Changan Raeton – midsize sedan goes the posh route

Changan Raeton – midsize sedan goes the posh route

More from the sifted pile of Beijing pix. The name sounds like a play on the name of the son of the Greek god Helios, which of course adorns a certain German luxury sedan. But Changan’s Raeton 1.8T is very much its own car, and is very much a move into the upmarket side of things for the Chinese automaker, by the looks of it.

The 4.90 metre-long vehicle – the biggest model to bear the Changan name – is equipped with a 1.8 litre turbocharged engine, with output figures being 174 hp at 5,000 to 5,500 rpm and 240 Nm from 1,850 to 4,800 rpm.

Changan Raeton – midsize sedan goes the posh route

The mill is mated to a six-speed auto box, and performance specs include a 210 km/h top speed and an 8.4 litre per 100 km fuel consumption. Other numbers include a 2,810 mm long wheelbase, and the car comes with ESP, with ABS, EBD and EBA in the list. No photos of the mid-sized offering’s interior, sorry about that – it was one of those many ‘snap and run’ moments.

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Anthony Lim

Anthony Lim believes that nothing is better than a good smoke and a car with character, with good handling aspects being top of the prize heap. Having spent more than a decade and a half with an English tabloid daily never being able to grasp the meaning of brevity or being succinct, he wags his tail furiously at the idea of waffling - in greater detail - about cars and all their intrinsic peculiarities here.

 

Comments

  • silver on May 08, 2012 at 5:28 pm

    i though it was a camry at first.. hmmm

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    • kington on May 08, 2012 at 7:53 pm

      I guess many would mistake it for a Camry.

      compared to when Chinese cars first arrived, i see that they are slowly improving, though i’d expect them to improve more.

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    • reezfa on May 08, 2012 at 8:07 pm

      Looks better than latest Camry..

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    • Why la there is not many(or no at all) malaysian car maker in malaysia…we stuck with proton only…other only rebadger/assembler not car manufacturer…most gov own…how can chinamen can do we cannot? Aside from copy thingy la…i dont know la how hard to built a car…platform n engine we can buy right? We only need now to design body structure n car interior..malaysia has many talented designer…if la i have RM100million to start car company…at least kit car company…emmm

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      • Unforgiven on May 08, 2012 at 10:58 pm

        What do you think? We hv someone that’s capable to control DRB, Petronas, EPF and also BNM? Do you know where is Petronas money? It’s not even a listed company right? Ha ha.

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        • Petronas do not listed here but their subsidary have been listed here..petronas dagangan, petronas gas, petronas chemical, malaysia marine n heavy engineering(mmhe)…all petronas..instead of 1 they have several company listed..hahahaha

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      • that’s because, in Malaysia we have a lot of complainers, instead of problem solvers. while they whining about incompetency of P1, crony-sided NAP, etc, none of them try to setup their own carmaker company. instead they keep bashing, commenting -vely on gov on how the things should be done, bla bla. and you can see this in other issues as well. Even worse, they blaming gov as they also part of the national problems.
        Ex: brain drain, traffic police bribery.
        can you imagine these people put total blame on traffic police coz they accept his/her bribe? utterly disgusting!! they want gov to clean but themselves do not want to be it 1st.

        That’s the difference between here and foreign countries.

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      • Henry Ford the XII on May 09, 2012 at 8:35 am

        Go at it like a pair of rabbits tonite with your wife/hubby and produce lots and lots of offsprings. After we reach the same population as China’s then we can talk about having many local auto manufacturers.

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  • MoFaz on May 08, 2012 at 5:28 pm

    spec wise… better than Camry’s 4 speed auto.

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    • Klata-klata on May 08, 2012 at 10:03 pm

      Yeah, 174hp at 5000rpm & torqey 240nm from 1850rpm
      much better than Camry 2.4 with 152hp at 5500rpm & 218nm at 4000rpm

      together with 6-speed autobox it is going to be much more fun than Camry 2.4

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      • Yeah very good..better than Camry. You buy lah if it comes here..lol

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        • Vader on May 09, 2012 at 7:15 am

          if the price is right and spec is good, why not?

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          • HirumaKecil on May 09, 2012 at 10:16 am

            Agree.. People always condemned china product but nowadays everything also from china.. All branded product also from china.. We just need to choose wisely..

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  • http://www.chinacartimes.com/2012/05/05/changan-moves-upmarket-raeton/

    while proton has just announced corolla segment competitior, changan has announced the camry size competitor.

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  • camry+hyundai equus?

