Daewoo Model History

South Korea · founded 1982

South Korea's once-ambitious automaker — from GM-licensed compacts to Giugiaro-styled originals, until GM absorbed it in 2002 and retired the Daewoo name in 2011.

Models

LeMans

Daewoo's first nameplate — an Opel Kadett E built under licence, sold in North America as the Pontiac LeMans.

Compact car · 1986–1994
Espero

Daewoo's first in-house sedan — a Bertone-styled body over the LeMans platform, signalling Daewoo's Italian-design era.

Mid-size car · 1990–1997
Lanos

Daewoo's first truly original compact — a Giugiaro-designed subcompact/compact sold worldwide, later built under licence in Ukraine for years after Daewoo's collapse.

Compact car · 1997–2002
Nubira

The mid-range of Daewoo's late-1990s original trio — a compact sedan, wagon, and hatchback developed under Dr. Ulrich Bez.

Compact car · 1997–2002
Leganza

Daewoo's executive sedan of the late 1990s — a Giugiaro-styled flagship developed in just 30 months, aimed at European and US mid-size buyers.

Mid-size car · 1997–2002
Matiz

Daewoo's iconic Italdesign city hatchback — a global bestseller that lived on as the Chevrolet Spark long after the Daewoo brand disappeared.

City car · 1998–2009
Magnus

A Daewoo-developed executive sedan that evolved from the Leganza, later facelifted into the Tosca under GM Daewoo.

Mid-size car · 1999–2006
Lacetti

The compact successor to the Nubira under GM Daewoo — globally rebadged as the Chevrolet Optra, Suzuki Forenza, and Holden Viva, with the hatchback evolving into the Chevrolet Cruze.

Compact car · 2002–2011
Winstorm

Daewoo's only compact SUV — a GM Theta-platform crossover sold internationally as the Chevrolet Captiva.

Compact SUV · 2006–2011

Other makes