Autoblog

It turns out that the Geely GT didn't corner the market on coupe concepts at Auto China 2008. Beijing Automotive -- whose Wrangler-style B40 you saw earlier -- is also on the case with its 700R coupe concept, a clean and attractive design with some interesting details. An accent line angles upward, merging with muscular rear haunches, giving the car a nice, aggressive presence. In front, knifelike headlamps; stylized, outboard air intakes; and a teensy main grille slit come together to give the car a good face. Out back, a similar motif finishes the car off, and the result is very attractive overall.

Of course, it'll probably never be anything more than vaporware, but generally speaking, it makes you wonder what on Earth goes on in the boardrooms of Chinese car companies. If they have the ability to deliver clean, original designs like this, then why bother copycatting at all? The mind reels. Until originality in this vein is the norm, the phrase "Chinese car" will remain a punchline. Too bad, because stylewise, this 700R concept is no joke.


[Source: Autoblog Chinese]

Click above for high-res gallery of the Beijing B40

The basic Jeep shape has essentially carried forward from World War II to the present day. It has also been replicated many times over by automakers scattered around the world, and variations on the theme continue to appear. The Chinese auto industry has never been shy about (ahem) "borrowing", and Beijing Automotive has come through with one of the "better" quasi-clones we've seen so far. The B40 is obviously Jeep Wrangler-inspired, but rather than ape the Jeep's signature front end, the B40 instead sports a more Land Rover-ish look (think LR2/Freelander 2). And you know what? It's actually kind of interesting to look at.

The interior is gussied up with contrast-stitched leather seats, a nav system, and a steering wheel that looks like it's been ripped from a modern Opel. The wheels are OEM Jeep knock-offs. One thing that jumps out at us is the door handles -- they're a flat style, similar to the ones Jeep used before switching to the circular push-button handles on the current JK Wranglers. We really like that old look better. Anyway, back to the B40 -- the only technical info Autoblog Chinese has is that it's powered by a gasoline engine. Offroad prowess is unknown, as is its production status, but at least we know what a Wrangler/Freelander love child might look like.

UPDATE: As has been pointed out in the comments, Beijing Auto is the current name of the automaker once known as the joint venture, Beijing Jeep. (Stands up, ready to catch javelins.) As such, this is in all likelihood derived from actual Wrangler mechanicals. As one commenter theorizes, if the nomenclature is related to the actual powertrain, this may well have the old 4.0L I6 underhood. You know -- the one you can't get in the USDM Wrangler anymore.


[Source: Autoblog Chinese]

All photos Copyright ©2008 Bin Chen / Weblogs, Inc.

Click above for high-res gallery of the Brilliance BS4 Wagon

The Brilliance BS4 sedan is a pretty good-looking car, so it stands to reason that its wagon variant would be easy on the eyes as well. Unveiled in Beijing, the BS4 wagon is indeed a snazzy-looking, ostensibly practical machine. Power comes from a 1.8L Mitsubishi G93 four-cylinder making 134 hp (100 kW) at 6500 rpm. The BS4 wagon also comes equipped with an alphabet soup of safety feature acronyms like "ABS + EBD + EDS" but word association games involving "Brilliance" and "safety" only call to mind the BS6 Euro NCAP debacle (since corrected, allegedly... but still). The bad news continues, as a recent Inside Line review of the BS4 sedan concluded that the car was generally lackluster at best. Based on that, we can probably assume that the same shortcomings afflict the wagon. It does look nice, at least.


All photos Copyright ©2008 Bin Chen / Weblogs, Inc.

[Source: Autoblog Chinese]

Click above for high-res gallery of the VW Lavida for China

Shanghai Volkswagen developed the new VW Lavida in China, for China. Now it's made its big debut before the home-market audience in Beijing. Stylistically, the made-in-China design looks oddly dated, quite frankly. The petal-shaped head- and taillamps look like something you might find on a 1990's Korean import and not a newly-minted VW, regardless of origin.

The Lavida's positioned below the new VW Bora (also introduced in Beijing), with a shorter overall length (around 3 inches) but an identical wheelbase, so passenger comfort should be around the same as the larger car. The interior is a blend of familiar VW partsbin stuff with elements that just seem a little odd-looking in a VeeDub, like the silver audio head unit and the silver HVAC knobs set against a healthy dose of woodgrain trim. Power comes from 4-cylinder engines displacing 1.6L or 2.0L, with a six-speed Tiptronic available to handle shifting duties. It may be all-new, but it's also pretty boring.


All photos Copyright ©2008 Bin Chen / Weblogs, Inc.

[Source: Autoblog Chinese]

Click image for a gallery of the Geely TX4 LTC

Geely builds the LTI TX4 under license, and naturally, it's showing off the popular London taxi at its display in Beijing. The standard TX4's kind of vanilla though, so to grab showgoers' attention, the automaker has also plopped an electric blue "hot rod" version called the TX4 LTC in its display, as well. It might more appropriately described as a "not rod", since the TX4's stock 2.4L Euro IV-compliant diesel remains underhood. For maximum visual effect, Geely appears to have raided the Chinese equivalent of a Pep Boys, adding a faux dual exhaust, bolting on truck running boards and fitting six-spoke wheels that might be just a smidge oversized. Call us crazy, but it looks like turning could become a bit of an adventure.

