Tag Archives: China’s

News

Autocar journal 20 March: on sale now

This week in Autocar, we check out Bentley’s daring new EV for 2026, drive China’s bonkers Defender rival, and provides our unique verdict on the newest Citroen Ami rival – the Silence S04.

News

Bentley’s first EV might be a 1000bhp assertion of intent, providing as much as double the facility of any mannequin in its present line-up – we converse to design chief Robin Page and provide all it’s essential know.

The new Audi Q6 E-tron, in the meantime, kick-starts a complete new period for Ingolstadt’s electrical automobiles as its first mannequin to be constructed on a brand-new, high-tech platform. We cowl all the things from powertrains to exterior design.

An electrical Renault Clio will be a part of its hybrid stablemate from 2026, sitting above the reborn 5 as a barely bigger and family-focused supermini. You’ll discover full particulars within the journal.

Skoda has previewed an entry-level EV known as the Epiq, and Mercedes-AMG is readying a 1000bhp all-electric Taycan rival.

Reviews

The fourth-generation Skoda Superb has arrived, sticking with custom and retaining its very typical property automobile kind. Does it nonetheless hits all the proper notes?

Electric automobiles would possibly wrestle to excite lovers, however the brand new Maserati Grecale Folgore is promising combustion ranges of hype, not least in its daring advertising and marketing imagery. Does it ship?

The Yangwang U8 has over 1100bhp, can carry out 360deg ‘tank turns’, and floats for as much as half an hour. But is it extra Instagrammable than usable?

We’re additionally driving the Volkswagen ID 5 GTX, BMW iX2 30e, Toyota CH-R, and for highway take a look at 5666, we’re trying on the BMW X6.

Features

The fabulously cultivated W12 engine that revitalised Bentley is retiring, similtaneously a really completely different sort of Bentley arrives. Our editor drives a Flying Spur as much as Scotland for a primary and final style.

What makes a BMW a BMW? Our John Evans finds out by asking an knowledgeable on BMW design: creator Steve Saxty.

A Spanish agency, Silence, has used its electrical motorcycle tech to create a miniature electrical ‘car’ that we will purchase within the UK. Matt Prior has a go.

Opinion

Matt Prior riffs on dashboard cameras, individuals who would relatively get into an accident than keep away from one, and the marked discount in site visitors cops.

Steve Cropley, in the meantime, feedback on MG’s centenary celebration at this 12 months’s Goodwood Festival of Speed, provides some recommendation to new expertise getting into the Formula 1 realm, and rejoices at Asa’s transfer to arrange store at Bicester Motion.

Motorsport

This Chinese Plug-In MPV Has 560 HP, Air Suspension, And Three Screens

China’s luxurious MPV market has witnessed important progress in recent times, reflecting the nation’s booming financial system and the rising buying energy of its prosperous inhabitants. To a sure extent, minivans have grow to be extra than simply folks movers as they’re now extra of a standing image for wealthier patrons within the People’s Republic. That pattern began with the Toyota Alphard and several other automakers now even have their very own luxurious MPVs. An particularly engaging providing comes from Voyah, the premium division of Dongfeng.

That mannequin is named the Dreamer and takes the form of an enormous minivan with a 2+2+3 seating configuration. Our pals and colleagues at Wheelsboy just lately had the prospect to drive one of many mannequin’s flagship variants they usually had fairly good issues to say about it. For starters, it appears to be like totally different in comparison with the Denza D9, Trumpchi M8, and the likes – a few of China’s newest entries into the MPV section – with a considerably extra restrained entrance fascia. The machine sits on 20-inch wheels and has air suspension that lowers the rear axle whenever you open the electric-operated tailgate.


BMW

New Designworks studio in Shanghai: Inspiration for new design ideas from China, for China – and the world.

Munich/Shanghai. The BMW Group’s Designworks innovation studio has a new location in the West Bund district of China’s economic hub of Shanghai. In West Bund, the city’s flourishing arts, culture and business district, the design team has their finger on the pulse, enabling them to develop new design ideas for both the BMW Group and other clients.

Studio opening accompanied by Art & Design talk with Cao Fei and Jessica Zhang.
The official inauguration of the new studio will take place during the West Bund Art & Design Fair Shanghai, which runs from 9-12 November 2023. As a long-standing partner, BMW Group will present the talk “Art & Design: Co-Creation x Technology”. Participants will include multimedia artist Cao Fei, director of the Today Art Museum Beijing, Jessica Zhang, and head of Designworks, Holger Hampf. During the panel discussion, emerging talents Liu Xin and Fei Jun will also present their BMW inspired collaboration evolving around hyper-emotive technology experiences.

