The new Shouwang car brand is the result of the joint partnership between Korean carmaker Hyundai and Chinese company Beijing Automotive and was used to sell Hyundai models created for the Chinese market. But the new Shouwang BHCD-1 concept also represents a major premiere for the Chinese carmaker. The model’s name, BHCD, actually comes from Beijing Hyundai Motor Company, marking the first model developed entirely by the Chinese subsidiary.
So far, Hyundai was present on the Chinese market with their models known from South Korea, but with the new BHCD-1 concept, a new family of cars is being previewed. With a four door coupe silhouette, the Shouwang BHCD-1 is a large car that even seems to rival the Audi A7 Sportback. The rear door feature an unconventional opening system (like Rolls Royce models), while the hood is lower towards the rear, giving the car a very dynamic look. The front part isn’t completely different to what Hyundai got us used to with their recent models, the car being pretty similar to the Hyundai Elantra. Elements like the LED daytime running lights, the dual tailpipes exhaust system or the impressive front grille are just a few of the concept’s highlights.
What’s also worth mentioning is that the BHCD-1 concept features a quite original and aggressive style, especially judging to what we usually see on the Chinese market. While currently available Shouwang models are basically rebadged Hyundai or slight alterations, the new BHCD-1 is the first car that was completely developed in China and was unveiled at the recent 2011 Guangzhou Motor Show that took place in Southern China.
According to the Hyundai press release, the Shouwang brand will be focused especially on environmental friendly models and that’s why the Shouwang BHCD-1 concept is powered by a hybrid powertrain. One of the brand’s major advantages is that it will benefit from Hyundai’s advanced technology, the BHCD-1 being built on the Hyundai Genesis platform. Unfortunately, Shouwang officials have been pretty cheap with details and that’s about all we have available so far about this model and about its technology, but we expect more details to be available soon, when the production version will be closer to market debut.
With the Shouwang brand and especially with this first model, Hyundai hopes to take a huge step into increasing their sales on one of the world’s largest automobile markets, China. The Hyundai – Beijing Automotive partnership was started in 2001 and the alliance now operates three assembly lines in China, with its models being available only on the Chinese market.