About China's Coolest Cars
Here we have two great Audi-based Hongqi’s. I saw them during a very long bicycle ride from the east of Beijing to the west in May 2010. They were parked in front of an office building and they were both in great shape.
Continue reading “Hongqi Double: CA180A2E Mingshi and CA7182MT3 Shijixing”
Here we have my very own Beijing-Jeep Cherokee BJ7250, photographed in Beijing on a cold and smoggy winter’s day.
It was 16-01-2013 and I took my Jeep to the Agricultural Exhibition Center in Beijing. Back in those days you could drive your car straight up the main hall when there wasn’t any exhibition. No way today! Anyway. I parked my Jeep bang in front of the main hall.
Continue reading “My Beijing-Jeep Cherokee BJ7250 City Special”
A pretty pink Bentley Continental GT, seen in May 2011 opposite the Opposite House hotel in the Sanlitun bar area in Beijing. I sat on a terrace across the street and there was a big bright sun, hence the somewhat un-sharp picture. Note the flyer under the door handle, which the driver hadn’t care to take away. As far as I could see the driver was a female, with long black hair and large sunglasses.
Three super fresh trees, seen on a classic-blue diesel-powered truck on a highway south of the Chinese capital in April 2011. Trucks carrying trees are a returning occurrence in spring in Beijing, when trees from plantations in the suburbs are brought into town for planting. Green city!
A black Hyundai Tucson, seen on a highway south of Beijing in April 2006. The Hyundai has a very interesting sticker on the back, saying, in English and Japanese: “Japan apalogize to NanKing!” with the date 1937.12.13. Continue reading “Hyundai Tucson Urges To Apologize In China”
A taxi car-washing place, seen in the not-so far east of the Chinese capital Beijing in 2011. In those days, the mandatory color was yellow, with taxi companies allowed to choose a second color.
The yellow shirt for taxi drivers was, and still is, mandatory as well. This famous shirt-rule came into effect in 2007 in preparation for the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Beijing’s famous dust makes classy cars even classier. Case in point: this majestic Bentley Azure Mulliner, seen in 2014 at the Beijing Tuning Tribe. The car was at SCC for maintenance and stood uncovered on a parking lot.
Continue reading “Bentley Azure Mulliner Is Dusty In Beijing”
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.
A fully loaded Beijing-Jeep Cherokee XJ in China, seen in a residential area in north Beijing sometime in 2008. At the time it was a very popular vehicle in the Chinese capital and there were loads of shops that sold all sorts of accessories.
Continue reading “Beijing-Jeep Cherokee XJ In White In China”
A gigantic Cadillac Fleetwood stretched limousine, seen on a car market on the South Fourth Ring Road in Beijing in 2007. It was in perfect shape, with flag poles on the bumpers, just missing the hub caps.
The second generation Fleetwood was made from 1993 until 1996, powered by a fat 5.7 liter V8, good for a very decent 260hp and 450nm.
These limousines were actually officially offered by General Motors China in period. Most were sold to high-end hotels and some to the Chinese government. This particular car is a bit more special because of its pretty gray color scheme. All the others were black.
Most of these great American cars eventually ended up at wedding-car companies and such. Today, just a few survive.