The BMW Group talk is part of the official West Bund Art & Design debate series and will take place on Friday, 10 November 2023, from 5-6 p.m. in the West Bund Dome.

Impactful collaboration and global idea-sharing at R&D centre
At the new site in West Bund, which is surrounded by countless cultural institutions, about 50 creatives find an exceptionally creative working environment. At the same time, they are in constant contact with the BMW Group design team at corporate headquarters and the other Designworks studios in Munich and Los Angeles. “With the Designworks studio in Shanghai, we are turning the eyes and ears of the BMW Group towards Asia,” said Adrian van Hooydonk, head of BMW Group Design. “Here, we can create ground-breaking innovations that are not only important for the Chinese market, but also benefit products in the global market as a whole.” The aim is to create human-centred design innovations to meet the specific needs of customers in China and across the wider Asian region. The new Designworks studio is an integral part of the BMW Group’s Research and Development Centre in Shanghai. Pooling design and development expertise at one location speeds up and improves interdisciplinary exchange throughout the entire product creation process: from the early phases of design, all the way to production.

Insights into culture, tradition and customer wants in China.
Through Designworks Shanghai, the BMW Group gains valuable knowledge of the country’s culture and tradition. The studio provides assessments of the latest social, design-relevant phenomena and people’s changing needs, with regard to aesthetics, lifestyle and technology. “The market for car design in China has been growing disproportionately and at a breathtaking pace for several years. We are positioning ourselves to reflect this: Our Designworks team in Asia has also developed rapidly over the past ten years,” said Holger Hampf, head of Designworks. “Together with the studios in Munich and Los Angeles, Designworks is in an ideal position to constantly inspire the BMW Group and our external clients with innovative new ideas,” Hampf continued.

Design innovations for China and the BMW Group worldwide.
The influence of the design studio in China is also recognisable in the model variant of the new BMW 5 Series Sedan developed exclusively for the Chinese market. For the first time, the new BMW 5 Series for China not only comes with a longer wheelbase, creating a more spacious rear compartment, but also with proportions that are specifically designed with Chinese customers in mind. Its profile is reminiscent of a Gran Coupé. Exclusive design elements also give the vehicle a luxurious, thoroughly modern character and a strong presence. Key design elements will also be developed locally at Designworks for the future models of the NEUE KLASSE in China.

The question of how future customers define premium quality is of particular significance to the BMW Group. The “Designworkers” are gaining specific insights into the Asian region and translating them into concrete product ideas. In the field of colour and material design, the team is combining traditional craftsmanship with visionary materials to create a new and sustainable interpretation of quality at the highest level. For example, in cooperation with BMW Group Design and local Chinese tech startups, Designworks is reinterpreting traditional Chinese handicrafts such as ZhangRong velvet, Song brocade and lacquer with contemporary aesthetics for possible use in series production. Sustainable processes paired with natural and recycled materials are creating a new sense of wellbeing due to novel optical and haptic impressions.

Creative output from Designworks Shanghai is also valuable for the BMW Group’s digital experience: from visualisation of BMW IPA (Intelligent Personal Assistant), to the creation of the all new MINI digital companion, “SPIKE” and special Festival Modes– artistic animations played on the Control Display of current BMW models to celebrate special occasions.

Inspiration through cross-industry partnerships.
As at other Designworks locations, the creative minds at the Shanghai studio do not work exclusively for the BMW Group and its brands. They are also commissioned, in parallel, by a large number of clients from other industries. This gives Designworks a unique outside-in perspective that enables it to enrich BMW Group design time and again with inspiring and innovative design ideas.

In collaboration with CRRC, the world’s largest rolling stock manufacturer, the Designworks team in Shanghai designed both the exterior and interior of a new generation of high-speed trains. Designworks also recently developed the future positioning and product design for Chinese e-bike manufacturer Yadea. For luxury kitchen manufacturer Fotile, the team created an end-to-end customer experience for their smart-home household appliances.

If you have any questions, please contact:

BMW Group Corporate Communications

Michaela Martinus
Press spokesperson, Designworks
Telephone: +49-160-96 31 3773
Email: Michaela.Martinus@bmwgroup.com

Steven Woerns
Press spokesperson, BMW Group Design
Telephone: +49-151-601-16992
Email: Steven.Woerns@bmw.com

Prof Thomas Girst
Head of Cultural Engagement
Telephone: +49-89 382 24753
Email: Thomas.Girst@bmwgroup.com

Media website: www.press.bmwgroup.com
Email: presse@bmw.de

About Designworks

Designworks is the BMW Group’s innovation studio and a global creative consultancy at the intersection of design, technology and innovation. The “Architects of Future” focus on mobility, product and digital life design, as well as strategic design consulting.

