A dark blue Volkswagen Santana Variant, seen near Ikea in Beijing in 2009. The license plate reads 京E·04444. In Chinese culture and tradition, 4 is a very unlucky number, comparable with 13 in the West.
Most people therefore prefer to avoid a 4 on their license plate, fearing bad luck. The driver of this car is not so superstitious, he got himself four fours! That’s bad luck².
The Volkswagen Santana Variant station wagon was made by Shanghai-Volkswagen from 1987 until 2013, yes you read that right. It was a very popular carrier and today it has achieved somewhat of a cult status. Deservedly so!
Also note the Sinopec 2008 Olympics sticker on the left side of the window, this was for a nation-wide sponsored competition in 2007, just before the start of the Beijing Olympics. Whoever had the sticker on their car could win huge prizes. There was a TV show about it and what not.
Also, in the background, a Beijing subway train.