Few Chinese brands are as dedicated in their ripping off celebration of classic Americana as Songsan Motors, and its latest retro creation, the Monterey, is no exception. Inspired by the jet-age American sedans of the ’50s, Songsan goes a step further by making its version all-electric.
Unfortunately, range details remain
unclear at this point, but the real attraction or controversy of this vehicle
will surely be the design. The shape, the vents, the hood ornament, as well as
the shape of the chrome accent along the side of the Monterey all suggest that
it takes mostly inspiration from the 1957 Buick Roadmaster.
The double-barrel headlights, suggest that the influence of one of GM’s other models from the era, be that
the Corvette they’ve cloned or some other sedan, from Buick’s 1958 Super
Riviera to the Pontiac Chief, still looms large over Songsan’s designers. The
team previously released the SS Dolphin, which was similarly inspired by a C1
Corvette, as well as the Summer, a modern clone of the Volkswagen microbus,
albeit one accomplished with slightly less fidelity than the SS Dolphin and the
Monterey.
Although it’s hard to tell precisely from
pictures, the proportions of Monterey actually look decent. Unlike those retro Corvettes
you sometimes see that are based on a C5 Corvette, this car’s design looks less
compromised, more cohesive and intentional.
The giant chrome wheels may also owe
something to the later restomod design trends of the aughts. An apparently full
leather interior and a massive Fiat 500-style rolldown roof all mark this out
as a distinctly modern machine and one that I’d be pretty curious to see
rolling down the street.
