The car you see pictured here is the Senova D sedan from China’s Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Co. or simply BAIC, and under its body shell, elements of which will likely remind you of several other cars, is the platform and engine technology from the previous generation Saab 9-5, the rights for which the company acquired from General Motors in 2009.
It is the production version of last year’s C70G and it was formally introduced to the world at last month’s Shanghai Auto Show. The reason why we’re talking about it now is that BAIC announced on Monday that the Senova D went on sale in China and Hong Kong (which is a special administrative region of China).
The 4,861mm long, 1,820mm wide and 1,462 mm tall Senova D is reportedly offered at launch with a 201hp 2.0-liter turbocharged engine and a starting price of Yuan 139,800, the equivalent of US$22,700 and €17,500, with 174hp 1.8-liter and 247hp 2.3-liter turbocharged fours to be added to the lineup later on. The company also recently showed a prototype for a performance variant with the 2.3L Turbo engine as well as an all-electric version (see photos below).
Bloomberg News reported that Beijing Automobile launched the Senova as it prepares to list its BAIC Motor Corp. unit in Hong Kong.
“Adding the Senova to our product lineup will boost investors’ confidence,” said Han Yonggui, president of BAIC Motor. “It will help our efforts to sell shares in Hong Kong in line with our schedule,” he said, without offering a specific date.
In addition to the Saab 9-5 tech, BAIC has also acquired some rights to the older Saab 9-3 model, the platform architecture of which was employed on the C50E sedan and the C51X concept models.
Story References: Bloomberg News and Autoblog-nl
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