2012 Beijing Auto Show - Of Dragons, Manchurian and Chinese herbs & tea

More than a dozen international automotive brands weaved in a special gold-bronze-red-dragon-themed vehicle each at the 2012 Dragon Rollerblading Festival.

Errr, no. It wasn't that. It was in fact, the 2012 Beijing Auto Show. However, in our defense, anyone could get easily confused considering the overly hyped astrological phenomenon revolving around the Year of the Dragon that was created in Shanghai.

Yes, 2012 is the Year of the Dragon. Yes, it is considered to be the biggest symbol of good luck there is. Yes, the kids birthed in the Dragon Year can make glitter out of glue. But it is all, a part of the Chinese culture. And yes, the western automakers may want to join in and celebrate with the Chinese folks. But don't over do it. Because then, it is not considered celebrating. It is considered stereotyping. Unless, the Americans wouldn't mind if Tata Motors brought a hamburger-themed Megapixel to Detroit or the if Fiat crafts a 'Hello Kitty' Linea for the Tokyo Motor Show.

Anyhow, the flip side is this. While a sizable chunk of Chinese automakers exhibited their respective vehicles at the Auto Show, not a single Chinese company crafted or exhibited any dragon-tattooed special cars at the automotive event. 

Which probably, is the Chinese way of saying, 'Take a hint.' Building dragon tattooed cars and trying to sell it in a country where you can find literally everything from a dragon-themed toothbrush to a pair of dragon-shaped crocs, it may not work exactly as the automakers had hoped for. 

And if these companies really do wish to capture the booming automotive sector in China, why not consider including other things such as Machurian noodles, Chinese herbs and Tarot cards in their future special edition models.

Having said all of the above, we present to you some of the dragon-themed models, which were presented at the 2012 Beijing Auto Show. We promise, some of them weren’t that bad.