Oting is another new brand entering the Russian market. But its origin is very confusing. This trademark was invented by Sinomach Automobile, which is one of the ten largest car dealer groups in China. The parent corporation Sinomach produces tractors, excavators, construction and road equipment, as well as a wide range of automotive components, but there are no passenger and passenger cars in the production program. Russia has become the first export market for the corporation, and under the Oting brand, cars manufactured by the Chinese joint venture Zhengzhou Nissan will be delivered to us.
It was created by Dongfeng and Nissan to produce joint models for the domestic market. Nissan left Russia a year ago, and Dongfeng already has a local distributor, Motorinvest. And it not only supplies us with Dongfeng DF6 pickups produced by this very joint venture, but in addition recently announced the expansion of the Russian range. However, now the Sinomach company is trying to intercept the initiative, and its first model was the Oting Paladin frame SUV.
In China, it debuted last summer under the name Dongfeng Paladin, but in fact it is a type of the 2018 Nissan Terra model. Such cars are just produced by the Zhengzhou Nissan joint venture, but if Terra is a completely Nissan development (production is also carried out in Thailand), then the Paladin has been modified and redesigned by the Chinese side.
From the outside, the Paladin and Terra 4882 mm long differ only in logos and nameplates, but the interior of the Paladin is different — with a large vertical screen of the media system (10 or 12 inches) and an unfixed joystick for controlling the transmission. And most importantly — a different power unit is installed. Paladin has a two-liter Mitsubishi 4K31 gasoline turbo engine (218 hp in Russian specification) and an eight-speed “automatic” ZF.
Four complete sets have been announced for our market. The basic one called Deluxe has only rear—wheel drive, two airbags, halogen headlights and leather seat upholstery, and the expected price is 3.8 million rubles. The Premium version for 4.25 million is a hard—wired all-wheel drive (with downshift and rear differential lock), leather interior and electric front seats.
The Oting Paladin in the Intelligence package has side airbags, virtual appliances, an enlarged display of the media system (12 inches) and adaptive cruise control, and the price is 4.4 million rubles. Finally, the top version of Prestige for 4.5 million is equipped with a set of electronic assistants.
It is stated that Sinomach Automobile has signed a five-year distribution agreement with the Zhengzhou Nissan joint venture. Oting Paladin SUVs should enter our market in mid-January, at the first stage the dealer network will include 15 car dealerships. Later, a pickup truck should appear under the Oting brand — the same Dongfeng DF6, but with a different logo. Interestingly, Motorinvest also does not abandon its plans to sell Dongfeng cars, so it is possible that “Chinese Nissan” will really be sold under two brands. Or one of the distributors will have to move.