UPDATE 1 (2018-1-15): Martin Weiser notified me that the Korean version of the article includes the company information (Note to readers: When doing research using the North Korean media, look for the original Korean article!).

The company that produces the Naenara vehicles is the Chongpung JVC (AKA 청풍합영회사/Chongphung)–and it looks like they have been around for a while. You can download a video of the 13th Pyongyang Spring Trade Fair (held in 2012) here, and in the video you can see Chongphung JVC participating.

You can download a video on Chongpung as well that shows a variety of vehicles and foodstuffs they produce. Martin Weiser also posted a picture of their vehicles on Twitter:

ORIGINAL POST: The North Korean news portal “Naenara” announced “Naenara” brand vehicles over the weekend.





The news portal does not reveal much information on the vehicles:

Naenara-brand Rolling Stock Types: Cars, small- and medium-size buses and small trucks Technical specifications: − Fuel consumption: 42 – 50g/km (for cars and buses), 58g/km (for trucks) − Maximum speed: 120 – 180km/h − Maximum output: 55 – 80kW The Naenara-brand rolling stock consumes low fuel, and has air-conditioner, servosteering function and motor-windows. They are equipped with such control systems as motor-driven exterior rear view mirroring, start-stop, and backward alarm systems.

I did a quick check to see if these vehicles may simply be re-branded Pyeonghwa Motors vehicles, but I could not find any matches.

I have not seen any new vehicle factories appear in the North Korean media, so I assume an existing vehicle factory has launched a new product line. It is possible that a military vehicle factory has launched a new product for the civilian economy.

Very little data as of now, however, so we will have to wait and see. If any tourists or visitors spot these cars, please take a picture of them (the marketing pics are all computer generated).

Fuel availability, especially for the civilian economy, has been a topic of interest by outside observers in the last year as UNSC resolutions have sought to restrict imports from abroad.