President of China drives the most expensive Chinese vehicle ever produced, it's very different to The Beast

Published on Aug 18, 2025 at 7:30 PM (UTC+4)
by Alessandro Renesis

Last updated on Aug 18, 2025 at 7:30 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by Amelia Jean Hershman-Jones

The President of China uses a car you may have never heard of, and it’s nothing like The Beast, which is the presidential limo that the US President uses.

It’s called the Hongqi Guoli, or L5, and it’s an absolute monster.

The engine is gigantic, and the car is very heavy.

And you’ll never guess the price.

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One of the most amazing cars you may have never heard of

The President of China is chauffeured everywhere aboard the Hongqi Guoli, also known as L5.

Hongqi is Mandarin for ‘Red Flag’, a symbol of the Chinese Communist Party.

The car is a tribute to capitalism, though.

There’s no doubt about that.

The door handles are adorned with actual jade, and the hub caps and steering wheel feature gold flowers.

The newer version has a 4.0-liter V8, but the older model, which is still used as an official state car and parade car, is also available with a 6.0-liter V12, which produces 381 horsepower.

It isn’t very fast, though.

Mainly because it weighs 3,150 kilograms – nearly 7,000 pounds.

It’s not cheap, either.

Depending on the model, you need $1 million to buy one.

How does it compare to ‘The Beast’?

While the President of China uses a modified Hongqi based on the production model, the US President uses a bulletproof Cadillac built from scratch, known as The Beast.

For security reasons, this bulletproof Cadillac is destroyed after being decommissioned.

The car once appeared in an episode of Jay Leno’s Garage, and US Secret Service agents explained a few more interesting things about it.

Among other things, the Secret Service agents explained the name is probably just a fan-coined nickname that stuck because the vehicle is simply known internally as a ‘parade limousine’.

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Experienced content creator with a strong focus on cars and watches. Alessandro penned the first-ever post on the Supercar Blondie website and covers cars, watches, yachts, real estate and crypto. Former DriveTribe writer, fixed gear bike owner, obsessed with ducks for some reason.