Introducing The Hongqi H7. Now At Your Neighborhood Red Flag Dealer
After having been trotted out at car show after car show, and after having been relentlessly covered by occasional TTAC contributor Tycho de Feyter of Carnewschina, China’s “Red Flag” Hongqi H7 Sedan is finally going “on sale to the public tomorrow after a $300 million overhaul, pitting the symbol of Communist privilege against Volkswagen AG’s Audi for China’s elite,” reports Bloomberg from China, where the wire was blocked last year.
The car can be bought in a 5,400 square feet Red Flag outlet “at Beijing’s upscale Jinbao shopping street, home to dealerships for Lamborghini, Rolls-Royce, Maserati, Ferrari, Aston Martin and Mercedes-Benz,” says Bloomberg.
Before it went on sale to the public, Red Flag cars received prominent exposure. Says Bloomberg:
“In April, French President Francois Hollande was ferried in a Red Flag L5 limousine during his state visit to China. The automaker sent 20 Red Flag sedans to Fiji for use at the Group of Seventy Seven summit.
The car was included by China’s Commerce Ministry among items the government may donate to foreign countries and the automaker said it’s actively liaising with Chinese embassies and overseas governments to “fly the Red Flag in all corners of the world.”
According to Carnewschina, “the vehicle is based in body and platform on the Toyota Crown that is made in China by the FAW-Toyota joint venture. Three engines: a FAW-developed 2.0 turbo with 201hp and 260nm, and two V-sixes from Toyota: a 2.5 with 201hp and 242nm and a 3.0 with 228hp and 300nm, these two engines also power the Toyota Crown.”
Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.
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Hongqi H7 needs rimz. Maybe a set of thuddies. Then wrap it in a KFC ad written in Chinese.
It's the red flag with complete IPR, that we are waiting for to go public.