The formerly independent creative studio was taken over by the BMW Group in 1995. Designworks acts as a driving force for all brands of the parent company and as an innovation driver for a large number of clients from a wide range of industries, such as IT and consumer electronics, aviation technology, the medical and environmental sectors, and the lifestyle and sports industries. The studio was founded in 1972 in Malibu, California by Chuck Pelly. Holger Hampf has been at the helm of the consulting agency since 2017.

BMW Group Cultural Engagement

Why culture? Why not! Culture is knowledge, a sanctuary of beauty and depth, of meaning and peace. An inspiring escape. Tranquil at best, even unsettling sometimes. As a corporate citizen, the BMW Group takes social responsibility seriously, as part of which it has been involved in hundreds of cultural initiatives worldwide for over half a century, both in the arts, music & sound, architecture, as well as in design. As a long-term partner, creative freedom is key – and as essential for groundbreaking works as it is for major innovations within a business enterprise like ours.

The BMW Group’s Cultural Engagement, with exclusive updates and deeper insights into its global initiatives can be followed on Instagram at @BMWGroupCulture.

Further information: www.bmwgroup.com/culture and www.bmwgroup.com/overview
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BMW-Group-Culture
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bmwgroupculture/
@BMWGroupCulture
#BMWGroupCulture
#drivenbydiversity

Motorsport

Hongqi H5: China’s Competitor to BMW 5 Series, Based on Mazda6 Platform

The Chinese automotive industry has come a long way from producing cheap imitations of foreign vehicles to developing its own high-quality products. Hongqi is one such brand that has gained recognition for creating some of the finest Chinese cars. However, collaborations with Asian, European, and North American automakers are still prevalent in many cases.

The featured car, known as the Hongqi H5, can be seen in the gallery below and in the attached video by Wheelsboy. This may be the first time you’ve heard of this brand, but one important fact to note is that it is China’s oldest passenger car manufacturer. Currently owned by the FAW Group, it gets its name from the Chinese words meaning “red flag.” Positioned as a mid-size sedan, the H5 is below the company’s flagship model, the H9.


Technology

The Top 12 Best Attack Helicopters Ever Used In War, Ranked

The Changhe Z-10 is China’s first native attack helicopter, designed for anti-armor and close air support missions. It was created as the People’s Liberation Army’s answer to America’s AH-1 Cobra. However, it is much larger, heavier, and less agile compared to its U.S. counterpart. Despite being produced around 40 years later, it has approximately 50% of the Cobra’s firepower, making it a statistically poor adversary. With a weight of 7,500 kilograms, it is even heavier than contemporaries such as the Eurocopter Tiger and A129 Mangusta. Due to its weight requirements, China failed to meet the criteria for the Changhe Z-10 to be used by E.U. nation militaries.

Nevertheless, the Changhe Z-10 incorporates modern avionics and weaponry, boosting its reputation on the world stage. This includes features such as helmet-mounted optics, radar warning systems, ejector seats, stealth properties, and advanced GPS navigation. Its armament consists of a 23-millimeter machine gun, rockets, and missiles, with a payload of up to 1,500 kilograms when fully loaded.

Although China is currently facing conflict and tension along its borders, the Changhe Z-10 has seen limited action. Due to its lesser capabilities compared to its peers, it ranks at the lowest position on this list.

[Featured image by Shimin Gu via Wikimedia Commons | Cropped and scaled | GFDL 1.2]

Technology

10 Of The Oldest Military Submarines Still In Service Today

The Type 091, also known as the Han class, was developed during China’s Chairman Mao’s rule in the late 1950s. However, it took over two decades for the first submarine to be launched. The goal was to create a nuclear attack submarine that could rival those of the Soviet Union and the West during the Cold War. However, at that time, there were doubts about its technological capabilities, particularly in terms of meeting thermal performance and sound reduction standards, which are crucial for a submarine’s security as sonar detection is a significant threat.

On paper, the Type 091 was impressive, measuring 98 meters in length, 10 meters in diameter, and capable of reaching a top speed of 25 knots. Its pressurized water reactor was a technological triumph for China during that era, and advanced sonar, reconnaissance, and sound detection equipment were developed without any assistance from the West. For Chairman Mao, it must have been a significant achievement and a demonstration of China’s emerging global power.

A total of five Type 091 submarines were built, with three still in active service. These submarines have the capability to launch various torpedoes, including NATO variants, as China adopted standard calibers. They are also equipped with surface-launched anti-ship cruise missiles, which have a range of 42 kilometers and can reach a top speed of Mach 0.9. Despite undergoing upgrades, these submarines have been reported to experience radiation leakage and continue to have significant noise levels, according to the U.S. Office of Naval Intelligence.

[Featured image via Wikimedia Commons | Cropped and scaled | Public domain]