China Car Times

Beijing has had cabs as along as its had permenent residents, the earliest of course would have been the man powered rickshaw, but since the advent of the automobile, taxis have become motor powered. China Car Times has done a research into the cabs of Beijing since the 80’s.

The Mian Di (面的)

The Mian Di was one of the first mass available taxis, these were first used from 1984 onwards. These were painted a tasteful yellow color (The Chinese referred to them as ‘Yellow Bugs’) and could easily seat 8 people in their restricted areas. From ‘84 to ‘98, these ‘massive on the inside, small on the outside‘ vans were cruising the streets of the capital, for 10rmb you could go 10km, not a bad price. Drivers loved the Mian Di as it could carry plenty, either people or cargo, it was highly effecient thanks to its tiny engines which were usually 800cc to 1.3l at the most. As the Beijing government started a ‘sweep away the yellow‘ activity (yellow to Chinese is the same as red is to Westerners, i.e. red light district) with the most obvious yellow thing in Beijing being the Mian Di cabs, the cabs were soon traded in for dark red Jettas.

The Jetta Generation

The Mian Di’s were slowly removed from the streets of Beijing, and the Jetta’s took up their place. The government felt that incomes in the capital had increased suffeciently enough for the people to ride in Jettas instead of Mian Di’s, Mian Di’s were totally gone by 2000, and the capital had become a ’sea of red’ under the Jetta generation. The Xia Li N3 were temporarily used after the Mian Di’s were swept away, but as they had no air conditioner at the time (An absolute must have in Beijing summers) they were swiftly replaced by the Jetta, and to a smaller extent the Citroen ZX. Although newer cars have come to the taxi market, the Jetta still remains the Da Jiang ‘Big Admiral’ of the market.

 Hyundai Elantra

The Hyundai Elantra was a big step up in terms of luxury when compared to the draughty Mian Di, and the Jetta with its hard ride. The upgrade in ride also saw an upgrade in price to 2rmb a kilometer. Due to the amount of Hyundai Elantra’s that were sold in the Beijing area in 2006, a new coin was phrased; ‘Hyundai Speed‘

Even though the Hyundai Elantra was given a makeover, sales of the original Elantra will continue for taxi use.

The Olympic Era

The upcoming Beijing Olympics have ushered in a new era of cabs for Beijing. First off, the London TX4 taxi cab has made an appearance. The TX4 will be used to take paralympians and disabled passengers around Beijing, the TX4 will now be made in Zhejiang province in partnership with Geely. To further the ‘Green Olympics’ slogan, Chang’an have introduced the hybrid MPV Jie Xun.

Prices have risen accordingly with fuel costs, and the type of vehicle.

Time: 1984 - 1998

Vehicle: Mian Di

Price: 10rmb for 10km

Remarks: The Mian Di usually had to be full of either cargo, or people, before the driver would set off. Not so great if you had an urgent issue, or the other passengers were heading in a different direction to you.

Time: 1996 - 1998

Vehicle: Xia Li N3, Citroen ZX, Some Mian Di

Price: 1.0, 1.2, 1.4, 1.6, 1.8, 2.0rmb per km, depending on car and year

Remarks: The taxi market began to become more rich in variety, not just Mian Di anymore, but proper taxis started to make an appearence.

Time:’98 to 2006

Vehicles: Xia Li, Citroen ZX, Jetta

Price: 1.2 - 1.6rmb per km

Remarks:  In ‘98 the government adjusted the prices of taxis, as you can see, previous taxi prices were a myriad of different sorts which were confusing for the consumer. Smaller cars such as the Xia Li became 1.2rmb, and the larger cars such as the ZX, and the Jetta were 1.6rmb. Mian Di’s were taken out of the taxi market by now.

Time: 2006 to Now

Vehicles: Sonata, Elantra, Jetta, TX4, Jie Xun, Santana etc

Price: 2.0rmb per km

Remarks:  The older ZX’s and Xia Li’s were taken out of the market, and replaced by more comfortable vehicles, as well as green vehicles. The latest generation of taxis have seen their prices increase due to the massive increases in the price of gasoline, but a visit to Beijing is now quite comfortable thanks to the various cabs on offer.

Different places in China have different cabs, the above were just a sample of Beijing’s taxi cabs. Perhaps some of China Car Times readers can enlighten us to taxis that were used in the past, and in the preseant where they reside. We know that many Skodas/Ladas were used in some places, and Tianjin is currently awash with Xia Li N3 taxi cabs.