Today in Chinese Car Brands That Time Forgot (CCBTTF™): Shanghai Wanfeng Auto. This company existed from 2000 to 2006. It made several series of pick-up trucks and SUVs.
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Category: All Brands
A Hongqi CA773 in Switzerland tells the story of China’s automotive industry
If you drive through Switzerland today, you will come across Chinese car brands more and more often. BYD, Xpeng, MG, or Nio are no longer exotic.
While Chinese new cars are increasingly dominating the streetscape, there is one type of vehicle that you practically never see: Chinese classic cars. This is hardly surprising, because according to current knowledge, there is only one specimen in Switzerland – a Hongqi (“Red Flag”) CA773 from 1975.
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Early Volkswagen Santana Hydrogen Prototypes In China
In the early 2000s, automaker SAIC Motor and several Shanghai-based research institutions and companies developed a series of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles (FCHVs) based on the Volkswagen Santana 2000 and Volkswagen Santana 3000.
At the time, the Chinese central and local governments actively supported research into New Energy Vehicles (NEVs), a broad category that included hydrogen-powered vehicles.
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Early Dongfeng FCEV Projects In China
Years before Chinese carmakers focused on EVs and PHEVs, they also experimented with FCEVs, CNG, and even diesel powertrains. One of those carmakers was Dongfeng. In the early 2000s, it created a series of FCEVs, one of which was based on the Citroen C-Elysee. But first, let’s talk about politics.
The cars Yueda made before the Kia Pride
The Jiangsu Yueda Group began producing cars in 1979. The first vehicle was a copy of the Beijing BJ130 light 2-ton truck, the Jiangsu JS130, with a 55 kW engine.
Chinese Car Brands That Time Forgot: Tianma Auto – Part 2
Tianma in the 2000s
This is the second part of my story about Tianma Auto, part of the Chinese Car Brands That Time Forgot (CCBTTF™) series. Part 1 is right here. China’s car market started to boom in the early 2000s, with zillions of new car makers and models. Tianma’s lineup exploded, with dozens of pickup trucks, SUVs, and vans. Tianma also produced the usual Kia Sorento and Honda CR-V clones.
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Volkswagen Almost Produced The Transporter T4 In China.
At the end of the last, and at the beginning of this century, both FAW-Volkswagen and Shanghai-Volkswagen were interested in producing the Volkswagen Transporter. In the end, it didn’t happen. This is how, and why.
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Chinese Car Brands That Time Forgot: Tianma Auto – Part 1
Intro
Today in Chinese Car Brands That Time Forgot (CCBTTF™): Tianma Auto, a brand owned by the No. 9506 Factory of the People’s Liberation Army of China. The No. 9506 was an air force-owned vehicle-refit factory. It was one of many army-related companies that moved into the car market in the 1990s. To keep this article and my time in check, I have divided it into two parts: 1) until the 1990s and 2) the 2000s.
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China Concept Cars: Chery Faira Times Seven
Today in China Concept Cars the Chery Faira, a series of seven concept cars unveiled at the 2008 Beijing Auto Show. At the time, the Chinese automotive industry had just started its boom which is still getting stronger today. At auto shows in the mid-2000s, Chinese car brands sometimes unveiled up to 20 concept cars at one show, each! Chery was definitely in on the party.
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The Volkswagen Group China And The 2008 Beijing Olympic Games
Volkswagen Group China was the official automotive partner of the Beijing Olympic Games. The theme of the cooperation was “Enjoy the Olympic Journey with Volkswagen”.
This partnership was mainly about providing vehicles to the Beijing Olympic Organizing Committee: 4.350 Volkswagens, 650 Skodas, and 1.000 Audi-brand cars. Volkswagen Group China reportedly paid US$150 million for the pleasure of providing the vehicles, outbidding Hyundai China.
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