During a press conference in Beijing, GM CEO Dan Akerson said GM can design complete vehicles in China. He also noted that GM had launched construction of the GM China Advanced Technical Center in Shanghai last July.

"The fact that we're building a $150 million (988 million yuan) advanced tech center speaks volumes," Akerson said.

Last year, GM offered a glimpse of its R&D capabilities when it introduced the Chevrolet New Sail, which was developed entirely in China. The vehicle was a product of the Pan-Asia Technical Automotive Center (PATAC) in Shanghai, a 13-year-old joint venture with GM's local partner Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp.

Selling for as little as 57,000 yuan, the New Sail competes in a price range previously inhabited only by cheaper, domestic brands. In 2010, the New Sail became the No. 3 seller in China's domestic subcompact segment.

GM is investing heavily in R&D to support the rapid growth of sales in China, which is now GM's largest market. Last year, GM's various Chinese joint ventures sold nearly 2.4 million vehicles in China.

J.D. Power analyst John Zeng said GM is taking the lead among international automakers in product design and R&D in China. "GM is the foreign brand that really has true R&D facilities in China," Zeng saud. "So they can do local design to make their products more fitted to the market."

GM has begun exporting the New Sail to Chile. But Tim Lee, president of GM's international operations, cautioned that GM will struggle to meet growing demand in China over the next two to four years.

"We have to judge the tradeoff," Lee said. "For every vehicle that we export, it's one less we could sell in China."