About the History of Cars in China
Today we take a good look at the beginning of the development of the Hongqi CA72 state limousine. The CA72 was the very first Hongqi-branded car, 198 examples were made from 1959 until 1965. The development of the CA72 started in early 1958, and Hongqi build five prototypes in about a year.
The prototypes were numbered 1E, 2E, 3E, 4E, and 5E. This post is about 1E, featuring a design that was so wild one could almost call it a concept car.
This is the Dongfeng EQ7240BP, a sporty two-door coupe with daring looks. In early 2009 it was completely ready for production, set to compete with the Geely Meirenbao, yet it never made it to the market.
Continue reading “The Dongfeng EQ7240BP Was A Daring Chinese Coupe That Just Disappeared”
A wondrous white FAW Jiefang CA5020XJH ex-ambulance, seen on the streets of Wangjing District in northeast Beijing. Sadly and badly it didn’t run anymore, it was stripped of its ambulance lights and used for storage, the poor thing was loaded to the max with scrap carton and boxes.
Continue reading “Spotted In China: FAW Jiefang CA5020XJH ex-Ambulance”
This is the BAW Leichi, a Chinese variant of the Jeep Cherokee XJ, looking beautiful in black in what seems to be a holiday village. And check those front fenders! What was the Leichi, and how did she come to exist..?
Continue reading “The BAW Leichi Is A Chinese Variant Of The Jeep Cherokee XJ”
This fine Chinese vehicle is a Shuanghuan SHJZH213. It looks a lot like a Jeep Cherokee XJ but it is not. It is however not totally-not a Jeep Cherokee XJ. Here is why:
Continue reading “The Shuanghuan SHZJ213 Is Not A Jeep Cherokee XJ But Not Totally Not”
In the late 1990’s and early 2000’s Geely manufactured two mini pickup trucks and one mini-mini van. All were based on the Geely Haoqing hatchback which in turn was based on the Tianjin Xiali hatchback which in another turn was based on the Daihatsu Charade.
Continue reading “A Daihatsu Charade But Different: The Geely Mini Pickup Trucks”
A beautiful blue Jilin Jiangbei Meilu JJ7090 Opel Corsa B, Spotted in China in the far east of Beijing. The vehicle was in a remarkable good condition for its age. I met the owner and he said it was still running. He also told me there is at least one more Meilu JJ7090 in the capital, owned by a friend of him.
Continue reading “The Jilin Jiangbei Meilu JJ7090 Was A China-made Opel Corsa B”
A Hongqi CA7220 EL1 stetched limousine, seen in Beijing in 2012. It is based on the Hongqi CA7220 sedan which in turn was based on the C3 Audi 100. The latter was made in China by the FAW-Volkswagen joint venture from 1988 to 1999, alongside the more luxurious Audi 200.
FAW, or First Auto Works, is also the owner of the Hongqi (Red Flag) brand. Under a deal with Volkswagen the Chinese manufactured various Hongqi-branded sedans based on the Audi 100 and 200. Production started in 1996 and ended all the way up in 2005.
Continue reading “All The Hongqi Stretched Limousine Variants Based On The Audi 100/200”
This little red and white beauty is the Beijing Auto Works (BAW) Dongfanghong BJ760, a mid-size sedan launched in 1960 and manufactured until 1966. I met this BJ760 at the Beijing Classic Car Museum to the far north of the Chinese capital.
Continue reading “The Beijing Auto Works Dongfanghong BJ760 Is A Beautiful Chinese-Russian Sedan”
A very dusty Dadi Musso SUV, Spotted in China by serial spotted Navigator 84, thank you for the photos! The Dadi Musso was manufactured in China from 2001 until 2006 by a company called Chengdu Xin Dadi Auto, based in the great city of Chengdu in Sichuan Province.