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  • Hyundai De La Junk on May 08, 2012 at 5:56 pm

    Why don’t they copy Sonata, Elantra & Accent then Chinaman no longer need to buy Korean Junk, surely Hyundai & KIA would go Bankrupt.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
    • it does have the resemblance of Equus or Genesis and lexus and camry…

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    • You think korean car only selling well in China? just see what happen in US, Europe and Singapore.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
      • Hyundai De La Junk on May 09, 2012 at 9:58 am

        Proof it ! Show me the figure !

        I suggest you take a look at Matt Blog Best Selling car, then you come back & tell me where is Hyundai KIA in Europe, Singapore is a tinny market & Hyundai sales there are peanuts, US Korean are a on the decline.

        Wake up Korean Junk biggest market now are China, without it the Koerean Car Mfg will go Chapter 11.

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      • Kiasu No Kiasi on May 09, 2012 at 2:29 pm

        300,000 out of the 750,000 Hyundai Elantra sold last year bought by the Chinaman, without China market, China consume 40-45% of Korean car in the world, South Korea would end up like Greece & Spain without China.

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  • arcana on May 08, 2012 at 5:57 pm

    while many will see the camry/accord things in this car….
    u still get 240nm of torque from 1850 rpm, equivalent of a german…..omg shame on u japs…now ure getting ur arses kicked by chinese after the koreans.

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    • Qarnayn on May 08, 2012 at 7:06 pm

      Agree……………………………….

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    • Amenojaku on May 08, 2012 at 7:54 pm

      Those figures are amazing. When did they develop the such engine? Or do China also ciplak engine from other makes?

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  • Amirzaheenminhaj on May 08, 2012 at 6:00 pm

    Its a camry with is250 rear end…heeeee

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  • kjryth on May 08, 2012 at 6:01 pm

    proton lagi best

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  • samkhairul on May 08, 2012 at 6:02 pm

    look like lexus

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  • alamak on May 08, 2012 at 6:19 pm

    design better then new camry, especially the side profile …good job

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  • Current Lexus IS design.

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  • is this a preve killer?
    nope, because this is in D segment car
    should compete with accord and camry
    powetrain wise, both are kicked off by this powerful turbo engine
    so only passat cc left with disadvantage of high price

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  • Black Dog on May 08, 2012 at 7:44 pm

    Camry or not, it looks good

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  • Hadi1975 on May 08, 2012 at 7:49 pm

    How come this chinese car company can give their customer six speed auto but toyota camry still stick with 4 speed???

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    • silver on May 08, 2012 at 9:23 pm

      the top seller for next gen camry would most likely be the 2.5 hybrid but sadly.. i don’t think UMW will import those. its not that toyota does not have the technology its just that UMW want to earn more so they decide to give us the most basics of option. Which means the lowest tech. can’t really blame toyota could only blame UMW …

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      • arcana on May 08, 2012 at 10:56 pm

        are u really sure? if u look at the upcoming camry in china (similar to the one we gonna have soon) comes with the same engine and transmission i.e. 2.0 vvti and 4 speed auto.
        so is it really UMW or toyota as a whole? thailand is also selling the same 2.0L 4 speeder camry and soon singapore will follow as they import from thailand.

        to me it seems that they only focus on high end variants like 2.5 dual vvti and 2.5 hybrids (which we wont get) while ignoring the base model completely.

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        • silver on May 09, 2012 at 9:49 am

          i mea they are selling the 2.0L but most of the campaign are focus around the hydrid, as can be seen by the different options given around the world. 2.0L is just the most basic entry level camry which is just there pick up more sale. its just like how you get to pick alot of different engines for the same car in europe depending on your budget and preferance.

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          • arcana on May 09, 2012 at 5:47 pm

            yeah i know….but this is a D segment car i.e. at least upmarket status in terms of size? so why not use the 2.0 dual vvti engine + CVT combo as seen in the corolla altis?….its still an upgrade over this 10 year+ 4 speed 2.0 combo for sure. and they have their motto which is “moving forward” while giving dinosaur equipment….lol

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  • farizY on May 08, 2012 at 7:50 pm

    Camry ripoff!! haha!!

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    • Iylia H on May 08, 2012 at 8:11 pm

      a rip off which is better than the real thing.

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    • well said..
      typical china car manufacture
      1) find 1,2 or maybe more decent foreign model (best seller or not)
      2) match it perfectly (mostly tremendously ugly)
      3) find a impact factor name to match the design such as L1, L2,L3…
      Walla!!!!
      Changan Raeton!

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  • terra on May 08, 2012 at 8:20 pm

    Not sure about Changan. But I have really bad experience with Chery (china car brand). The Chery QQ becomes completely impossible to maintain after 4 years old. Spent more time in workshop than on the road.

    Specs aren’t the only reason to buy a car.

