Coverage of any Chinese auto show without mentioning a Hongqi or two just wouldn’t be up to snuff. So without any more decadent ado, here’s the Hongqi L5 sombering up the 2014 Beijing auto show. What’s a Hongqi? It’s a Chinese brand manufactured by FAW that’s been serving the nation’s government officials and dignitaries (Hongqi means “Red Flag” in Chinese) with understatedly upscale rides for decades. The L5 is styled after one of the brand’s early offerings, the milquetoast CA 770 series. It’s like a BMW 7-series or Mercedes-Benz S-class, only definitely not as nice.
Still, Hongqis are weirdly cool—at least we think they are—and are loaded with tons of details any communist or supreme leader might enjoy. Careful with that joy, though—you’re only rationed so much of it per month. Anyway, the hood ornament is a vertical interpretation of a red flag mid-wave, and there is another trio of smaller flags on each fender. We’re not sure if one detail we noticed on a smaller Hongqi model cruising the streets of Beijing carries over to the L5, but we hope it does: Weighted wheel center caps that retain their orientation even as the wheels spin!
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This L5 lacks a few details, such as flag holders for dignitaries, but otherwise is a fine example of the breed. We dig the way it marries classic styling cues from the original Hongqis with a semi-modern body and construction methods. But four tailpipes? That half-capitalism thing China’s got going on must really be taking hold.
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