About China's Coolest Cars
A beastly Hummer H3 SUV, seen on a car market in Beijing in 2019, parked across the street from a combined Alfa Romeo Tesla shop. The enormous Hummer was in fine shape, painted black and fitted with a big shiny factory bull bar.
Continue reading “Hummer H3 Is A Black American Beast In China”
A very pretty Plymouth Sundance sedan, seen in heavy rain in the great city of Zhuhai in Guangdong Province. The classy American compact was in a fine shape, painted in black with a red-white line over the doors.
Continue reading “A Black Plymouth Sundance Is Pretty In The Rain In Zhuhai, China”
The Toyota Crown is a relatively unknown Japanese luxury sedan, manufactured since 1955 in Japan. Production in China began in 2005 with the 12th generation Crown (S180), made by the Tianjin-FAW-Toyota Motors (TFTM) joint venture.
Things got a bit odd with the next 13th (S200) generation. Production in Japan started in 2008 and lasted until 2012. In China, production started in 2009. But instead of stopping in 2012, TFTM unveiled an updated S200, which was the produced for another four years!
Continue reading “This Toyota Crown S200 Was Only For China”
We have discussed the Shuanghuan Noble several times on this website. The Noble was a Smart-inspired mini car that got Shuanghuan in all sorts of legal trouble internationally, but in China it sold rather well. The Noble debuted in 2007 and was available with 0.8 and 1.1 liter petrol engine. But in 2010, Shuanghuan also unveiled an electric version of the Noble on a car show in Beijing. Continue reading “The Shuanghuan Noble EV Was A Nice Idea”
A mighty Yanjing Auto Weishi, seen on a police equipment exhibition in Beijing in 2010. They had svereal cars on display, including this one, painted in ‘United Nations’ white.
A white Lada Samara 1.5i sedan, seen by my friend Amin K. in Beijing in 2012. The good Samara was in a reasonable shape, albeit dusty and in need of some love. The sporty alloys appear to be an aftermarket addition, but they don’t look bad under the Lada. The blue 京A license plate is ultra old and ultra rare. It indicates that this very car was one of the earliest privately owned cars in Beijing.
The Lada Samara was made, in many forms and variants, from 1984 until 2013 (!). The four-door hatchback was the most common body style, followed by the sedan. The Samara 1.5i model debuted in 1995. It was powered by a 1.5-liter four-cylinder petrol engine with an output of 70 hp and 118 Nm. The engine was mated to a 5-speed manual, sending horsepower to the front wheels.
The Lada Samara was imported into China in small quantities during this period. Not via the normal business-to-business way, but more via government-to-government trade deals that could include all kinds of goods, from grain to construction equipment, from booze to cars. Happily, this Lada Samara 1.5i sedan survived the times for quite a bit, at least until 2012.
A Qiantu K50, seen by my good friend Joachim C. in the great city of Suzhou in Jiangsu Province. The K50 is painted in a pretty smurf blue and further sexed up with darkened windows and black wheels. The Qiantu K50 was made by a company called Qiantu Motors, which in turn was a spinoff of the automotive technology company CH Auto. After a long and complex development period, the Qiantu K50 finally hit the market in 2018.
Continue reading “Qiantu K50 Is A Rare Chinese Electric Super Car”
There are not many Chinese automakers building stations wagons, now and ever. It just isn’t a popular kind of car in China. But some tried, and one of the prettiest Chinese wagons was the Brilliance Junjie Wagon.
Continue reading “Brilliance Junjie Wagon Was A Classy But Unloved Chinese Station Wagon”
A superbly beautiful Great Wall Safe SUV, seen in the great city of Jinan, capital of China’s Shandong Province, in 2017. The good Safe was in a totally perfect original shape inside and out. Such a pretty car, if Great Wall made it today, I bet it would still sell like hell. CC6460D was the official factory designation.
Continue reading “Great Wall Safe CC6460D Is A Classic Chinese SUV”
Everything goes on the highway in China, like this old and tired truck seen on the mighty 5th Ring Road in Beijing. The truck is loaded with iron poles and other construction waste, and is likely on its way to a recycling facility.
Continue reading “Iron Poles Are Lying Loose On A Truck On The Highway In China”
