Zhejiang Geely Holdings Group announced Monday that its manufacturing base in Hunan will have completed production of the firm's first DSI transmissions as of this August. DSI transmissions take their name from the Australian firm Drivetrain Systems International, acquired by Geely after the financial crisis.  

"The transmission to be launched is the first domestically-made DSI transmission in China," Yang Xueliang, Geely's director of public relations said in an interview. "It is a 6-speed automatic transmission and will be used in all models with over 1.8-liter-class engines." 

Currently, Geely is conducting matching tests for the transmission. The Chinese automaker said that Geely cars with DSI transmissions are expected to hit the market no later than next year.

"Geely's DSI transmission fills the gap in China's automatic transmission field," said Yang.

Up until now, Geely has established two domestic DSI transmission plants in Hunan and Shandong, both with annual production capacities of 300,000 transmissions. Geely also plans to invest 800 million yuan to build its third DSI technology plant in Chongqing.