Chana Star

The Chana Star is a Van / Pickup truck from Changan Automobile, built from 1999, when airbags, anti-lock brakes and Japanese build quality became the world standard. Under the bonnet: 1.0 L JL466QG/Q9 I4.

The story

The Chana Star or Changan Star, more recently the Kaicene Star, (Chinese: 长安之星) is a series of trucks and microvans built and sold by Changan Automobile under the Chana brand since 1999. The Changan Star series was later repositioned under the Kaicene sub-brand of Changan Automobile. The Star started off as rebadged tenth generation Suzuki Carry trucks and Suzuki Every vans, with multiple bodystyles spawned by Changan Automobile available. The model was later extended into a product series with several models.

What is underneath

Power comes from 1.0 L JL466QG/Q9 I4; other versions carried different engines, listed in the specification table below. It shifts through a 5-speed manual. The layout matters: a front engine drives the rear wheels, the classic proportion — long bonnet, cabin set back — that most people picture when they picture a sports saloon or a grand tourer. The wheelbase is 2500 mm. These are manufacturer figures carried by Wikipedia and Wikidata, not road-test measurements.

Its place in the line

Its contemporaries in the catalogue — the Škoda Auto Škoda Fabia, the SEAT León, the Honda S2000 — show what else the money bought that year. Nearby in the Changan Automobile catalogue sit the Avatr 06 and the Avatr 07.