More than 50 companies lose their licences in China as government cracks down on smaller producers.
Shuanghuan Automobile Co, a company that became infamous for producing BMW's X5 crossover and Daimler's Smart cars, has lost its licence due to inactive output, according to reports from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.
The ministry introduced the rule in 2013 to stamp out weak domestic producers that are either halting production or only producing a small number of vehicles. Since then, more than 50 have lost their licences.
The company, headquartered in Hebei's industrial capital Shijiazhuang, has produced several clones of popular foreign models, including the CEO, a copy of BMW's X5, and the Noble, a like-for-like clone of Daimler's SmartTwo small car.
Attempts to distribute the cars across Europe were unsuccessful as legal injunctions in Italy and Germany prevented them from marketing their cars in the region.
Brand policing in the Chinese market could also spell good news for lubricants producers, with approved OEM engines and other parts requiring the use of quality, high-performance lubricant products.