The Daewoo Matiz is a city car produced by the South Korean automaker GM Korea, marketed worldwide since 1998 when it replaced the Daewoo Tico. It is available solely as a five-door hatchback with two engine configurations. The Matiz was originally designed by Italdesign Giugiaro, and has received two facelifts. Various generations of the car have been sold under both Daewoo and various GM brands, and have been manufactured and marketed under license agreements by local automakers in several countries. The Matiz was built since 1998 and has sold over 2.3 million units in the world.
The production of Daewoo Matiz started in 1998 and it was sold in South Korea and many European markets with the code name M100. The exterior design is based on the Lucciola, a Fiat Cinquecento concept by Italdesign Giugiaro which had been rejected by Fiat. The 0.8-litre gasoline engine and the transmission were carryovers from the Daewoo Tico. Engineering was carried out at Daewoo's Worthing Technical Centre in England. The car became the best selling Daewoo model in Europe and in India for the next four years.[citation needed]
The Matiz was originally launched with just a 0.8 L 3-cylinder engine. This engine was developed from the Tico unit by Tickford, a UK company based in Milton Keynes. The Tickford connection was acknowledged in the brochures distributed in UK showrooms.
Also marketed in China as the Chevrolet Spark, the Matiz has been at the center of an industrial rights controversy ever since a very similar car, the Chery QQ, had been introduced by local manufacturer Chery Automobile.
GM sued Chery, alleging piracy of the Spark design, and proving the extent of the copy in that the doors of the Chery QQ and Chevy/Chevrolet Spark were completely interchangeable. GM China Group indicated the two vehicles "shared remarkably identical body structure, exterior design, interior design and key components." MotorAuthority.com called the QQ a "carbon copy." The International Herald Tribune in a 2005 article, referred to the QQ as a clone.
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