Bentley Launches China-Only Continental Flying Spur "Linley" Special Edition

China is quickly becoming the ideal place to launch bespoke (…and higher-priced) special edition versions for luxury carmakers. The latest example is Bentley, which will sell just 10 Continental Flying Spurs created in cooperation with British design company Linley.

The Linley limited edition will only be available in what is now Bentley’s biggest market in the world. According to the British carmaker, it “incorporates signature Linley elements that will appeal to customers who value pedigree, lineage, handcrafted quality and peerless design”.

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Taiwan’s All-Electric Studio X-Gene Avant GT

It’s called the Avant GT and it looks like someone tried to make a Porsche Panamera out of a Honda Crosstour. The pure-electric model was first shown in Shanghai earlier this year and it’s the product of five companies – none of which have any real experience building cars – including Taiwanese design firm Studio X-Gene, financial partner Altair ProductDesign and technological partners Delta Electronics, Wistron and Qisda. Read more »

BMW Treats China with New Z4 sDrive23i Limited Edition

The growing importance of China has led many carmakers to introduce a variety of dedicated special edition models created especially for the domestic market. In the recent past, the BMW Group has presented many such vehicles, including but not limited to, the M3 Matte and Tiger Editions.

The Bavarian firm's latest attempt to capture the attention of Chinese buyers with a special version is the Z4 sDrive23i Flame Edition.

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Video: Man Drives Nissan In and Out of Chinese Hospital

A security camera at a hospital in Jinzhou city of Northeast China's Liaoning province captured this amazing footage of a man driving a Nissan sedan (or so that's the kind of car being reported) into the lobby and trying to do something that resembles donuts.

After a while, the man smashed his way out of the entrance and drove off only to return and give it another try. Fortunately for the staff and patients, he didn't manage to enter the hospital the second time and was quickly apprehended.

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Ford Says it's Considering Building Electric Cars and Selling Lincolns in China

Ford Motor Company’s CEO, Allan Mulally, recently told Bloomberg Television that his company might build electric cars with its partner in China while the automaker is also looking to introduce the Lincoln brand into the market.

“As we move towards electrification, you’re going to see more hybrids, plug-in hybrids and all-electric cars”, said Mulally while on a trip to Chongqing, China, for the founding of a new transmission plant in partnership with Changan Automobile Group.

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Video: In China, the Ride Goes on Even if You're Missing a Wheel…

Albert Einstein once said, "Life is like riding a bicycle, to keep your balance you must keep moving".

Apparently, this Chinese rider took the famed theoretical physicist’s saying a bit too seriously when he lost the front wheel of his bicycle. You can check the video for yourself right after the break.

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Quiz: How Many Children can fit into this Small Mini Van? Try 64 if it's in China…

China has been on a roll lately breaking one record after the other but, this time, it's not for a good reason.

You see, local police in China's Hebei Province stumbled upon a small passenger van that was legally designed to transfer up to eight people. The problem is this one was carrying –wait for it- 66 people, yes you read correctly, sixty-six passengers including 64 youngsters aged four to five years old and two adults!

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Stayin’ Alive: Swedish Court Accepts Saab’s Reorganization Plan

Saab announced today that it has received a second chance in life as the Gothenburg Court of Appeal approved its voluntary reorganization plan, overturning the Vanersborg District court's previous ruling.

In contrast to the District Court, the Court of Appeal agreed that Saab’s plan to secure short-term funding and protection from its creditors conforms to the Swedish Company Reorganization Act.

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GM and SAIC to Develop a New Electric Vehicle in China

General Motors Chairman and CEO Dan Akerson and his counterpart at SAIC Motor Corp., Hu Maoyuan, signed an agreement for the joint development of a new electric vehicle in China.

The Pan Asia Technical Automotive Center, which is jointly owned by the two companies, will undertake the development of the new architecture, with GM and SAIC teams working together.

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Oh China…Yema Auto Presents Clones of the Audi A4, VW Tiguan and Infiniti EX

Not too long ago, in a country far, far away, Yema Auto presented a clone of the previous generation Subaru Forester. The years passed and the force behind Yema Auto became stronger and stronger…

At this week's Chengdu Auto Show 2011, the Chinese automaker unleashed a second attack with a new breed of clones named the E-SUV, T-SUV and the F16.

In all cases, the pictures speak louder than words and it doesn't take an avid automobile aficionado to see that the T-SUV is a blatant rip-off of the Volkswagen Tiguan, the E-SUV China's doppelganger of the Infiniti EX crossover and the F16 and its commercial E-TAXI sibling, copies of the older Audi A4 Avant.

