WUHAN, China, Oct. 5, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- China Automotive Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CAAS) ("CAAS" or the "Company"), a leading power steering components and systems supplier in China, today announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, Hubei Henglong Automotive System Group ("Henglong"), has achieved ASPICE 4.0 Capability Level 2 in an assessment jointly conducted by a European automaker and an international third-party agency UL. The project's end-to-end R&D capabilities met the ASPICE 4.0 CL2 standards, marking a significant milestone in the management of automotive software and hardware R&D.

The EPS program developed on the AP04 platform was included in the same assessment and also achieved ASPICE CL2, reinforcing the program's readiness for its planned mass production for the European markets by the end of 2026. The 19 core process areas cover systems engineering, software engineering, hardware engineering, and project management, along with supporting processes.

ASPICE CL2 serves as a key benchmark for measuring an enterprise's R&D process control capabilities in the automotive electronics sector, with leading European automakers enforcing particularly rigorous entry standards regarding supply chain R&D processes, quality systems, and process control. By maintaining superior process capabilities, high-quality automotive platform solutions are provided to global customers.

In addition, Henglong's products met all R&D testing criteria set by a leading China-based automaker, successfully securing the development rights for the client's R-EPS platform-based vehicle models. As these models represent the client's mainstream offerings, this achievement exhibits our R&D technical capabilities. R-EPS platform refers to a Rack-type Electric Power Steering system as an advanced chassis platform that replaces traditional hydraulic steering with an integrated electric motor and mechanical reduction system (such as a ball screw or belt) directly attached to the steering rack.

Mr. Qizhou Wu, Chief Executive Officer of CAAS, commented, "Achieving ASPICE 4.0 CL2, validated by a leading European OEM and UL, demonstrates that our engineering processes are disciplined, repeatable, and globally competitive. These capabilities strengthen our readiness for the scheduled mass production of our EPS products for European markets by the end of 2026 and provide a scalable foundation for future platform programs with customers worldwide."

About China Automotive Systems, Inc.

Based in Hubei Province, the People's Republic of China, China Automotive Systems, Inc. is a leading supplier of power steering components and systems to the Chinese automotive industry, operating through its sixteen Sino-foreign joint ventures and wholly-owned subsidiaries. The Company offers a full range of steering system parts for passenger automobiles and commercial vehicles. The Company currently offers four separate series of power steering with an annual production capacity of over 8 million sets of steering gears, columns and steering hoses. Its customer base is comprised of leading auto manufacturers, such as China FAW Group, Corp., Dongfeng Auto Group Co., Ltd., BYD Auto Company Limited, Beiqi Foton Motor Co., Ltd. and Chery Automobile Co., Ltd. in China, and Stellantis N.V. and Ford Motor Company in North America. For more information, please visit: https://www.caasauto.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains statements that are "forward-looking statements" as defined under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements represent our estimates and assumptions only as of the date of this press release. Our actual results may differ materially from the results described in or anticipated by our forward-looking statements due to certain risks and uncertainties. As a result, the Company's actual results could differ materially from those contained in these forward-looking statements due to a number of factors, including those described under the heading "Risk Factors" in the Company's Annual Report on Form 20-F as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 22, 2026, and in documents subsequently filed by the Company from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Any of these factors and other factors beyond our control could have an adverse effect on the overall business environment, cause uncertainties in the regions where we conduct business, cause our business to suffer in ways that we cannot predict, and materially and adversely impact our business, financial condition and results of operations. A prolonged disruption or any further unforeseen delay in our operations of the manufacturing, delivery and assembly process within any of our production facilities could continue to result in delays in the shipment of products to our customers, increased costs and reduced revenue. We expressly disclaim any duty to provide updates to any forward-looking statements made in this press release, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

For further information, please contact:

Jie Li
Chief Financial Officer
China Automotive Systems, Inc.
jieli@chl.com.cn

Kevin Theiss
Awaken Advisors
+1-212-510-8922
Kevin@awakenlab.com