Inside, the passenger compartment gets a white interior and possibly some stereo upgrades along with a nice photo of Big Ben on the bulkhead. You might be stifling a giggle, but compared to some of the vehicular insanity that's showed up at previous years' Chinese auto shows, the TX4 LTC is almost boring, and even with that stock engine, lead-footed hacks can probably still smoke Geely Beauty Leopard drivers at red lights. Just don't take the bait and follow them into the twisties -- you might run into some issues.


All photos Copyright ©2008 Bin Chen / Weblogs, Inc.

[Source: Autoblog Chinese]

Click image for photo gallery

Imagine a Hyundai Elantra minus the swoopy body line and with a more assertive, Opel-ish beak, and you have the Changfeng Qi Ling CP1A that'll be unveiled this weekend at the Beijing Motor Show. According to thetycho.com, the CP1A designation is simply a code name, and the sedan will get power from a 1.8-liter four of undetermined size and strength. That's the extent of the details at the moment, but we'll keep an eye out for more as Auto China '08 gets underway this weekend. Until then, there are three photos for you to check out in the gallery below.


[Source: thetycho.com]

Click above for a gallery of the Nissan Teana brochure.

The Scoopers of Cars have gotten their hands on a scanned brochure of the production version of the Nissan Intima concept, and it seems that in addition to getting a mass-market makeover, it will also be sporting a Teana badge when it goes on sale in Japan. The transition from concept to production has been uncharacteristically kind to the Teana, with the tightly drawn headlamps, plummeting C-pillar and elongated tail lamps surviving, but the suicide doors and 22nd century interior must have been scrapped due to feasibility issues. We'll get our first official taste of the Teana when it's finally revealed on April 20th at the Beijing Motor Show.



[Source: Carscoop]

China's Jianghuai Automobile Co., Ltd., unveiled its Vision II concept car at the Beijing Auto Show. Again. As its name suggests, this is the second iteration of the swoopy sedan. It was first shown at the 2005 Beijing Auto Show as the Vision in a more conservative dark red paintjob, sporting a Nissan-esque grille. Photos after the jump.

The Vision II makes its 2006 return with a much more vivacious color and more original grille design. Also notice how the car's logo has been re-designed to attract attention from fewer attorneys.

More photos of Vision I and II after the jump.

[Source: Autoblog China via China Car Forums]

Chinese carmaker DongFeng introduced its D120 sports car at the Beijing show Saturday. The two-door apparently was created by mating a Solstice with a streeted-up Tiburon and has a 137-hp, 2.4-liter engine. The rear wing's height is adjustable, apparently by way of an old-fashioned bellows-type device, or else the D120 has a built in accordian underneath its rear hatch. That's the most we can say with much confidence. The Autoblog Chinese post, translated by Google, is somewhat hard to understand. Here's an example of some of its description after translation. Feel free to help us make sense of it...

"Safety, equipped with SRS airbag, a double-door antitrapping tightening belts and electric windows; Comfort. CD system with eight-inch LCD super, and after stretching, swinging around from top to bottom; cars are also equipped with the tail depends on probe Ergonomics with leather chairs, prudent elegance; top electric car with a sunroof and adjustable shading plate antitrapping Spoiler body and tail support ring smoother transition."

Not so sure we want our next car to have "probe Ergonomics."

More photos after the jump.

[Source: Hazik at China Car Forums and Autoblog China]

Click to enlarge

This morning, Shanghai Volkswagen revealed the Volkswagen Neeza concept at the Beijing Motor Show. Looking exactly as we expected it to after seeing the advanced renderings and sketches released earlier this month, VW calls the bright red concept a "cross between a sport coupe and an estate with an off-road appearance." The "sport coupe" part of the description is a total reach. This is a wagon, through and through, regardless of what the PR boilerplate says.

And as wagons go, it's quite fetching -- no surprise, given that Volkswagen already produces a handsome Passat estate. Sitting on what looks like an Audi Allroad-height suspension, the Neeza sports unique fascias that showcase restyled head and taillights while still clearly evoking the aforementioned Passat. Note that the shape of the projector/turn signal assembly inside the reshaped lens up front retains the look of the corporate headlights we see on the automaker's current lineup. The grille incorporates some traditional Chinese window etching design elements, but is actually a throwback in that it doesn't have the full-shield look other VWs have today. If you're wondering where you've seen that familiar-looking thick D-pillar, pull up some shots of the Audi Q7 and wait for the light bulb to appear over your head. In summary, the outside of the car looks quite good, even though you feel like you've seen it all before.

Suicide doors offer a great view into the land-of-make-believe concept cabin with its neat read seats, blue lighting, enormous glass panoramic roof, and all-in-one radio/nav/phone/organizer/etc. control interface.

Fortunately, the car's press release explains that the name Neeza is taken from a mystical historic figure, otherwise we'd have thought it was Chinese for "spiffily restyled Passat with doors that'll never see the light of day."

(More photos, press release after the jump)

[Source: Volkswagen]