FAW Cars released facelifted Besturn B70 on June 25, dropping the 2.0L and 2.3L Mazda engines in favor of the FAW 1.8 liter, CA4GD5. Developed by FAW on basis of Mazda’s L8, the aluminum 1.8 liter features S-VT (sequential Valve Timing) technology and can deliver up to 102Kw of power and 172Nm of torque. It is the first of FAW’s ET3 series engines to come to a production model.
The new B70 mid-size is 24mm longer than the 2011 model, while wheelbase remains unchanged at 2675mm. Major cosmetic upgrades can be seen on both the front and rear ends of the car.
Starting price dropped to 119,800 Yuan for a MT model. The top edition with Aisin F21 6-speed automatic gearbox sells for 141,800.
Originally released in 2006, the current gen B70 shares platform with the first gen Mazda 6 produced by FAW Mazda. Earlier this year, the road-tested next gen B70 was exposed (shown below), believed to be a sibling of the second gen Mazda 6, called "Ruiyi" in China and to debut at the 2013 Shanghai auto show (based on the "Ruiyi," FAW has been developing another Besturn model, the B90).
