The center will be located in the Shanghai suburb of Anting, and it eventually will house as many as 200 engineers. Most will be Chinese plus "a smattering" of Italians, said company CEO Silvio Pietro Angori during an interview in Shanghai. 

"We will continue to do designing in Italy but engineering here," Angori explained. "We will not be relocating stylists or designers to China." 

Angori did not disclose the project's cost. 

The center will be run by Michele Straniero, general manager of Pininfarina China. "China is the biggest automotive market, but [domestic] sports and luxury vehicles are very under-represented," Straniero said. 

Pininfarina has been working with Chinese automakers since 1996. China now generates 40 to 50 percent of Pininfarina's global revenue, according to Angori. He did not disclose specific revenue figures.

At the Beijing auto show last April, seven new models designed by Pininfarina were on display. 

The Italian design house has worked with automakers such as Chery Automobile Co., Anhui Jianghuai Automobile Co. and Shenyang Jinbei Brilliance Automobile Co.