There's a popular saying in business that "a brand is not just a logo, a website, or your business cards... it’s an experience," and this applies to every sector. When opting for a product, most customers prefer the brands that have been around for longer period, and the reason for this is quite simple. In business, older brands are more trusted than relatively newer ones, and this ultimately earns them more respect as well. That brings us to one of the most respected automotive brands in the world, the Hongqi – a brand that's considered by many as China’s oldest passenger carmaker.
Notably, Hongqi is a Chinese luxury car marque, and it rolled out its first vehicle back in the late 1950s. This was a compact, chrome-lined black sedan that rose to extreme heights in popularity. Today, Hongqi (which translates to Red flag) is one of the most highly revered automakers in the country. The brand has more than eight decades in the business, and it continues to produce luxury cars, state limousines, and parade cars in China. Part of the FAW group, Hongqi produces other vehicles, such as the Hongqi HS9, the famous Hongqi R9, and the Junpai Series sedans. However, one of the most popular, yet exclusive vehicles produced by Chinese automakers is the Hongqi L5.
The Hongqi L5 made its debut in 2013 at the Shanghai Auto Show. The 4-door limousine thrilled the audience with its retro-style exterior design. It features traditional, yet futuristic headlamps and a 3-dimensional grille. Under the hood, the car is fitted with a potent V8 engine, and it also has a plethora of tech features. The Hongqi L5 has an eye-watering price of around $800,000, and this makes it the most expensive vehicle ever produced in China. With that, the L5 is the standard vehicle for high-class businessmen and celebrities in China.
After almost a decade, the Hongqi L5 still dominates the market segment and serves as an official state car in China. Let’s take a look into the most outstanding feature of the Hongqi L5, and how the feature helps raise Hongqi L5’s status and market stance.
The Best Feature Of The Hongqi L5 Is Undoubtedly Its Exterior Build And Demeanor
Among all the enthralling attributes the Hongqi L5 has to offer, the retro-styling takes the cake as the best feature of them all. The Hongqi L5 carries the brand’s auto-making heritage. Its styling pays homage to the classic CA770, from which it gets some of its awesome design cues. Just when you thought the Chinese automotive industry couldn’t pull a classic, they not only did it, but went above and beyond.
One of the first things that grab attention on the L5 is the flag-shaped emblem mounted at the front, the mid-part of the hood. Styled in red, the emblem embodies the brand’s heritage perfectly. It also enhances the vehicle’s modern look. At the front, the Hongqi L5 gets a large, well-styled grille, which it inherits from the CA770. A silver streak runs across the front below the grille, separating the top grille area and the bumper.
The headlights are the most eye-catching feature at the fascia. It almost infuses classic and futuristic design cues to achieve an award-winning face. According to Hongqi, the L5’s halogen lamps feature air vents, which take in the air to the engine. How cool is that? Everything on the Hongqi L5’s exterior design tells us that the brand spent a lot of time working on the details. It measures 5,555 in length, 2,018 in width, and 3,435 in wheelbase. Notably, the production of a vehicle with such detail and status should require a long time. However, according to Auto Week, the development of the Hongqi L5 only lasted about four years.
The celadon-jade door handles enhance the side profile of the luxury limousine, as do the silver-plated window edges. Another styling feature of great significance is the side signal light. It's made up of up to 16 LED lights, for the fullest of brightness. They also carry on the color of the hood flag emblem. The car's 275/40 and R20 tires not only look great. They also offer drainage and lower rolling resistance benefits. This paves the way for a comfier ride. At the rear, we’re floored by the 4 horizontal chromium bars, which enhance its limo-style.
Other Notable Features Of The Hongqi L5
Another great feature of the Hongqi L5 is its powertrain. Initially, the vehicle ran on a Turbocharged 4.0-liter V8 engine with 381 horsepower and 391 lb-ft of torque. This engine came paired with a standard 8-speed automatic transmission and a full-time four-wheel drive system. A more potent version of the Hongqi L5 is available, and it comes with a naturally aspirated 6.0-liter V12 engine. This setup produces a staggering 408 horsepower and 406 lb-ft of torque. The stronger engine is paired with a 6-speed automatic transmission, and power is sent to all wheels.
The Hongqi L5 comes with other spectacular features that can be found in its cabin. First, the entire interior also gets an amazing retro styling inspired by the Chinese culture, and this makes the dashboard, among other components, so appealing to look at. Its design, according to Hongqi, comes from the curve of eaves of old Chinese buildings. There are some other features of the L5 that are so unique to the model. Instead of the traditional way of having the gauge and speed display behind the steering wheel, the L5 displays this information on a screen mounted at the top center part of the dashboard.
The steering wheel infuses a jet-black shade and traditional styling, while it also tops its looks up with a “sunflower” logo in the center. The seats in the Hongqi L5 comes with comfortable headrests. This gives each occupant a feeling that can be equated to flying in first class. You’ll also love the LCD screens available in the rear. They are positioned on the back of the front seat headrests and the rear drop-down armrest. These treats the rear passengers to full entertainment while in transit.