Today in China Concept Cars the SouEast X1, an attractive sedan coupe unveiled on the Beijing Auto Show in 2008 where I saw it in all of its prettiness, standing on a rotating platform on the large SouEast booth.
Chinese car maker SouEast Motor was founded in 1995. It is a joint venture between Taiwan’s China Motor Corporation, China’s Fujian Motor Industry Group, and Japan’s Mitsubishi Motors. SouEast makes both Mitsubishi-branded and SouEast-branded cars, all based on Mitsubishi platforms.
In 2008, SouEast was a very busy company. The good old SouEast Lioncell was in its last year, and would be replaced with the new SouEast V3. The V3 also debuted in semi-concept form on the Beijing Auto Show.
The last Lioncel: the 2007 “value-added limited edition”, priced at 89.800 yuan. It was limited to 2,000 units nationwide. Power came from a Mitsubishi 1.6 with an output of 101 hp and 133 Nm. The engine was mated to a 5-speed manual, sending horses to the front wheels.
SouEast V3 semi-concept, with the X1 in the background.
SouEast V3 production version, launched after the Beijing Auto Show in mid-2008. Price in that year started at 59.800 and ended at 83.800 yuan. Power came from a 1.5 with 110 hp and 134 Nm. Only gearbox option was again a 5-speed manual. The SouWast V3 was based on the 5th generation Mitsubishi Lancer.
SouEast had ambitious plans to introduce its own design language and image, with an own identity, instead of just rebadging Mitsubishi’s. However, even those new cars would still use Mitsubishi platforms. On the Beijing show, SouEast unveiled two concept cars: the X1 we discuss here and the V5 which I will discuss in an upcoming post.
In early April SouEast released two design drawings of the X1 concept car, showing an attractive and aerodynamic four-door coupe in a bright white color. At the show, SouEast said the X1 would go into production “after 2010”, as a poster car for the ‘new’ SouEast identity and design.
When the X1 appeared it was painted in a fiery shade of red, with black windows and matte chrome trim around the windows. The door front-handle, the faux air-vent on the fender, and the alloy wheels were painted in the same matte chrome.
Design was great, the SouEast X1 really was a very pretty car. The rear light unit was cool, stretching over the entire width with separated light units. The rear doors are clearly visible in this photo.
The front with a shiny grille and a cool SouEast hood ornament. The LED lights are located far to the sides. The X1 did not have an interior or a powertrain. It was billed as an PHEV, without any further specification. At the time, there was somewhat of a PHEV/HEV craze in China, with many brands launching hybrid concept cars.
SouEast did specify the size of the X1: 4795/1858/1400, with a 2700 wheelbase. Somewhat oddly, for a concept car, SouEast also specified the front/rear track of 1590/1585 and the exact tire and rim size: 245/45/R19. Furthermore, SouEast said the X1 was made from carbon fiber, that is was fitted with heated seats, and with a panoramic solar sunroof.
The popular Hong Kong actor Jacky Chan was hired as ‘brand ambassador’ for Mitsubishi China in 2008, so his portrait was all over the SouEast booth.
In July 2008 photos of an X1 design-studio model appeared in Chinese media. It was painted silver, and some news outlets said it looked like an Audi R8. I didn’t really see the similarities, but anyway, that’s what they thought.
Design was largely the same as as the red car. Except for the bars in the grille that were thinner on the silver car than on the red one. The exhaust pipe tips and rear light bar looked a little different too. But the largest difference were the wheels, which were much smaller, and had a more classic alloy design.
Sadly, the SouEast X1 never made it into production, which wasn’t really a big surprise. The X1 was just too far off SouEast’s market segment, and would have been way too expensive. Still, the X1 was worth it, as it was a pretty car that grabbed lots of attention for the SouEast brand.
looks like a GTA designer mixed a Mazda RX-8 with a Mondeo