About China's Coolest Cars
It doesn’t happen everyday; meeting two old Skoda station wagons in Beijing, at the same time, standing together, at a stone throw from Volkswagen’s China headquarters in the Sanlitun area in Beijing.
Continue reading “Skoda Forman And Felicia LX Combi Are Abandoned Together In China”
A Brilliance BS4 sedan, seen in Beijing in 2013. The BS4 was painted in a bright orange with a black roof. Orange was not a factory color but this particular shade is being used by various traffic-related government services in China, so perhaps it is an ex-government car. License plate is from Hebei province.
Continue reading “Brilliance BS4 Looks Nice In Orange In China”
An Englon TX4 taxi, seen on a cold day in the winter of 2012 in Beijing, in front of a large shopping mall near the center of town. The Englon TX4 was based on the London Taxi International (LTI) TX4.
A very rare Peugeot 504 pickup truck, seen in south Beijing in 2012. The truck was unfortunately in a very sad state, covered with dust and dirt, tires deflated, and with all kinds of missing parts and other damage.
Continue reading “Guangzhou-Peugeot 504 Pickup Truck Is Abandoned In China”
A wondrous white BMW M3 with an ultra cool 京Y·YM399 license plate, matching the car’s type. The speedy Bimmer is further dressed up with darkened windows, black window frames, and a set of big black wheels. A very nice package indeed.
The E92 BMW M3 coupe was very popular in China; I must have seen hundreds. Power came from a 4.0-liter naturally aspirated B8 engine with 414 hp and 400 Nm, good for a 0-100 in 4.6 seconds. The price for the base model, there were lots of specials as well, started around 1.22 million yuan.
A gorgeous second-generation Chrysler Concorde sedan, seen in the Chinese capital Beijing in 2010. The gigantic American sedan was in a good general shape, with shiny paint, darkened rear windows, and factory original alloys.
Continue reading “A Chrysler Concorde Is A Giant American Sedan In China”
A man in a white hat was approaching me on a summer’s day on a road in old central Beijing sometime in 2010. He came with the sun! He was related to the woman sitting on the horse cart on the other side, and curious why I was curious about them. In the process, I took one of my best pictures ever. Thank you, man in a white hat. It was just that one moment in time. Continue reading “A Man With A White Hat In Beijing And A Horse Cart”
A tricycle in China carrying fish pods filled with gold fish was seen in Nanjing in 2011. The golden creatures were sold for a few yuan each, depending on their size and relative rarity. Buyers carry their new pet home in a small plastic bag. They can also buy fish food.
Selling goldfish and other small animals off tricycles was common in China until 2018 or so. Today, these paddle pet shops are a rarity in the big cities, but they are still common in the countryside. The seller in Nanjing was in a popular spot doing good business. I remember seeing many kids buying goldfish, and some of the tanks were already empty when I took the picture.
That day in 2010, I went to a new-energy show in Beijing. Local hero Beijing Auto Industry Corporation (BAIC) had a big booth on the show with all sorts of Beijing-branded concept cars, including two EVs.
BAIC was on a roll those days. They had just purchased the rights to the Saab 9-5 and Saab 9-3 from General Motors, including the 2.0 and 2.3 turbo engines. The Beijing C71 was a concept car based on the Saab 9-5. It got a modernized new front, a new rear, new badges, and new wheels.
Going back to Tiananmen Square in 2011, I met these interesting camera vans. They look kind of funny, but they actually are fully mobile police camera vehicles, able to control and inspect large areas of town. Continue reading “Hongma Camera Vans In Beijing”
