Shanghai SH760

The Shanghai Automobile assembly line produced its first prototype on 28 September 1958, called Fenghuang (meaning Phoenix in English). It was based on a 1957 FSO Warszawa and was powered by a 2.1 liter Nanjing NJ050 four-cylinder engine, itself a copy of the Soviet Pobeda M20 engine. The Phoenix models are distinguished by round headlights and fins to the rear.[5] The front end resembled the 1955-1956 Packard Patrician.

A second Phoenix prototype was produced in January 1959, now with quad headlights. The car was powered by a 150 horsepower V8 for a top speed of 120 km/h (75 mph), but other sources mentioned that the engine was the new Nanjing CN070, a 3.5 liter inline-six that produced around 70 horsepower. The styling was similar to the 1958 Plymouth.

The third prototype, named the Jiaotong, was produced in November 1959 and returned to dual headlights. The grille design featured two dragons incorporated into it, as well as new hood ornaments. This prototype was probably powered by a V8 engine.

The final Phoenix prototype was now based on the Mercedes-Benz 220 (W180) instead of the FSO Warszawa, otherwise the styling was similar to the first prototype. In the summer of 1959, the production version of the Phoenix was released. Very few Phoenix models were produced.[6]

In December 1964, a modified Phoenix changed its name to Shanghai SH760, and was in full production. A mere fifty cars were built in 1964, but by the mid-seventies factory capacity stood at 5,000 per annum.[1] The SH760 was powered by the Jinfeng (Golden Phoenix) 680Q, a 2.2 litre straight-six engine developing 90 bhp (67 kW; 91 PS) and coupled with a four-speed manual gearbox.[6] As with the basis of the bodywork, this was a copy of 1950s Mercedes-Benz mechanicals, although the engine was OHV instead of OHC. Construction was by hand, with old-fashioned methods and on a small scale. A 1985 visitor described the process as chaotic, with many body parts rusting before they were even painted - but since the metal was so thick, this was not an issue, as they would still easily outlast the engine and transmission.

In 1974, the SH760A was released. This was a complete redesign of the SH760 with more modern front and rear end design replacing the 1950s styling of the SH760, although the center section was still 1950s Mercedes-Benz. The powertrain was carried over from the SH760. Air conditioning was developed and approved in 1983, but was not available until 1988 with the SH760B. Production continued until around 1989 with some 49,000 units produced.

Development on a SH760A replacement, the SH760B, was complete by 1980, but the car and its new engine were not available until 1988, after passing evaluation tests in 1987. The SH760B was powered by the Jinfeng 682Q, a new enlarged 2.3 liter version of the 680Q producing 100 horsepower. Two versions were available; one was basically the SH760A but with a black plastic grille while the other featured trim, bumpers, taillights (somewhat modified), steering wheel, mirrors, wheels, and some interior trim pieces straight from the Volkswagen Santana, even though this was in direct contradiction to Shanghai's contract with Volkswagen.[7] The SH760B was produced until 1989 alongside the SH760A.

In 1989, China's automotive designation system changed and the SH760A and SH760B were redesignated as SH7221 and SH7231, respectively, but otherwise remained identical to the previous models.

Production ended on 25 November 1991, after a total production run of 79,526 cars. Production peaked in 1984 at around 6,000 units.[6]

The SH760 was used as a basis for a four-door convertible, a three-door pickup truck from 1991 to 1994[8], and a five-door station wagon. Few of these were produced.

A replacement for the SH760 was proposed as early as 1966 with the SH763, followed by the SH762 in 1967. Both models used the same engine as the SH760.[9] In 1974 the SH771 was developed as another possible replacement for the SH760. The SH771 was based on a 1970s Mercedes-Benz S-Class (W116) with different front and rear end styling, although the rear end resembled the W116. Unlike the SH760, the SH771 used the 5.6 liter V8 from the Hongqi Red Flag CA770. Never produced, only 30 SH771s were built, and were used for testing until 1978.

A third potential SH760 replacement, the SH761S, was developed in the 1980s as a convertible parade car.

1964 Shanghai SH760

1974 Shanghai SH760A

1986 Shanghai SH760

1990 Shanghai SH7221

Works cited

• Posth, Martin (2006), 1000 Days in Shanghai, Singapore: John Wiley & Sons (Asia), ISBN 978-0-470-82388-0

Citations