P.M. BRIEFING : China to Build Red Flag Limos Again
Five years after production of China’s Red Flag limousine was suspended, a factory is turning out 10 of the luxury cars in time for the 40th anniversary of Communist rule, an official report said today.
The Red Flag, or Hongqi, limousine, first produced in 1958, for years was used only by high-ranking officials. The government halted production in 1983, saying the car used too much fuel.
Most of China’s leaders have stopped using the Red Flag, which some say was slow to start, ran too slowly and was too big to drive through narrow driveways. The China Daily said the Red Flags were given to lower level officials or sold to private businessmen.
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