Hongqi CA770 History

Introduced in April 1966 to succeed the CA72, the CA770 was a longer, more imposing machine on a platform influenced by the Chrysler Imperial, powered by a V8 and dressed with distinctive three-flag fender ornaments symbolizing the key programs of the Maoist government. Around 1,600 were built across the model's life — vanishingly few by any standard.

Variants included the standard CA770, a long-wheelbase three-row parade car, and the armored CA772. Foreign dignitaries riding in Beijing during the 1960s and 1970s almost invariably did so in a CA770. Production ceased in 1981 when the brand went dormant; the CA770 remained the defining image of Hongqi for the next three decades.