In 1990, Beijing was host to the Asian Games. When the games were over, the are near the games’ village was taken over by a car market; hence the Asian Village Car Market. This market was within the northern Third Ring Road. I have been there once, in 2004, bit I didn’t take any pictures😪.
In 2005 the market was moved to a new location outside the northern Fifth Ring Road, but they kept the old name. Just at that time, I was busy with all sorts of other things, so it was only in 2008 that I visited the ‘new’ Asian Games Village Car Market for the first time.
Now, it should be remembered, that even in 2008 modern-market dealers selling one brand were relatively rare. Most cars were sold on large markets, with small shops selling cars of every brand they could get their hands on.
That of course is different nowadays, but the Asian Games Village Car Market still exists, mostly selling gray import cars and there is a large second hand market too. I have been there many times since, more on that later, but this article is about my 2008 visit.
The market has large indoor areas, with an even larger outdoor area, where many shops sell cars right from the parking lot.
Same car as on the first pic; the magical Changan BenBen Sport F1, a crazy sports version of the mundane first generation Changan BenBen hatchback.
A bright yellow Brilliance Coupe. Really good looking car, designed by Pininfarina. Porsche was hired for the chassis setup. Power came from a 1.8 turbo with 170 horses.
A Shuanghuan Noble, China’s most famous Smart clone.
The Noble debuted in 2007, and for a short while it was a very popular car. Power came from a 1.1 liter four-cylinder petrol with an output of 67hp and 88nm, mated to a five-speed manual or four-speed automatic.
A Tianma Hero. Tianma is a small Chinese automaker based in Baoding. The Hero was a big success for the company, with exports to several countries including Russia.
Tianma hero. Cool tires!
A wondrous white Shanghai-Volkswagen sedan. Yes, it was still in production in 2008! Read more on the Santana’s long history in China.
A brown-orange Zhongxing Grand Tiger pickup truck. This is the long-cab four door version, fully dressed up with shiny mirrors, side bars, and a bar in the bed.
A silver JAC Rein SUV, long the brand’s best seller. The JAC Rein was based on the first generation Hyundai Santa Fe, and made under license by JAC under their own name. Power came from a 2.0 petrol.
Time for some gray imports! So these cars are basically bought by Chinese dealers directly from dealers in the U.S. This so-called ‘gray import’ is legal in China, but it can be hard to insure the car, and for many cars there is no dealer support. At the time Ford didn’t sell the Lincoln Navigator in China, so where to go when your stretched limousine brakes down..?
A long-wheelbase Lincoln Navigator, on giant wheels.
Hummer H2. Hummer has a somewhat weird history in China. Even long after the company was dead, there were still many H2’s arriving ‘new’ in China, again from dealer inventories in the U.S.
A very thick Mercedes-Benz GL550, also imported from the U.S.
Just outside the market I found this cool and slightly updated Tianjin Xiali, with a fake air vent on the bonnet, black wrapping, a Suzuki sticker on the windshield, roof-mounted lights, and a huge wing.
This is a very famous car. A Ford Ka on black license plates. In those days, black plates were issued to foreigners or foreign-owned companies. These companies were allowed to import their own cars. More on this Ka in a later post. And that, is the end of this post. Thanks for reading, see you soon.