The 2002 Brilliance London Taxi Deal That Almost Happened

This may look like a London Taxis International TXII, but is isn’t. This instead is a Brilliance Austin, and only one was ever built.

In 2002 Brilliance Automotive Holding (BCA) and Manganese Bronze Holdings (MBH), the owner of London Taxis International, reached an agreement to license production of the iconic TXII ‘Black Cab’ to the Chinese. Under the deal BCA was to produce and sell the TXII in China, Hong Kong and Macau.

BCA also hoped to cash in on the 2008 Olympic Games, where where then just rewarded to Beijing, and the city was going to need a lot of new taxi’s.

BCA was to pay a one-off charge of $3.9 million and a royalty fee for each vehicle produced in China. The contact covered a 20-year period. The deal was championed by BCA chairman Yang Rong, who told the BBC:

“There should be reasonable market potential for the purpose-built taxi in the Chinese markets because it provides far better safety, comfort and passenger accessibility than all existing taxi products in the country”.

Chairman Yang was a great fan of British cars. At the very same time he closed a deal with MBH, he was also talking to MG Rover to form a joint venture to build the Rover 75 and 45 in China.

BCA had big plans with the London taxi, aiming to produce 30.000 units a year. At that moment, London Taxis International made only about 2000 cars a year. No wonder that the shares of MBH jumped with 10% when the news was announced.

Left-hand drive and a fancy radio - this cab was for China.

BCA decided to call their version of the black cab the Brilliance Austin (中华奥斯汀). To get things rolling London Taxis International build one prototype for evaluation in China. This prototype was left-hand drive. It had two seats up front, 2+1 in the back, and two jump seats in the middle.

The TXII was only available with a diesel engine, and diesel-powered passenger cars are forbidden in most large Chinese cities, so BCA didn’t want it. Instead, they opted for the 491Q 2.2 liter petrol engine.

This engine was manufactured by Brilliance in China. It was based on a Toyota design and used in many other Brilliance products, including in their Jinbei series of minivans. The 491Q had an output of about 100 hp and 180 Nm, which was far more powerful than the original diesel.

London Taxis International shipped the prototype without engine to China, where the 491Q was fitted in, and evaluations started.

It was then that the deal fell apart, and that had nothing do to with the car itself, but with a wide ranging scandal in China that forced Chairman Yang to flee the country. All ongoing negotiations were cancelled, and the project was dead in the water.

But Chinese involvement with MBH didn’t stop there. In 2007 the company reached a deal with Geely for production of the TX4 taxi in Shanghai under Geely’s Englon brand. This time it really happened, and in the end Geely bought the entire company, currently called the London EV Company (LEVC).

Brilliance however was there first, and the idea seemed sound. In 2002 most Chinese taxis were basic and beaten up sedans, uncomfortable and unreliable. Taxi companies would certainly have been interested in a proper Chinese version of the London cab.

Sadly, we don’t know what has happened to the prototype. Perhaps it stands somewhere in a corner in a Brilliance factory, gathering dust. But most likely it was destroyed.

From England to China; the Brilliance Austin at the London Bridge.

Full specifications, as claimed by Brilliance in a period brochure:

Size: 4580/2036/1834.
Curb weight: 1800 kg. Fully loaded: 2400 kg.
Engine: 491Q inline four. Displacement 2237 ml.
Gearbox: 4-speed automatic.
Max speed: 130 km/h.
Turning circle: 7.6 meter.
Max passengers: 6.

Sources: BBC, Sina, Automotive News, Sohu.

Thanks to Erik for the scans of the brochure.

 

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