were restyled, more than ninety changes were made to improve space and reduce noise, and the engines were brought up to tighter emission standards.
Design and features
- Italian styling: the body was designed by the I.DE.A Institute, with engineering led from Worthing in England.
- Three body styles: the base Nubira was sold as a sedan, hatchback and estate, although the Russian range was narrower.
- E-TEC and D-TEC engines: 1.6 and 2.0-litre four-cylinders with manual or automatic transmission.
- CKD assembly: cars came from Korea in kit form and were finished at Taganrog between 1998 and 2002.
Doninvest Orion versions
- Doninvest Orion: the Taganrog-assembled Nubira, built from 1998 to 2002.
- Nubira SE and CDX: the two equipment levels offered in Europe, differing in wheels, trim and electric windows.
- Nubira II (J150): the 1999 update with a restyled body and revised engines.
The Orion was the middle car of the Taganrog range, between the Doninvest Assol and the Doninvest Kondor. More cars are in the Doninvest collection.
Sources
- Daewoo Nubira, English Wikipedia: development, body styles, engines, Doninvest Orion
- Daewoo Nubira, Russian Wikipedia: Tagaz assembly dates, engines, Nubira II
