FAW Jilin is a subsidiary of the First Automobile Works that makes mini vehicles, small trucks and vans for commercial use in Jilin City, Jilin province. Its Jiabao microvans, including the six-seater CA6350 and CA6361 introduced in 1999, descend from a long line of Suzuki Carry-based vehicles built by the company.
FAW Jilin Jiabao at a glance
| Company | FAW Jilin, subsidiary of FAW Group |
|---|---|
| Location | Jilin City, Jilin province, China |
| Founded | 1980, bought by FAW in 1987 |
| Daihatsu joint venture | October 2005 to January 2010 |
| Main products | microvans, small vans and pickups |
| Jiabao CA6350/6361 | six-seater van, introduced in 1999 |
| Pickup version | CA 1016, four-passenger, also from 1999 |
| Engines | 870 cc with 38 or 44 PS, and 1,051 cc with 52 PS |
| Later microvan | CA 6360 with six to eight seats |
Based on one source, the English Wikipedia article on FAW Jilin, which is a page about the manufacturer rather than about the CA6350 alone.
History of the FAW Jilin Jiabao
Suzuki Carry roots
Jilin originally built a licensed version of the 1976–1979 Suzuki Carry Wide, the seventh generation of the Japanese van, called the Jilin JL 110C/E. It used the same 797 cc four-cylinder F8A engine as the export version of the Carry ST80 and produced 35 PS (26 kW); later the 37 PS (27 kW) 796 cc F8B became available as well. The JL 110E was a high-roof version of the van, and there was also a JL 110G, a long-wheelbase eight-seater with the 45 PS (33 kW) 970 cc F10A four-cylinder engine. That car was stretched by 30 cm just behind the front door to allow another row of seats, was 15 cm wider and could reach 100 km/h.
Most of Jilin’s later products were small vans and trucks based on the ninth-generation Suzuki Carry, also known as the second-generation Suzuki Every. After a series of reskins, most recently the CA6360 of 2003, not much of the Suzuki heritage besides the sliding doors remained visible.
The Jiabao CA6350 and CA6361
The six-seater CA6350 and CA6361 first appeared in 1999, together with the four-passenger pickup version, the CA 1016. The engines available were an 870 cc four-cylinder with either 38 or 44 PS (28 or 32 kW) and a 1,051 cc version with 52 PS (38 kW). A regular pickup version, the CA1010, was shown in 2003. The more modern-looking six- to eight-seat CA 6360 used the two more powerful engines, with 44 or 52 PS.
The Jiabao name was applied to a whole family of these small commercial vehicles, and the CA6350 and CA6361 vans are the versions most often associated with it. Later the company moved towards more modern minivans and crossovers, but the Jiabao badge stayed on light commercial models such as the Jiabao V80, T51 and T50/T57.
The company after the Suzuki era
FAW Jilin was founded in 1980 and was purchased by FAW in 1987. From October 2005 it was in a joint venture with Daihatsu Motor of Japan, but that was dissolved in January 2010; Jilin kept the production rights to the vehicles it had built and retained the production facilities. In 2019 Shandong Baoya New Energy Automotive acquired a 70.5 percent equity stake in FAW Jilin for ¥1.5 billion, and following the capital increase FAW Group’s share was diluted from 100 percent to 29.50 percent.
The company also built the Daihatsu Xenia as the Jilin-Senya M80 from 2007. At the Beijing Auto Show in May 2010 it introduced the new Senya S80, with more body cladding, a 1.5-litre four-cylinder engine of 75 kW (102 PS) and 140 N·m, a top speed of 170 km/h and a somewhat higher price; the FAW Xenia S80 was released in December 2010. The Senya M80 was later replaced by the Senya R7 crossover of 2016, and from 2018 the Senya family was renamed Senia.
Design and features
- Suzuki Carry basis: the vans descended from a licensed version of the seventh-generation Suzuki Carry Wide.
- Six seats: the CA6350 and CA6361 were six-seaters, with a four-passenger pickup called the CA 1016.
- Small engines: 870 cc units with 38 or 44 PS and a 1,051 cc unit with 52 PS.
- Own production after Daihatsu: the company kept the rights and the plant when the joint venture ended in 2010.
FAW Jilin Jiabao versions
- JL 110C/E: the first Suzuki Carry-based van, with the 797 cc F8A engine.
- JL 110G: a long-wheelbase eight-seater with the 970 cc F10A engine.
- CA6350/6361: the six-seater Jiabao van of 1999.
- CA 1016: the four-passenger pickup version.
- CA 6360 (2003): the reskinned six- to eight-seat van.
- CA 6371 AV6 (2005): a larger, more modern minivan shown at the Shanghai Motor Show.
FAW Jilin also built the Senya, the Chinese version of the Toyota Avanza. The group’s truck business is described on the FAW Jiefang page, and more models are in the FAW collection.
Sources
- FAW Jilin, English Wikipedia: company history, Suzuki-based models, CA6350, later products
