China’s motor industry has been frequently maligned in the automotive press for its less-than-original designs and the latest car from one of the country’s biggest manufacturers, Lifan Auto, has ripped off not only the design of one car but also the name of another. Pictured above is the Lifan 3-Series, a car that shares a striking resemblance to BMW’s Mini Cooper and also shares the name of one of BMW’s most popular models.

The car is unique in that it features five doors instead of the Mini’s usual three but the differences end there. The taillights are an almost exact copy of those on the Mini as is the overall basic shape and headlight design, although these have been changed slightly as well. You can see for yourself the similarities between the Lifan and the real thing in our side by side comparison below.

The new Lifan 3-Series is set to go on sale in China in the first half of this year and if a phony Mini isn’t to your liking the carmaker also has several cloned versions of Mercedes, Toyota and Fiat models.

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Lifan_Mini_03.jpg

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image28685_b.jpg

Via: Le blog auto