Category: Seen on the Street

Beijing-Hyundai Sonata Police Car In Beijing

A very pretty Hyundai Sonata police car in Beijing, painted blue-white with large lights & siren unit on the roof. I saw it in 2005 near Tiananmen Square, parked on a narrow street.

The fourth-generation (EF) Sonata was the first-generation Sonata that was made in China, by the Beijing-Hyundai joint venture. Production started in 2002 and continued all the way, with various updates, until 2017!

The police car has the 2.5-liter V6 under the bonnet, which was good for 164 hp and 225 Nm. The gearbox was a 4-speed automatic. The China-made Sonata was also available with various other engines, including a 2.0 and a 3.0 V6.

Beer! A Dongfeng Beer Truck In China

Here we have a big Dongfeng beer truck, in the correct worker’s blue, loaded with about a hundred crates of delicious Yanjing beer, standing in front of a restaurant in central Beijing.

I saw the truck in 2007, when Yanjing beer bottles still contained 0.645 liters of easily drinkable beer with an alcohol percentage of 3.6%. In my good old days, I drank a truck of the stuff each week. Sadly, most Chinese beer makers have since changed their bottle size to the internationally more acceptable 0.5 liter.

The Dongfeng truck was already an oldie in 2007, and it was clearly not having an easy day with its heavy load of booze! I love the frames on the sides, with reflective 3M tape, intended to prevent bicyclists from ending up underneath. Cheers, old Dongfeng beer truck, hope you are still around somewhere.

A Fiery Red Pontiac Firebird And Some Other Great Cars In Beijing

And on that day in 2003, I went to an old housing complex in Beijing. It is very beautiful and fully accessible, but tourists have never found out about it, and as far as I know, the place still exists. Luckily, I saw some great cars.

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A Beijing BJ130 Water Tank Truck In The Forbidden City In Beijing

A Beijing BJ130 water tank truck, seen inside the Forbidden City in Beijing in 2004. The truck belonged to the Forbidden City’s own fire department and stood in a somewhat faraway area of the enormous palace complex.

The truck comes with yellow inner-headlights, tiny narrow wheels, mirrors on the front fenders, and superbly basic 5-yuan reflectors on each side of the grille.

The Beijing BJ130 was manufactured by Beijing No.2 Auto Works from the mid-1970s until the late 1980s. It was powered by the famous 4-cylinder North 492 gasoline engine that was used in many vehicles made in those days. The engine was mated to a four-speed manual.

Until 2010 or so, you could still see these great trucks standing around in the older areas of Beijing, but these days most are gone and forgotten. I don’t think our fire truck is in the Forbidden City anymore, but at least she will be remembered!

A Hafei Songhuajiang Police Van And A Six-wheel Motor Truck In China

A Hafei Songhuajiang police van parked behind an intriguing, partially homemade dual-axle 5-wheel flat-bed motorbike. I saw these two cars in a small village in the far west of Beijing back in the summer of 2006.

The Hafei Songhuajiang has the word ‘police’ in English above the windshield, which is rather unusual. Normally, there would be a Chinese term in that place. Songhhuajiang police minivans usually seat four officers + a bunch of criminals in a cage in the back. It didn’t seem to be on active duty anymore.

The motorbike was clearly in use and available for rent. The owner likely got his inspiration from these monsters. Note the extensions on the handlebars to protect the driver’s hands from the sunshine. In winter, these will be replaced with thick gloves against the cold.

In the old villages around the capital, you can still find all sorts of fascinating old vehicles, even today, but it is getting less and less. With the electrification of everything, the old petrol cars are slowly disappearing. Go there before it is too late!

A Horse-drawn Carriage With Fruit In Beijing

A horse-drawn carriage in Beijing. Until about 2010, it was normal to see these in the Chinese capital in the summer, bringing fruit and vegetables from the nearby countryside and selling them straight from the cart. On warm weekends, you would see them on many street corners.

And they came all the way to within the Second Ring Road, which was totally within the central center of Beijing. This picture was taken near Dongsi Shitiao in 2009. I lived in that area from 2003 until 2014. I have many fond memories of negotiating with these fine farmers about the price for a jin (0.5 kg) of whatever veggies they carried on their carts.

However, the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games modernization drive meant the end for the horse-drawn carriages within the city center. It was cool for as long as it lasted! Note the Changan-Ford Fiesta sedan in the background.

 

Visit To Wuyi Mountain In Fujian, China, In 2004

Wuyi Mountain, aka Mt Wuyi, is the most famous peak of the Wuyi Mountain Range, a very popular local tourist destination in China. I happened to be there in 2004, and I saw some interesting vehicles.

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