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Wow, that didn't take very long. We just reported on Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp's Roewe brand last night, and today we have new spy shots of this car in testing, via Motor Authority. Nobody can say the Chinese don't think big as SAIC is said to be considering exporting its Rover Roewe 25 and 75 to other markets, including the U.S. Apparently, the new Roewe is much larger than the Rover 75 it is based on, and engine options look to be a choice of 1.8-liter and 2.5-liter Rovers, with the 1.8 possibly sporting a turbocharger.

To make a big impact on the market at launch, the Roewe 750E should offer a lot of standard equipment. Even the 1.8 version is expected to come with electric sunroof, 8-way power driver's seat, and electrically powered rearview mirrors as standard. The 2.5-liter model will add a DVD player, Xenon lamps, Bluetooth phone system, and reverse parking sensors. Sounds like a decent first offering for this company.

For those who might not remember, the Roewe saga has been similar to the BMW/VW fight over the bones of Rolls-Royce/Bentley several years ago. Ford had first right of refusal on the Rover name, but didn't exercise it until SAIC had bought the rights to the MG/Rover operations and was salivating at the mouth to purchase the Rover name from BMW. We'll have to wait and see how the Roewe v Rover story unfolds.

[Source: Motor Authority]