The Weirdest Tuned Cars From The 2021 Chengdu Auto Show

The 2021 Chengdu Auto Show in China has opened its doors and besides a few interesting new model premieres for the Chinese market, it was full of weird factory-tuned vehicles. More than 1,500 vehicles from 130 automakers are showcased from August 29th until September 5th, but for this article, we chose six tuned examples.

If you are not familiar with the marketing strategy of the Chinese automakers, it is common for them to showcase tuned versions of their production cars, with the goal of boosting their popularity. This is why auto shows in China sometimes look like they belong to the Fast & Furious franchise. Oversized bodykits, wings, scissor doors, and bright color combinations make the following cars stand out from the crowd – and most of the times not in a good way.

Chery Little Ant Pro Bigfoot

The Chery Little Ant Pro is a small electric vehicle but for its premiere, it got converted into a bigfoot! While adding oversized off-road tires and significantly raised suspension to a tiny car with just 41 hp (31 kW / 42 PS) of power doesn’t sound like a great idea, Chery did it anyway. At the end of the day, the purpose of this concept is not to prove its off-road capabilities but to bring more people into Chery’s showrooms. The conversion wouldn’t be complete without metal front and rear bumpers, underbody protection, extra LED lights, and half-doors for an open-air experience.

Chery QQ Ice Cream Lighting Edition

Chery doesn’t like boring reveals, so they decided their brand new QQ Ice Cream electric city car would look better with a bunch of racing-style visual modifications. The Lighting Edition got wide fender add-ons, bumper extensions (splitter, side sills, and diffuser) plus an unnecessary large fixed rear wing. The image wouldn’t be complete without tinted headlights, aerodynamic wheel covers, and a matching wrap.

Like most track-oriented versions, the interior is upgraded with bucket seats, an Alcantara-wrapped sports steering wheel, a racing monitor, additional gauges, and a lightweight center console that looks like it’s made of carbon fiber. Despite all the effort, the electric powertrain remains stock, producing a mere 27 hp (20 kW / 27 PS), so don’t expect to set any lap records at the Nurburgring.

Hechuang Z03 Modified

The Hechuang Z03 is a brand-new fully-electric compact SUV for the Chinese market which has up to 215 hp (160 kW / 218 PS) of power and a 76.8kWh battery pack in its flagship variant. The designers at Hechuang thought they should advertise the sportiness of their SUV by creating a one-off concept car. Thus, the pictured vehicle got lowered suspension, a huge front splitter, aero-wheels, rear wing, diffuser and a special white, black, and red livery. The additional LED lights mounted on the roof are bit confusing, but we guess they wanted it to resemble a WRC racecar.

Roewe i5 Modified

Roewe has just facelifted their i5 sedan and celebrated it with a tuned version. The sports sedan is painted in a fluorescent yellow-green shade, contrasting the glossy-black finish of the aero components. The massive front splitter and the fixed rear wing look ready for the DTM championship while the black rims are shod in racing tires with matching decals on the sidewall. There are no changes under the bonnet which means the car is fitted with a turbocharged 1.5-liter producing 170 hp (127 kW / 172 PS) and 250 Nm (184 lb-ft) of torque.

SAIC Maxus EV90 Flash

The SAIC Maxus EV90 is a fully electric commercial vehicle similar in size to the Ford Transit. Unlike the production version, the one-off Flash concept is not designed to carry goods but to hit the track. The ultra-wide bodykit, the protruding bumper, the aero blades on the side steps, and the scissor doors show that this is not your typical van. The “Track Only” lettering on the racing livery and the netting on the windows are indicative of the concept’s character. As for performance, the electric motor produces 201 hp (150 kW / 204 PS) and 310 Nm (229 lb-ft) of torque.

Weimar W6 ACE

This track-only electric SUV concept was presented a few weeks ago in digital form, but it turns out the company actually made a functional prototype. It is loosely based on the Weltmeister W6 electric crossover but everything about it is dialed up to 11. A significantly lowered suspension and a number of extreme aero components protruding from the mostly-redesigned bodywork make the wheels shod in slick tires appear tiny. However, unlike other concepts, this one allegedly has the power to support its exterior design. Two electric motors produce a combined 805 hp (600 kW / 816 PS), working together with a massive 1,400 kWh battery pack. The company claims that the W6 ACE needs only 1.8 seconds for the 0-100 km/h (0-62 mph) sprint.