Hongqi HS7 will fight German premium SUVs for your wallet

Hongqi, a Chinese car manufacturer and part of the FAW Group, has opened pre-orders for its new flagship crossover SUV, the HS7. Once the car hits the market, it will try to appeal to the same audience as the German luxury SUVs.

The preliminary pricing is as follows. The standard trim version comes priced at 349,800 Chinese Yuan (U.S. $50,850 at current exchange rates), and the top trim lies 110,000 Yuan ($16,000) above that.

To put things into perspective, a new Audi Q7 sells starting from 683,800 Yuan ($99,500) in China, and an entry-level BMW X5 costs as much as 759,900 Yuan ($110,485).

At 5,035 millimeters (16.52 feet) long with a wheelbase spanning 3,008 mm (9.87 ft.), the HS7 indeed matches its alleged German competition in terms of dimensions.

The crossover ships with LED-based headlights, air suspension, and wheels available in 19 and 20 inches. The interior sports genuine leather upholstery and houses a digital dashboard and a modern touch-enabled multimedia system. There is also a three-zone climate control system, which has a dedicated touchscreen panel all for itself.

Other listed features include heated and ventilated seats (both front and rear), a sunroof, tablets for the rear passengers, 360-degree view cameras, lane control, parking assist, emergency brake, blind spot monitor, and adaptive cruise control.

Regardless of the trim level, the SUV ships with a 3.0-liter gasoline turbo-six engine rated at 337 hp (251 kW) and 445 Nm (328 pound-feet) of torque. Mated to an eight-gear automatic transmission and AWD system, it enables 0-100 km/h (0-62 mph) acceleration in 7.8 seconds.

Hongqi has no market presence in Europe right now, but, given that the Chinese company opened its own design center in Germany last year, the situation may change pretty soon.