What was the earliest car in China?
3 Answers
China's earliest car was the Minsheng brand truck. Here are the relevant details: 1. Introduction: The first domestically produced car - the Minsheng Model 75 truck. 2. Background: To celebrate the debut of the first domestically produced car, the Liaoning Mortar Factory held a grand celebration. The truck had a load capacity of 1.82 tons, featured a long-nose design in brown color, and was equipped with a six-cylinder water-cooled gasoline engine producing 65 horsepower. It had a wheelbase of 4.7 meters, single tires on all four wheels, and a top speed of 40 kilometers per hour. 3. Features: The self-designed cushioned rear axle had unique characteristics. The radiator was divided into four sections, allowing the vehicle to continue operating normally even if one section was damaged. Except for components like the engine, rear axle, electrical equipment, and tires which used original parts, the factory redesigned and manufactured all other components.
I think China's earliest automobile can be traced back to the Daimler sedan that Empress Dowager Cixi bought from Germany in 1902. At that time, it was a real novelty, and people in the palace were too scared to ride it, fearing it might disturb the feng shui. That car was an imported product, and it wasn't until the 1950s that we gradually started producing our own domestic vehicles, like the Liberation brand. But it's quite interesting to think about how the introduction of automobiles sparked a small trend back then—wealthy people rushed to buy them as status symbols, while ordinary folks could only watch enviously. Over time, cars gradually transformed from luxury items into daily necessities, revolutionizing transportation and significantly impacting urban development. It's truly remarkable!
From what I've learned, China's earliest automobile was a German Daimler brought in by Empress Dowager Cixi in 1902. To be honest, it wasn't easy back then - the car had to be shipped to Beijing by boat, bumping along the way. Cixi even found it too noisy and only allowed eunuchs to push it around. This incident was quite significant, marking an early step for China towards the industrial era. Later during the Republican period, more cars were imported, but the real boom came after the founding of New China when FAW established its factory to manufacture vehicles, transforming cars from rare curiosities into everyday tools. Looking back, automobiles aren't just means of transportation - they've witnessed national transformations, with every step imprinted in history.
