This year’s 4C was organized for the 7th time and saw a mixed collection of Chinese-registered and foreign cars driving a scenic route between the metropoles of Beijing and Shanghai. Again over 30 participating cars were shipped from all over the world to temporarily obtain a Chinese registration.
For anyone not used to driving in Asia, the 4C is a rewarding experience. It is an introduction to contemporary China like no other. The event revolves as much around China’s rapid development and cultural richness as it does around the mostly post-war era classic cars. This year’s edition was joined by three pre-war era cars, a Chinese-registered Packard, a Malaysian-registered Rolls Royce Phantom II and our own Ford V8.
The press photo taken near Beijing shows one of the most scenic of the many stopovers. The three mentioned cars are right at the middle of the group, just leaving towards Tianjin. Another stopover in the city of Qingzhou shows how the stage is prepared again for the day’s departure ceremony. As first-time participants, we were overwhelmed by the publicity and media coverage that was organized for each rally day.
The rally took us through rural areas such as corn-harvesting villages near the city of Zibo, where care had to be taken not to tread on the fresh harvest that was laid out to dry right in the middle of the streets. A few miles later we would drive through newly developed areas of high-rise apartment buildings that are so typical of modern-day China. Perhaps an innovation for this type of event, the daily timed route averaging 200 km was carefully monitored by GPS, participants are encouraged to arrive at each checkpoint by set times, with strongest penalties given for early arrival.
The organization and the supporting team, many of them volunteers, have worked hard to make the event run smoothly for all participants. Currently, customs regulations still prevent private persons to import vehicles into China, a temporary permission can only be arranged by the event’s organizers. For this special case, a deposit for each car has to be provided, to ensure that it will leave China after the appointed period of entry. It has been difficult for luxury cars to participate in the event for this reason. For this year’s edition our temporary licence was obtained without further complications. It is expected that future editions the conditions will continue to improve.
So, getting our car there, and getting a driver license, is on a temporary base. Is it just impossible to import cars as a Chinese habitant? No, there are clearly ways to get cars into the country, as there are musea and car collectors already. But they are not allowed to just take a car out and drive them around, yet..... One day, we expect this to be possible. We hope to hear your opinion if this is a good thing. What will happen with the whole car business when China is open for old cars? Will they use it or only have in there garages/ showroom to look at it? Are the Chinese people interested in it at all, do you think? The traffic is terrible and very busy so not always the best environment for a classic car. |
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Driving in China, sometimes allowed. And what a joy!
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