Roewe 950 at 2012 Beijing motor show

Here's a car that our colleagues on CAR China have been getting excited about: the new Roewe 950.

It's a 5-series rival spawned by Roewe and parent company SAIC's links with GM.

Have a good look at these first pictures and you wont' be surprised to hear it's based on a Buick Lacrosse.

It's a polished piece of design, though with typically anonymous Asian executive overtones. That's the blight of Infiniti, then.

It's certainly very roomy inside, and those rear doors are simply massive. Riding in limo-like comfort is the name of the game in China and the 950 looks set to deliver that in spades, with more rear legroom than you'll find in rival products from Lexus, Acura or Infiniti. The boot's huge too.

Those Lacrosse underpinnings point to a choice of 2.4-litre four-cylinder or a V6 engine, plus a range of hands-free operation for some of the minor controls.

By Tim Pollard