A black Daewoo Prince sedan, seen in the Lido area in Beijing in 2016. The big old Daewoo was in a perfect shape and totally original. It was clearly very well maintained and looked like it had been washed a day ago! This Prince was by far the best I’d ever seen in China. Most look rather sad and beaten up, but this one was just beautiful.
The blue 京A license is ultra old and ultra rare, indicating that this very Daewoo was one of the earliest privately owned cars in Beijing.
The Daewoo Prince sedan was manufactured from 1991 until 1997 with a modest facelift in 1994, this black Beijing car is a pre-facelift example. The Prince was based on the platform of the ancient Opel Rekord E (wiki), which was made from 1977 until 1986. The Prince was available with three old Opel four-cylinder petrol engines: a 95hp 1.6, a 109hp 2.0, and a 130hp 2.0 DOHC. All were mated to a five-speed manual, sending power to the rear wheels. The most common variant in China is the 2.0.
The interior was in great shape too. The fabric seats look almost as new and the plastics still got their deep dark shine. Note the stickers on seat belt buckle, they seem factory original! Sadly, the radio CD player is not original, but a rather cheap looking Chinese after-market machine.
Amazingly, the Daewoo Prince was officially sold in China by Daewoo. The South Korean company was one of the first foreign car makers to enter the Chinese market. They arrived in the early 1990’s with the smaller Daewoo Racer, the Daewoo Prince, and the big Daewoo Super Salon.
The Prince was sold in small numbers to private buyers and some were sold to taxi companies. Today they are rare but not super rare. Go to a big second hand market and there is a big chance you’ll find one in a forgotten corner.
The beautiful Daewoo badge. The ‘fish’ is a Christian ichthus symbol. Quite rare to see those in China.
Probably the best old Daewoo in China. Great to see one loved so much.
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