This is a Hafei Baili HFJ 7090, seen in March 2017 at a car market in Jinan, the capital of Shandong Province. The beautiful Baili was in reasonable shape. Oddly, the owner had painted the wheels green and the interior blue.
About Hafei
Hafei (哈飞) was a Chinese car brand founded in 1990. The name literally means “Flying Happy”. The owner was Hafei Automobile (哈飞汽车), which in turn was a subsidiary of Harbin Aircraft Manufacturing Corporation (HAMC), a large military-airplane maker.
Hafei’s first cars were license-built Suzuki Carry minivans, which it sold under the Songhuajiang name. Next, it launched the Baili and several other small passenger cars. Sadly, sales were slow, mainly due to a lack of dealers and low brand recognition. In 2009, Changan Automobile swooped in, took over the factories, and killed off the Hafei brand.
The Hafei Baili
The Hafei Baili (百利, Bǎilì) debuted in 1997. The Baili was an unlicensed clone-copy of the Daewoo Tico Sport. Hafei added some original details, like the roof spoiler and the wheel covers.
At the time, several Chinese automakers built Tico clones under various brand names. How these car makers got the blueprints for the Tico remains a mystery. It seems likely that somebody at Daewoo clandestinely sold the blueprints to a Chinese automotive-development company, which then resold them to the car makers. At the time, the automotive sector was pretty much a wild-wild east; everything was allowed!
The interior
So much beige inside. The doors, hand brake, gear lever, steering wheel, and even the seat-belt buckets are all finished in beige. The seats appear to be original and not covered with ugly seat covers. The blue parts on the doors are original, too, but the owner painted the dashboard, which was originally dark gray.
Specifications of the Hafei Baili
“HFJ7090” was the official model designation. Displaying the designation was a legal requirement and could take the form of a badge, decal, or sticker, but it had to be clearly visible. Today, such external designation requirements generally apply only to commercial vehicles.
The engine of the Hafei Baili was a 0.870-liter three-cylinder, with an output of 44 hp and 64 Nm. The engine manufacturer was state-owned Harbin Dongnan Auto Engine Corporation, which still exists today. The Baili’s fuel consumption was just 5 liters per 100 kilometers. Size: 3390/1485 /1395, and the wheelbase was 2335 millimeters. The Hafei Baili was super cheap. In 2004, its final production year, it sold for only 30.800 yuan, and that made it one of the cheapest small family cars in China.