Sanyou CY6500. Changchun, 1997. Photo Erik van Ingen Schenau.
The Thai company Sammitr started in Thailand in 1959 as a small automotive supplier. Nowadays it is an immense group, active in many fields of the automotive business.
In 1992 Sammitr established a joint-venture subsidiary in Changchun: the Changchun Sammitr (Sanyou in Chinese) Motor Co. Ltd. , to produce motor vehicle parts and accessories. The Chinese partner was the Changchun Clivia Industrial Group, which had only 39,6%. This was quite unusual for a vehicle producing Chinese partner in a joint venture, normally was the absolute majority.
The Clivia is the city symbol of Changchun. At present the Sammitr Group is 100% owner of this company.
Licenses to produce cars were rare at that time, only government appointed joint ventures had the right to produce cars. It is amazing that the local Changchun-Sammitr got a license and a designation: CY.
Sammitr produced Nissan pickups in Thailand. The Nissan D21 was the base for this in-China assembled pickup. In two versions: CY1020 as pickup and CY6500 as station wagon.
The Nissan D21 was made in Thailand from 1986. The Changchun factory had a complete set of tooling dies & welding fixtures for pick up production.
The CY6500 station wagon was for sale for 72.000 yuan, had a CA488 2210cc FAW engine (the famous Chrysler engine), wheelbase 2950mm and sizes (LxWxH) 5050×1 1650x 1670mm. The chassis was from the FAW CA1021U2.
The CY1020 pick up was for sale for 70.000 yuan, with the same FAW CA488 engine, wheelbase 2950mm, sizes 4750x 1650x 1560mm. And the same FAW chassis.
How many made? In 1999 1000 CY6500 and 800 CY1020. Other years? I don’t know.
Our friend Navigator 84 made pictures of wrecks in several cities.
In 2001 Sanyou announced a D21 successor on her website, the D22. (www.ccsmm.com).
D22 was announced as pickup: single row (length 4826mm), half row (4966mm) and double row (4735mm).
Initially photos on the website showed the D22 First Generation.
Later, since April 2003, the site showed the second generation.
I have a doubt that these cars were ever made by SMM, I have never seen them, not in the streets nor on other publications.
Sanyou is nowadays still producing vehicles: mostly refit FAW trucks.
Like always: we hope you can help us, who knows more about this station wagon/ pickup production?