GM-Daewoo Platform Asia Bound

General Motors Corp.'s GM Daewoo Auto & Technology Co. Ltd., which rose from the ashes of the former Daewoo Motor Co. Ltd., now is tailoring its J200 platform for markets around the world.

It soon will appear in different forms, and under different brands, in India, Thailand and China. It will be marketed by American Suzuki Motor Corp. in North America as the Forenza compact sedan and sold in Western Europe as the Nubira II.

Sold in South Korea and some Eastern European countries as the Lacetti compact, the J200 was the first platform to launch after the formation of the new, GM-led company — although its development primarily occurred under the now-defunct Daewoo Motor.

The Asian market launches will occur within a matter of months of each other, says a GM official. The car will sell in China as the Buick Excelle, where its front fascia has received some revisions to better suit Chinese tastes. It will be built by the Shanghai General Motors Automotive Co. Ltd. joint venture.

In India and Thailand, the vehicles will carry the Chevrolet badges and will be built in complete-knocked-down production from kits at GM's main plants there — in Halol, India, and Rayong province, Thailand.