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  • Whats wrong with these Chinese manufacturers? Isn’t there a limit to copying?! The fake eggs were already bad enough. When the Preve was launched, Proton was practically bashed for copying every c segment car there is…but here, its totally different with some even applauding them for this rip off. It’s ridiculous.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 0
  • ahmadfaris93 on May 08, 2012 at 8:31 pm

    CAMRY !

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  • haliaguy on May 08, 2012 at 8:55 pm

    nice design.
    Camry headlights
    IS250 Bumper
    Mix of Camry and LS460 Sports tail lamp
    And new ES350 side profile.

    Only one major slop was their wheels are awfully small for this car.

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  • Camry body and camry headlamp but with honda accord front grills…. but still look good…… i beleive i this…… preve????

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  • artnanz on May 08, 2012 at 9:19 pm

    Camry’s headlights + Accord’s grille…

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  • Kelvin on May 08, 2012 at 9:53 pm

    Audi a5 front mudguard…the rear wheel looks weird seems like out of place

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  • Unforgiven on May 08, 2012 at 10:38 pm

    Is it that easy for China? 240Nm fr 1850, 6 speeds auto, 8.4 litre, etc.
    So many diff/new cars/SUV fr this Auto show?

    Why are we M’sian still so proud of our own cars (P1/P2/Naza/Inokom) after so many years?
    Or is it going to be forever?

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    • well how do you know all these figures are true and the cars are reliable? Everyone knows business ethics is not something that is given any importance by Chinese companies..moreso any figures coming from there isnt reliable..

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 0
      • Unforgiven on May 09, 2012 at 6:47 am

        Agreed, but still, how reliable is our own cars? Better than the rest?

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      • Unforgiven on May 09, 2012 at 6:56 am

        By the way, how reliable are those trucks/MPV? Chery/Sinotruk?

        One thing for sure, it’s much better than those rebuilt or recondition trucks/bus that’re happening in M’sia until today…

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  • basayev on May 09, 2012 at 12:18 am

    design is good… tak dinafikan. tapi kalau kuliti macam gampang baik aku pakai satria reput aku tu je. more reliable than those made in china cars.

    i do really hate china cars… bulls**t…….

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    • Unforgiven on May 09, 2012 at 7:52 am

      Branded toys are made in China, designer goods are made in China, Apple/i products are made in China, and the list goes on….

      Not forgetting they have a fast learning curve, what’s the future?

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  • CarCommenter on May 09, 2012 at 12:59 am

    OMG, Remade camry, made in china? haha

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 0
  • shawal on May 09, 2012 at 1:00 am

    a decent surprise, regardless of the badge, i must say its a good looking car

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  • Toyota Camry wannabe..

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  • Proton Prevé Owner Club. on May 09, 2012 at 8:51 am

    ohhhh CHINA.. when u’ll stop copying another brand product and make your own for real… why don’t you just re badge rather than copying with low quality result..

    hmmmmm…. proud of PREVE…

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  • ss427 on May 09, 2012 at 9:24 am

    Ok let’s be fair, its not too bad looking…

    Only becos it is a cut and paste job from several Toyota models la.. !@#$%

    The side profile looks almost idential to the Optima or the new Lexus ES350… tailights are from the ES too. The front foglamps assembly is lifted from the current Camry

    Those tiny wheels are typical of these pirated Chinese car companies… seems like they have trouble getting 17-19″ tires over there easily…. hence their companies decided to follow the Toyota way and put tiny wheels into big cars and then make it a laughing stock in front of well established brands…

    Be warned guys, the Chinese may have better looking offering now… but build quality remains horrible and its is perfectly not surprising if this new Raeton offers build quality comparable to Proton… LOL

    Good from far, but far from good.

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  • fcukchina on May 09, 2012 at 10:22 am

    what the hell with china?always copying…where is your true talent!

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  • Looks very much like the current generation Camry………………………………………………..but better engine ….

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  • Acura on May 09, 2012 at 11:21 am

    Ahh China…the land of fake noodles ……and copy and paste car designs

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  • Victor Lee on May 09, 2012 at 11:45 am

    LOL camry with accord grille

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  • Das Motor on May 09, 2012 at 4:25 pm

    Apart from the ‘borrowing’ the Phaeton name, it even steals the CC’s turbine rims.

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  • Frank on May 09, 2012 at 7:48 pm

    CHANGAN CAMRY… HA HA…

    Looks like these Chinaman just copied all the nice stuff from other car designs..

    Looks good, powerful engine…

    wonder how it drives and the reliability..???

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  • This is definitely better than the Korean Junk.

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  • Anti-Toyota on Jun 14, 2014 at 11:28 am

    The risk of out sourcing to China. They stealyour design and call their own and there is nothing you can do about it as who dares to go against their over a billion population. Actually, there are just so many Chinese that they don’t really need to sell outside of the country and have better chance of success. The Japs must be really pissed-off!

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