Formosa Automobile Corporation () is a Taiwanese automobile company. It was founded on October 20, 1996, by Mr. Lee Tzung-Chang of the

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

ese

Formosa Plastics Group Formosa Plastics Group (FPG, ) is a titular Taiwanese conglomerate of diverse interests, including biotechnology, petrochemical processing and production of electronics components. The group was founded by Wang Yung-ching and his brother Wang ...

. Formosa Automobile Corporation started after buying a factory from Sanfu Motor Co., Ltd. Its initial plan was to produce LPG and

petroleum Petroleum, also known as crude oil or simply oil, is a naturally occurring, yellowish-black liquid chemical mixture found in geological formations, consisting mainly of hydrocarbons. The term ''petroleum'' refers both to naturally occurring un ...

vehicles and to increase production and management experiences in vehicle production. On November 11, 1999, Formosa Automobile Corporation started a product license agreement with GM

Daewoo Daewoo ( ; ; ; ; literally "great universe" and a portmanteau of "''dae''" meaning great, and the given name of founder and chairman Kim Woo-choong) also known as the Daewoo Group, was a major South Korean chaebol (type of conglomerate) and aut ...

to produce the

Magnus Magnus, meaning "Great" in Latin, was used as cognomen of Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus in the first century BC. The best-known use of the name during the Roman Empire is for the fourth-century Western Roman Emperor Magnus Maximus. The name gained wid ...

sedan under the Formosa brand as their first product. The Formosa Magnus was a re-branded

Daewoo Magnus The Daewoo Magnus is a mid-sized sedan developed and manufactured by Daewoo for model years 2000–2006 under a single generation, and marketed globally by GM Daewoo and other General Motors divisions, as well as GMDAT stake holder Suzuki. Deve ...

sedan running on the SC-1 DOHC 2.0L engine by GM. The Formosa Matiz hatchback was added later, based on the new-badge

Daewoo Matiz Daewoo ( ; ; ; ; literally "great universe" and a portmanteau of "''dae''" meaning great, and the given name of founder and chairman Kim Woo-choong) also known as the Daewoo Group, was a major South Korean chaebol (type of conglomerate) and aut ...

. The development of electric vehicles was also planned. In 2004, Formosa Automobile Corporation shut down the self-owned Formosa brand due to a long-term financial loss. In 2005, Formosa Automobile Corporation acquired the procuration rights of the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

Skoda brand of VAG and introduced the Fabia, Octavia, Superb, and Roomster passenger cars. Due to the high prices of Skoda cars, Formosa Automobile Corporation abstained from the procuration rights of the Skoda brand in 2007, with the aftermarket maintenance transferred to the Formosa Automobile commercial subsidiary. By the end of 2006, Formosa Automobile Corporation had only the production line of the

DAF Trucks DAF Trucks is a Dutch truck manufacturing company and a division of Paccar. DAF originally stood for ''van Doorne's Aanhangwagen Fabriek''. Its headquarters and main plant are in Eindhoven. Cabin (lorry), Cabs and axle assembly line, assemblies ...

brand left with the Formosa Automobile commercial subsidiary in charge. Future plans include the export sales of Southeast Asian markets, and DAF Trucks Taiwan is only in charge of sales and service. But after 2006, the company encountered obstacles such as market rivalry from other companies and evolving consumer tastes, impacting its business trajectory. These challenges led to ongoing fluctuations in financial performance and operational sustainability. Formosa Magnus taxi 389-MX 20100316

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DAF Taiwan
Taiwanese companies established in 1996 Car manufacturers of Taiwan Formosa Plastics Group Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1996 {{Taiwan-company-stub

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