The 2014 Beijing Auto Show has brought quite a few interesting world premiere, such as the Mercedes Concept Coupe SUV or the Lexus NX, with carmakers now bowing to the booming Chinese market. Nonetheless, the domestic automakers have also had their say and, among others, this has brought the Chinese interpretation of the Jeep Wrangler to our attention.
We are talking about Beijing Auto’s BJ40, a... remastered incarnation of the Jeep Wrangler. Both the exterior and the interior show all sorts of Wrangler references. To put it shortly, you could probably tell this is a copycat even if you were blindfolded.
As it turns out, the good old Wrangler is not that easy to replicate - the BJ40 was actually announced back in 2009 and presented at the 2010 Shanghai Auto Show, but this year’s Beijing Auto Show marks its market debut.
Chinese review word has it that the BJ40 is pretty good with the offroading stuff. Unfortunately, its engine isn’t exactly up for the job. We are talking about a naturally-aspirated 2.4-liter four-banger, feeding starving all four wheels with 160 lb-ft (271 Nm) of torque. Still, in China, the BJ40 costs about three times less than a Wrangler...
It looks like the Chinese carmaker is hooked up on iconic offroaders this year, since the Beijing BJ80 showed up as the Chinese version of the Mercedes G-Class.
What’s truly ironical is that the BJ40 is actually a Jeep copycat wearing the name of another Jeep wannabe - we are referring to the Toyota “Jeep” BJ, or the Land Cruiser’s humble 1950 beginnings. That, however, was a Jeep Willis-inspired creation.
Images via: auto.163
As it turns out, the good old Wrangler is not that easy to replicate - the BJ40 was actually announced back in 2009 and presented at the 2010 Shanghai Auto Show, but this year’s Beijing Auto Show marks its market debut.
Chinese review word has it that the BJ40 is pretty good with the offroading stuff. Unfortunately, its engine isn’t exactly up for the job. We are talking about a naturally-aspirated 2.4-liter four-banger, feeding starving all four wheels with 160 lb-ft (271 Nm) of torque. Still, in China, the BJ40 costs about three times less than a Wrangler...
It looks like the Chinese carmaker is hooked up on iconic offroaders this year, since the Beijing BJ80 showed up as the Chinese version of the Mercedes G-Class.
What’s truly ironical is that the BJ40 is actually a Jeep copycat wearing the name of another Jeep wannabe - we are referring to the Toyota “Jeep” BJ, or the Land Cruiser’s humble 1950 beginnings. That, however, was a Jeep Willis-inspired creation.
Images via: auto.163