This past week she was the first woman on record to successfully pull six cars over 50 meters with her hair. It's the greatest athletic achievement to occur in Beijing. Ever.

Photo Credit: AFP/AFP/Getty Images

Photo Credit: AFP/AFP/Getty Images
Photo Credit: AFP/AFP/Getty Images
Photo Credit: AFP/AFP/Getty Images
Photo Credit: AFP/AFP/Getty Images
Photo Credit: AFP/AFP/Getty Images

The Chinese are as fascinated with Transformers as some of us are. So fascinated, this Chinese mall built their very own VW Passat-bot. Check it out. It actually doesn't look half-bad. Certainly more than some of Michael Bay's creations. [via China Car Times]

If we were going to split a Mini in half and bolt a bicycle to it, we'd rather use the front part of the Mini. Not only is the rear half ugly, but it doesn't have any of the drivetrain. Even if we're just being taxied around, we'd rather be hanging on for dear life to a bicycle seat welded on behind the turbocharged four. [China Car Times]

What It's Selling: SG Pickups

Where It's At: China

What This Ad Intends To Say: We can hold lots of classified advertisements.

What This Ad Suggests: There's sooooo much space in what looks like the back of a Colorado.

Jalopnik Snap Judgment: We're big fans of the kind of advertisements that utilize the conventions of traditional print media, in this case taking advantage of the fact that most Chinese papers have the classifieds along the center fold. CP+B did a version of this with their Mini advertising in The New Yorker that we thought was quite successful.

[Ads Of The World]

With air pollution over Beijing at lung-charringly horrible levels, the Chinese government has decided to take action to reduce vehicle emissions. Smog checks? Punitive taxes on older vehicles? Nope, they're going to take a million cars off the streets of Beijing... somehow. No details yet, but we can assume that the plan will be suitably Draconian (the article mentions that "an order to keep government cars in their garages during an Africa summit this year effectively ended widespread jams and brought blue skies to the capital"), so we'll see how it sorts out. – Murilee Martin

Beijing to ban a million cars in attempt to reduce smog [London Times]

Related:
New Proposed Cali Smog Laws Possibly Problematic [internal]

In our day, we have witnessed some interminable press events, but this one literally wandered so slowly off with the cake that we're not sure that the cake was there in the first place or if the thieves may actually have left it behind. The shebang started off in a promising manner, oddly enough; the Pudong Expo building a stunning, gleaming cube featuring a lobby stuffed with art. We were then treated to a short fashion show. All well and good. Suddenly, the mind-numbing madness came. A television personality named Cathy hosted a panel featuring a group of execs who, barring Audi/FAW's Werner Eichhorn, literally dullarded us out of the room. As one attendee noted, VW China Kopfk se Winfried Vahland is one of those boring people who has no idea how boring he actually is. They were joined onstage by Mo Huilan, silver medalist in the '96 Olympics on the womens' vault. The banter was bilingual and pedantic. Out of desperation and disinterest we decided to fool around with long exposures on our camera. A galleria of streaky ennui is below for your enjoyment. Share our pain, won't you? – Davey G. Johnson

Related:
Shanghai Auto Show: Audi Cross Coup Concept Reveal [Internal]

Considering China's new cultural revolution — that of billionaires suctioning acres of cash out of the People's rise in wealth — it's no surprise Maybach would choose the Auto China 2006 show in Beijing to introduce its latest high-end limousine, the 62S. The new model will get the same AMG-tuned, 612 hp, 6.0-liter biturbo V12 as the 57S, but is meant to be driven by staff. That means the rear passenger area's just a bit more luxe, with redesigned leather accouterments and trimmings in piano lacquer and carbon or anthracite poplar finishes. No word on how many peasants will undergo forced relocation to make room for a parking space. [Gallery] – Mike Spinelli

Press Release:

Stuttgart, Nov 06, 2006
Maybach, the luxury brand with an illustrious past, re-established just four years ago, is adding a fourth variant to its line-up in the shape of the newly developed 62 S model. The "S" stands for "Special" and draws attention to the fact that the Maybach engineers at the Sindelfingen-based Manufaktur workshops have incorporated a wealth of meticulously developed, special features specified by their highly discerning customers into the new 62 S model. The result is a new dimension in travelling comfort, especially for the passengers in the generously proportioned rear compartment of the new high-end luxury saloon. Not to mention a prodigious power output thanks to the enhanced potency of the twelve-cylinder engine developing 450 kW/612 hp, making the new 62 S model the world's most powerful chauffeur-driven saloon in series production.

