A Lifan 320 hatchback, seen in central Beijing in 2010, not far from where I lived. The good Lifan was brand new and painted in a bright shade of red, with black A and B pillars. The complex-design alloys were factory standard.
The Lifan 320 was made from 2008 until 2012. When it was unveiled on the 2008 Beijing Auto Show there was some controversy about the design, with some saying it looked a tad too much like a four-door version of the first generation Mini One. “Nonsense!”, said Lifan, and BMW never sued them indeed. Lifan had a point I guess, they certainly borrowed some design elements of the Mini, but it surely wasn’t a total clone.
It was actually a nice looking little car, with a surprisingly comprehensive design. Check for example the door handles, the rear spoiler, and the extra wide C-pillar. It was quite popular in China for a while.
Power came from a 1.3 liter four-cylinder petrol engine with an output of 88 hp and 110 Nm. The engine was mated to a 5-speed manual or a CVT, sending horses to the front wheels. Top speed was 155 km/h and 0-100 was gone in a relaxed 14.5 seconds. Fuel consumption was 6.9 liters per 100 kilometers. To show that the 330 could be speedy after all, Lifan joined the China Rally Championship (CRC) in 2008.
Note the Beijing-Jeep Cherokee and the Guangzhou-Peugeot 505 in the background.
The Lifan 320 was a very affordable car. Price in 2009 started at only 39.800 yuan, which made it a much better deal than a comparatively priced Chery QQ3. The Lifan was bigger and had a larger engine.
In 2014, the Lifan 320 was succeeded by the Lifan 330, basically the same car but with a new front and rear design. It only stayed on the market for two years. Lifan also announced an EV-version but it never reached the mass market.
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