Author: Sam Faulkner

The story of China National Heavy Truck Group (Sinotruk): Changzheng Auto

Changzheng Auto Works (Changzheng means Long March) was founded in 1958 and in its early years was producing cars and car parts. As was the case with Hongxing, Changzheng was initially called something entirely different and began operations first in Beijing, before moving to Xingtai in 1970. Changzheng was initially called Beijing Xindu Auto Works. A likely reason for this mass exodus of car makers from Beijing as the deterioration of Sino-Soviet relationships in the late 1960’s, Beijing was likely wary of a possible invasion by the USSR and so, using the lessons learnt from the earlier invasions by Japan, moved whole industries to secondary cities further inland as a way of securing manufacturing capacity.

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A brief history of Red Star Automotive

This article will be a first in a series of articles documenting the automotive history of the city of Xingtai in Hebei province. I recently travelled to Xingtai for a second time. I spent the day with a media friend I had met through Weibo after my last visit in 2017. He was kind enough to offer to take me around Xingtai to see some of the car factories that were once part of Xingtai’s industrial output. Upon arrival in Xingtai he told me we were off to a car factory that was very much still alive and well. That car factory is operated by Hongxing – aka Red Star.

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Chinese Car Brands that Time Forgot – Zhenjiang Auto Works

 

Today in Chinese Car Brands That Time Forgot (CCBTTF™): Zhenjiang Automobile Works.

Zhenjiang Automobile Works (ZAW), based northwest of Nanjing in Zhenjiang city, potentially has a rather long history that dates back to as early as 1958 according to this Zhenjiang History website. However, we will have to fastforward to 1973 because we simply have no information on the company before this time.

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Chinese Car Brands That Time Forgot: Hainan Automobile Works and Hainan Mazda

The first HMC6470 rolling out of the factory in Hainan.

Today in Chinese Car Brands That Time Forgot (CCBTTF™): Hainan Automobile Works.

Hainan Automobile Works (henceforth referred to as HAW) was founded in 1989 as a result of cooperation between the Hainan government and already established Hainan Auto Stamping Factory (henceforth referred to as HASF). HASF had experience with producing automobile components but the new company (HAW) would need a full assembly line on which to produce vehicles. Help came from an unlikely source – former President of The Philippines Ferdinand Marcos. Marcos sold HASF a factory that was once operated by Ford between 1968 and 1984. It was in 1988, 4 years after Ford ceased manufacturing operations in The Philippines that Marcos sold HASF the factory, allowing them to obtain a production line for their own future vehicle manufacturing. In 1989, Hainan Auto Stamping Factory was renamed Hainan Automobile Works.

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The Tianjin TJ140 was the worlds first rotary engine powered truck

Tianjin TJ140 (1)

Mazda may have popularized the rotary engine but the first truck to be equipped with a rotary engine came from China. In the 1960’s China went a bit Wankel crazy with then Vice Premier Li Xiannian proclaiming that China would develop its own rotary Engine and use it in cars and trucks. Obviously this plan never really came to fruition but there was at least one rather fascinating result – that is the TJ140 we discuss today.

The TJ140 was first produced in 1969 by the Tianjin Truck Repair Shop. The truck was never put into full scale production and was really a testbed for this new engine.

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Chinese Car Brands That Time Forgot: Guangzhou Yunbao

Today in Chinese Car Brands That Time Forgot (CCBTTF™):Guangzhou Yunbao. Guangzhou Yunbao was a car manufacturer based in then Huadu city, now a part of Guangzhou, lying in the northern part of the city., Guangdong Province. They made several cars, all of them connected to Nissan in some way, for most of the 1990’s.

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Chinese Car Brands That Time Forgot: Fuzhou Automobile Works and Forta

Today in Chinese Car Brands That Time Forgot (CCBTTF™): Fuzhou Automobile Works and Forta. Fuzhou Automobile Works (also known as FAW, unrelated to the First Auto Works) was formed out of the existing Fuzhou Car Repair Shop in 1956. In 1958 FAW started to produce copies of Dodge Trucks and Mazda three-wheeled vehicles. In the same year FAW produced just 8 trucks and 1 motorcycle (believed to be units not different model types, so 9 vehicles in total). FAW was also renamed as the State Owned Fuzhou Automotive Repair Shop.

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The BJ6490 – A Chinese made Holden Commodore

There are some things that we just never expect to say or hear. Although there were rumours a few years ago the next generation Holden Commodore would be produced in China, that never came to fruition, it would not have been the first time a Commodore was made in the People’s Republic. Ladies and Gentlemen, I present to you the BJ6490. Did I mention there was also an electric version?  AND a hybrid version? Read on!

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