Another new Chinese car brand has been born: Hozon
Auto, and they are going to build electric cars. Chinese name is Hezhong Qiche, and the brand is
owned by a company called Zhejiang Hezhong New Energy Vehicles. Their first
vehicle will be a compact SUV, previewed by a concept car called @ that was
unveiled last year on a local high tech show.
Hozon Auto has received an official government
permit for the production of electric cars. They are based in Jiaxing City in
Zhejiang Province. Construction of the factory started in May 2016 and production
is set to start in 2019 with an initial annual capacity of 50.000 cars.
Total investment is 11.57 billion yuan (US$ 1.68
billion). The company has close ties with the Tsinghua University in Beijing, and
the university’s Department of Automotive Engineering was apparently
responsible for creating the @ concept car.
They must have been so busy designing this funky
futuristic interior that they completely forgot about the ultra rare
Hongqi rotting away on
their parking lot. The steering device mixes elements of a wheel and a handlebar, and
there is a large pad-shaped screen on the center stack.
Think away the fancy doors and you end up with a
fine looking compact crossover SUV. Hozon hasn’t announced any specifications
yet.
