A long and luxurious black limousine arrived late Monday morning in the courtyard of the Elysée Palace. On board, Chinese President Xi Jinping is preparing to be received by Emmanuel Macron on the occasion of the sixtieth anniversary of diplomatic relations between Beijing and Paris.
For his third state visit to France (the second with the current French president), Xi Jinping inaugurated a new vehicle: the Hongqi N701. Like all his predecessors (Deng Xiaoping, Jiang Zem-ming and Hu Jintao), the Beijing strongman is an unwavering ambassador of the Chinese luxury brand Hongqi, founded in 1958.
A symbol of the Chinese Communist Party, Hongqi, which means “red flag” in Mandarin, is virtually unknown outside the borders of the Middle Kingdom. However, with 370,000 units produced in 2024, the brand, which is part of the FAW industrial conglomerate, is beginning to gain a foothold in the high-end automobile market.
40,000 euros for the entry level
As a good “VRP” of the brand, Xi Jinping does not miss the opportunity to show off aboard one of these beautiful Chinese machines. The model that circulated on the gravel of the Elysée courtyard is a Hongqi N701, the armored and ultra-safe version of the luxurious H9 sedan.
According to the specialized site automobileblindee.fr, the presidential vehicle is equipped with “armor capable of resisting ballistic attacks and explosions.” It also has bulletproof windows, an air filter system to protect the president against contaminated air, and an electronic security system capable of anticipating external threats.
A unique example, the N701 is a reinforced version of the H9 limousine presented in 2020. This vehicle, more than 5 meters long, is strongly inspired by the great classics of European luxury automobiles such as the Maybach and the Bentley.
With one difference: its much more aggressive price. In the catalog its price appears between 310,000 and 540,000 yuan, or between 40,000 and 70,000 euros. In comparison, it is cheaper than an Audi A6 or a BMW 5 Series. To date this vehicle has not obtained authorization to be marketed in the old Continent.
Source: BFM TV
