About China's Coolest Cars
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.
A brown donkey pulling a two-wheel carriage, seen in 2011 in the far east of Beijing. The carriage carries a load of bricks, a gentleman with a reins, and a little lady fast asleep.
Here we have a first generation Ford Ka with black license plates, painted in purple with gray bumpers, sporty five-spoke wheels, a red grille, and with 京A license plates. I saw it on a dreary morning on the road right across the building where I lived at the time, in the Chinese capital Beijing in 2005.
The first generation Ford Ka was made from 1996 until 2008. It was never officially sold in China.
Black license plates were issued to foreign owned companies from the 1980’s to the early 00’s. These companies could buy a car locally, and they were also allowed to import their own cars. When they sold these cars, the license plate would go with it. This only changed in 2016, when a new rule ruled out any continuation of the old 京A license plates.
The 京A Ford Ka became somewhat of a famous car in Beijing later on. I remember seeing it on all sorts of local car websites and such, and it took me a while before I realized I had met it first. Great Ford, and a good Ka.
A super cool Volkswagen Citi Golf CLX, seen on a snowy winter’s day in 2009 in the faraway Tongzhou District in east Beijing, capital of China. The good Volkswagen stood parked on a corner near a public gym, complete with two table-tennis tables! That day, nobody was playing.
Continue reading “Volkswagen Citi Golf CLX Is White In China”
This is an ultra are Beijing Commercial Vehicle BJ2020M, a hard-top 4×4 off-road vehicle. The one we saw was fully loaded with dealer accessories. Including: a three-phase bull bar, flag poles, side bars, ultra shiny wheel covers, roof-mounted mirrors, and for spotlights on that same roof. A dream as much a car a dream can be.
Continue reading “A Wondrous White Beijing Commercial Vehicle BJ2020M”
Here we have three (03) right-hand drive Nissan 180SX sporty cars, seen on the Golden Port race track in Beijing, capital of China, back in 2007. In China, folks drive on the right side of the road, so why did we we have these righties there?
Continue reading “RHD Nissan 180SX Drift Car Times Three And Some Other Nice Cars”
This beauty is a very rare BAM BJ2020SA, a two-door 4×4 off-road vehicle. I saw it in Beijing all the way back in 2003, just across the street from the Workers’ Stadium. The building on the left has long been razed to the ground and replaced by something new, and recently the stadium went down as well! Note the purple trousers and the old 京C license plate. Continue reading “A Rare BAM BJ2020SA in Yellow Brown In Beijing”
A very pretty Hyundai Sonata police car in Beijing, painted in blue-white with a large lights & siren unit on the roof. I saw it in 2005 near Tiananmen Square, parked in a narrow street.
The fourth-generation (EF) Hyundai Sonata was the first generation Sonata that was made in China, by the Beijing-Hyundai joint venture. Production started in 2002 and continued all the way, with various updates, until 2017!
The police car has the 2.5 liter V6 under the bonnet, which was good for 164 hp and 225 Nm. Gearbox was a 4-speed automatic. The China-made Sonata was also available with various other engines, including a 2.0 and a 3.0 V6.
A truly rare car for China this is. A light blue Moskvitch Aleko 2141S, seen at a small car repair shop in north Beijing, back in 2011. The good Moskvitch was very dusty and looked neglected. Staff at the store told me they were planning to restore it. Well, they always say that when I ask…