{"id":53507,"date":"2025-10-01T05:01:11","date_gmt":"2025-10-01T05:01:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/53507\/"},"modified":"2025-10-01T05:01:11","modified_gmt":"2025-10-01T05:01:11","slug":"dongfeng-confirmed-for-new-zealand-launch-here-come-box-vigo-and-007","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/53507\/","title":{"rendered":"Dongfeng confirmed for New Zealand launch: here come Box, Vigo and… 007"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dongfeng to enter NZ market with three new models.
\nAim is to ‘remove barriers to zero and low emission vehicle ownership’, says importer.
\nFirst dealerships in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch.<\/p>\n

Another new Chinese automotive brand is set on breaking into the New Zealand market with the announcement that Armstrong’s Distribution Limited will launch Dongfeng this year, with a trio of models: Box, Vigo and 007.<\/p>\n

\"Dongfeng
\nVibe is a medium SUV with a few Kia… vibes.<\/p>\n

Armstrong’s Group is the largest independent automotive retail operation in NZ and also imports and distributes various brands through a standalone business, including Peugeot, Citroen, Opel, Smart and Leapmotor.<\/p>\n

Dongfeng is one of China’s “big four” state-owned carmakers (along with SAIC, Changan Automobile and FAW Group). Formed in 1969, it has joint-venture projects with Peugeot-Citroen, Honda and Nissan; formerly also Kia.<\/p>\n


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It also designs and markets a massive range of vehicles under its own brands and is currently represented in more than 100 countries. Box, Vigo and 007 are all billed as “affordable EVs” by Armstrong’s; they come from separate sub-brands which were united under the single Dongfeng banner in 2023.<\/p>\n

\"Dongfeng
\nWith apologies to Ian Fleming, Dongfeng’s sleek sedan is called 007.<\/p>\n

Armstrong\u2019s founder and executive director, Rick Armstrong says: \u201cWe\u2019re incredibly excited to bring Dongfeng to NZ. These vehicles combine world-class engineering with cutting-edge technology, all at a price point that makes premium quality more accessible than ever.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re all about removing barriers and delivering vehicles which are a dream to drive.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOur goal is to challenge and then exceed expectations,\u201d says Simon Rutherford, CEO, Armstrong\u2019s Distribution Limited.<\/p>\n

A full launch is set for the last quarter of the year, with more specific model information promised “in the coming weeks”.<\/p>\n

Another possibility for local launch is Forthing, another Dongfeng sub-brand that’s also in export markets. A Forthing Friday SUV has been spotted at Armstrong’s head office.<\/p>\n


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The company has confimed the first three retail stores will be located in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch, with additional stores to be added throughout the country.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Dongfeng to enter NZ market with three new models. Aim is to ‘remove barriers to zero and low…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":53508,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[45585,6190,18296,11357,45586,45583,18930,6191,111,43,139,69,39685,17620,45584],"class_list":["post-53507","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-zealand","tag-45585","tag-bev","tag-box","tag-budget","tag-comapct-suv","tag-dongfeng","tag-ev","tag-medium-suv","tag-new-zealand","tag-news","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-small-suv","tag-suv","tag-vigo"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53507","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=53507"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53507\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/53508"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=53507"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=53507"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=53507"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}