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The Manchurian Candidate: Jeep capitalizes on Fiat’s Chinese Operations, Wants to Build SUVs locally

Now that Sergio Marchionne has consolidated Fiat-Chrysler management into a smaller, leaner unified team, its members are working full force to maximize the group’s capabilities.

Jeep CEO Mike Manley travelled to China last Wednesday to negotiate the local production of Jeep models with Guangzhou Automobile Group Co Ltd., which already has a joint venture with Fiat.

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VW Wants Number One Spot, Will Invest US$86 Billion to Achieve its Goal

Volkswagen’s Supervisory Board has approved a cash influx of €62.4 billion (US$86 billion) into its automotive division over the course of five years. The investment is necessary if VW’s plan to overtake GM and Toyota and become the world’s number one car manufacturer is to succeed. Read more »

Phoenix Sun: Saab Announces €70 million Technology Agreement

Like Phoenix, the mythological bird that burns down only to rise afresh from its ashes, Saab has been given a stay of execution.

That's because today, Saab Automobile AB announced the signing of a technology license agreement with the Swedish Automobile Coöperatief U.A. (SPV) for the non-exclusive rights in Saab’s (appropriately named, as it turns out) Phoenix architecture technology.

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China May Reject Toyota-Fuji Heavy Industries Joint Venture with Chery, Say it is “One too Many”

China looks set to reject the proposal for a joint venture between Fuji Heavy Industries, in which Toyota holds a 16.5% stake, and the country’s seventh largest carmaker, Chery Automobile Co.

According to state sources cited by Bloomberg news, the reason is that this would give Toyota a third joint venture in the country. This violates current regulations stipulating that any overseas company can form only two joint ventures in the passenger car manufacturing field.

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Video: Caution, Dangerously Slippery When Wet…

Two separate, but equally frightening accidents that involved two large trucks and which took place on a highway in China's Hebei Province, were captured on a surveillance camera.

The footage shows the first lorry driver losing control of the vehicle and sliding left and right, followed shortly after by a second truck, this time a tanker that smashed into the median before coming to a halt.

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Swedish Court Rejects Saab's Reorganization Plan, is this the End?

The (digital) ink on our story about Saab North America's hopes and dreams had barely dried when news came in that a Swedish court denied Saab Automobile's voluntary reorganization application that would have protected the company from its creditors, which include the labor unions and parts suppliers.

Saab was trying to win some time and complete a deal with Chinese investors. However, the Vänersborg district court ruled that it could not see how the Swedish automaker could secure additional funding to continue its operations.

“It appears unclear if –and if so, when- the relevant Chinese authorities will approve the agreements”, the court said.

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China Wants Car Manufactures to Shift Away from Volume and Focus on Eco-Friendliness

China has strived long and hard to become the world’s number one car market. And it achieved it in late 2009, holding that title until today. Only last year, 18 million vehicles were sold in China while some executives, like Ford’s strategy director for the Asia/Pacific region, Will Periam, expect it to reach 32 million units in the next nine years.

And it’s only natural for automakers to make the country their number one priority. Not just mass manufacturers, which already have local factories, but also luxury brands like Bentley and Rolls-Royce that try to outdo each other by unveiling China-only special editions.

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Saab Seeks Court Protection from Creditors, Formulates Reorganization Plan

The way events were unfolding these past few weeks, and from the moment its CEO admitted reorganization was an option, it was inevitable: Saab Automotive NV, which includes Saab Automobile AB, Saab Automobile Powertrain AB and Saab Automobile Tolls AB, filed for voluntary reorganization today at the District Court of Vanersborg in Sweden.

Saab’s goal is to secure protection from its creditors while it submits a viable reorganization plan until the Pang Da and Youngman deal, which has been signed off since July, is approved by the Chinese authorities and cash flow is restored. The initial period of court protection will be three months and, if required, can be extended for up to twelve months.

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Ford Plans to double its Chinese Market Presence in all Segments

Since November 2009, China is the world’s top car market, surpassing the US. So it’s only natural for automakers to pay their utmost attention. Among others, BMW previewed the new M5, Peugeot the 508, Nissan the new Tiida and Audi the Q3 at the Shangai Motor Show . The most recent example is Ford, which is planning to more than double its model line-up in the Chinese market according to a senior company executive. Read more »

In Car Video Footage of a Very Bizarre Incident

It’s a crazy, crazy world we live in. Don't believe us? Just take a look at this incident that took place somewhere in Asia, possibly in China if Google Translation did its work (visit the comment section to correct us if we're wrong).

While we can't be certain of the details surrounding this bizarre episode since the description on Youtube doesn’t make much sense after we translate it into English, through the dash-mounted camera we see someone who is driving a small green Toyota being chased by two men, one holding a baseball bat.

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