The Brilliance BS4 has been updated for 2008, and has also been given the option of a 1.6l engine. The biggest updates to the excellent selling sedan are on the inside, although the exterior has been given new wheels and a 3 series style shark fin. The wheels were critisized by the Chinese motoring press for being too conservative for a larger sedan, the 195/65/R15 wheels really are too small.
The interior are where the vast majority of changes took place, the interior has turned black, and the fake wood trim has taken on a darker tone.
The cloth seats have also undergone a change in material, apparentely the newer cloth is much smoother to the touch, and much more pleasing on the eye than the previous tan color.
The final word from the Chinese press was basically, the 1.6 BS4 is priced in the 100,280rmb price range, which puts up the BS4 against the Korean-Chinese joint ventures which have good quality levels. The BS4 is large and roomy for the price, but in certain areas the quality level needs to be raised. In the end, the BS4 gained a reasonable 8.4 out of ten in a review.
The car’s interior looks a lot better.
Nice fake wood trim, at least in the photos. The interior is also surprisingly decent, something I’ve never seen in a Brilliance! Now if only they take care of the safety thing…
I hadn’t realized the BS4 sedan is rather high slung (see side view), when compared to the BS4 wagon and the BS6. The smaller wheels really accentuate this. Maybe it’s the height then that gives it a short stubby look, which I don’t find appealing.
Is the 1.6 engine a Brilliance home grown effort or courtesy of Mitsubishi? I presume it’s the same 1.6 as in the FRV.