The new flagship model in the Maybach range is celebrating its world premiere at the "Auto China 2006" international motor show in Beijing in November - a move which expends its range of high-end luxury saloons. The Maybach 62 S is primarily designed to be chauffeur-driven and meets the very highest of standards in terms of spaciousness, smoothness and comfort - for a truly relaxing ride - and dynamism for saving that most precious of commodities: time. Precisely what is needed in these increasingly frenetic times.

Exterior boasting a dynamically elegant appearance

Prominent exterior features accentuate the dynamic presence of the new Maybach 62 S and clearly distinguish it from the 62 model. These include a modified front end with a strikingly redesigned radiator grille as well as new, distinctive 20-inch spoked wheels and a modified light-cluster design. Like the 57 S model, the new Maybach 62 S boasts lavish single-tone paintwork in black or silver, both of which are available exclusively for the "S" models. Alternatively, customers can now specify a special paint finish in shimmering white. Discreet "62 S" lettering adorns the front wings beneath the A pillars and the boot lid, while a modified rear apron with two integral, trapezoidal exhaust tailpipes hints strongly at the immense performance potential of the 62 S. This dynamic and elegant appearance puts the Maybach 62 S in a league of its own when it comes to luxurious chauffeur-driven cars.

Further enhance the interior

The contemporary Maybach interpretation of lavish luxury, consummate comfort and superlative dynamism is also reflected in the interior of the 62 S. Here high-grade materials are hand-finished to perfection for a distinctive and particularly exclusive look, all in inimitable Maybach style. Carefully coordinated applications of exquisite piano lacquer and sporty carbon or anthracite poplar create an atmosphere of dynamic elegance both in the rear compartment and in the driver's direct field of vision and activity. Newly designed, high-grade leather upholstery tastefully accentuates this overall impression.

Twelve-cylinder powerplant and comfort-tuned chassis

Effortlessly superior performance in any situation comes courtesy of a Mercedes-AMG-enhanced V12 powerplant developing 45 kW/62 hp more than the engine specified for the Maybach 62. The twelve-cylinder engine in the Maybach 62 S has a displacement of six litres and an output of 450 kW/612 hp by virtue of a twin turbocharger and a water-type intercooler. The impressive maximum torque of 1000 Nm (electronically limited) is available over a wide engine speed range between 2000 and 4000 rpm. This provides even the most sportily inclined of Maybach drivers with effortless power reserves at all times. With acceleration from zero to 100 km/h in only 5.2 seconds, the new Maybach 62 S impressively demonstrates its outstanding performance potential. The top speed is electronically limited to 250 km/h in chauffeur-driven vehicles.

The exclusivity of the twelve-cylinder powerplant is underlined by a model plate on the cover bearing the signature of the Mercedes-AMG technician who assembled it by hand based on the now familiar "one man, one engine" principle.

In contrast to the sportier configuration of the 57 S model for owner-drivers, which features a stiffer and lower chassis, the Maybach engineers decided to retain the full spring travel for the 62 S in order to achieve an outstanding, practically unsurpassed level of ride comfort. In terms of comfort, the chassis marks the absolute pinnacle of automotive engineering. Yet it also offers a high degree of dynamic potential for reliably transferring the power to the road whatever the scenario. Hence the Maybach developers have succeeded in reconciling, to a near perfect degree, two very different requirements.

Maybach continues its rich tradition

The outstanding attributes of the Maybach 62 S set new standards at the high end of the passenger car industry and also continue the tradition of the legendary Maybach saloons which represented the elite in German and international carmaking circles back in the 1920s and 1930s. Even then, many Maybach cars were built and equipped to be chauffeur-driven - a tradition which the 62 S model is proud to honour.

Related:
Pearl Jam: Photos of Maybach's New Finish [internal]