Erik Van Ingen Schenau | ChinaCarHistory

Meeting mr. Yin Tongyao.

In the early years of the 21st century Chery is a rapidly growing company. Chery shows SUV, MPV, sedan, van, so many concepts of different models. Including a larger sedan, via Italy a picture comes to China and arrives at my desk. It is the Chery F11 concept, a slim car design done by Pininfarina.

The photo has been taken at the roof of the Pininfarina design studios, and somehow it escaped the secrecy. The car has a fancy German license plate and an unknown logo. There is nothing known about engine, details etc. I don’t even know if it has an engine, or that you can ride it.

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Four attempts to make a Hongqi family car.

At least four projects were undertaken by FAW (First Auto Works) to develop a small family car. Well, to be exactly it was either FAW itself or the Changchun Research Institute, which functioned as the research and development department of FAW.

Hongqi CA7080, the smallest Hongqi ever. The old factory in the background.

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The pseudo-Hongqi from Xi’an.

When travelling in Xi’an in 1984 I noticed, in front of the fire station in the centre of the city, a strange car, registered 24-05900. Or truck? The front looked like a Hongqi, the wheels were as big as truck wheels. And the wheelbase was very short in regard to the length.

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The Hongqi CA770 Station Wagons From China

Many versions (like parade cars, smaller versions, lwb etc.) are based on the ‘da Hongqi’, the basic CA770 Red Flag limousine. They were made by the FAW factory itself or by local car refit shops.

I will show you here four different ‘station wagons’. Well, in fact they are a so-called ‘engineering vehicle’, an ambulance, station wagon and a hearse.

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The Shanghai Horse Bazaar and Motor Company Limited

In the early years of the twentieth century there were a lot of factories that made car chassis and engines. These chassis and engines were exported to other countries where local bodybuilders assembled and finished these automobiles.

Logo of the Shanghai Horse Bazaar & Motor Co. LTD. (Longfei).

The International Concession in Shanghai city was an important place where several body builders were settled.

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A second Jinggangshan prototype?

In June 1958 Beijing First Automobile Accessory Works surprised with the introduction of the quite modern Jinggangshan, a Volkswagen Beetle-based rear-engined car.

Deng Xiaoping meets the first Jinggangshan, June 1958. Chinese press photo.