Chery Automobile Co., one of the fastest growing companies in the fledgling Chinese auto industry, is teaming up with Visionary Vehicles of New York, which has backing from investment banking firm Allen & Co.

The chief executive of Visionary is automotive entrepreneur Malcom Bricklin, who produced a futuristic sports cars bearing his name in New Brunswick 30 years ago. The province sank $23 million into the venture before Bricklin went bankrupt.

Bricklin was also behind the selling of the low-cost Yugo cars in the United States in in the 1980s.

He told the Detroit News his firm wants to import up to 250,000 cars. Consumers would be offered five new models.

The cars would be the first made in China to sell in the United States.

Visionary Vehicles will talk more about its plans for the U.S. market during a media briefing in Detroit Jan. 9 at the 2005 North American International Auto Show.