About China's Coolest Cars
A pretty Hafei Songhuajiang minivan, seen up in the mountains to the north of Beijing on an early spring day in 2010. The good Songhuajiang was painted in taxi-red and fitted with very early blue 京A·90085 license plates.
Continue reading “Hafei Songhuajiang Is A Red Van Up In The Mountains”
And that day I went to the Beijing Tap Water Museum in east Beijing. Besides a lot of water pipes and other water supply equipment, I also found a triplet of very pretty Beijing-Jeep Cherokee XJ’s. These are two early examples, with fog lights on the bumper, and factory mud flaps, wheels, and roof rack. The colors are original too. The car on the left has a very old blue 京A license plate, indicating it was one of the very first privately registered cars in the capital.
Continue reading “A Beijing-Jeep Cherokee XJ Triplet In Beijing”
The Military Museum has always been my favorite museum in Beijing, especially in its old original somewhat unruly shape. I first visited the museum in 1997 and came back dozens of times since then. The museum is located in massive Communist-style building located in the center of town. These photos are from a visit in 2009, showing various military vehicles. On the first photo a Dongfeng EQ2050 Mengshi (Warrior), a massive 4×4 derived from the American Humvee.
Continue reading “Checking Out The Cars On A Visit To The Military Museum In Beijing In 2009”
A mighty Nissan Patrol 4500, seen in Beijing in 2015. The old Patrol looked as good as new, with white with factory decals, sporty wheels, and a big bull bar. Yes, these are strong cars, surviving all time and tides. The fifth generation Y61 Nissan Petrol debuted in 1997 and production continues until today.
Continue reading “Nissan Patrol 4500 Still Looks Strong In China”
A BAW Knight S12, seen in Beijing in 2017, parked perfectly on the sidewalk. The brave Knight was a bit dusty but was otherwise in a fine shape. The Knight S12 was manufactured by BAW, or Beijing Auto Works, it was a continuation of the Beijing-Jeep Cherokee XJ.
Continue reading “BAW Knight S12 Is A Chinese Continuation Of The Jeep Cherokee XJ”
Volkswagen was a sponsor of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. To celebrate handing over hundreds of millions of dollars to enable exciting sports like weight lifting and volleyball, Volkswagen had dressed up a bunch of New Beetles in arty farty Olympic wraps. The cars were lined up at Volkswagen’s China headquarters in the Sanlitun District in Beijing.
The New Beetle on the first pic came with a somewhat traditional Chinese painting-style tree and flower wrap, combined with a Beijing 2008 Olympics logo and a bar code.
Continue reading “Volkswagen New Beetle Olympic Games Arty Farty Editions”
Back in the great days of 2009, there were regular tuning and dealer shows at the Agricultural Exhibition Center in Beijing. Naturally, I went to every one of them. These shows had a very local character and were great fun. These days the Agricultural isn’t used anymore for such low-key events and tuning shows have mostly moved to locations out of town. No matter! Things change. In the first photo a bizarre Spider-Man-themed machine, with enclosed wheel arches and a very impressive paint job.
Continue reading “Visiting A Tuning Show In Beijing In 2009”
A very nice Saab 9-3 2.0T Vector, seen in the beach city of Beidaihe in 2017. The good Saab was in a fine shape, painted in a classy shade of silver, with darkened windows and the 5-twin-spoke alloys that were exclusive for the Vector trim level.
Continue reading “Saab 9-3 2.0T Vector Is A Rare Swedish Sports Sedan In China”
A Chery Riich M1 hatchback, seen in Beijing in 2015. The M1 was painted in a classy shade of dark red and fitted with steel wheels, which is always cool. The Riich M1 seemed to be in a fine shape. Front design still looks kinda crazy after all those years, with the gigantic headlights flaking a tiny grille.
Continue reading “The Riich M1 Was A Cool But Expensive City Car From China”
A dusty Toyota Avalon sedan, seen on a cold but sunny winter’s day in December 2017 in the Chinese capital Beijing. The big Toyota was in a reasonable shape, with some paint damage and a few scratches here and there.
Continue reading “A First Generation Toyota Avalon On Black License Plates In China”
