Aurus spun the Senat nameplate into its own premium marque. Underneath the new grille sits a near untouched Hongqi H9. Production runs inside a former Toyota plant in St. Petersburg. Russia’s auto industry barely resembles what it was before the country’s invasion of Ukraine in early 2022. Western brands bolted en masse, offloading factories and pulling the plug on local production and sales. The vacuum left behind got filled two ways: a flood of Chinese cars pouring across the border, and a handful of domestic players scrambling to crank up output. Aurus Motors is one of those players. Established in 2018 with the singular job of building Vladimir Putin’s presidential state car, the Senat limousine, the company has now turned that nameplate into a premium brand. Senat is its own marque now, and it has just rolled out its first production model. Read: Is China’s New Hongqi H9 Luxury Sedan A Proper Mercedes-Benz Rival? Here’s where the homegrown narrative goes out the door. The new car, known simply as the Senat 900, isn’t really Russian engineering at all. Instead, it’s a rebadged version of the latest Hongqi H9, one of the largest and plushest sedans on the Chinese market. China Meets Russia The Senat 900 wears a new front end with a distinct grille, different headlights, and a fresh bumper. The redesigned grille pulls styling cues from existing Aurus models, which at least gives the nose some separation from its Chinese donor. The rear end, on the other hand, is a spitting image of the Hongqi, rocking identical taillights and the same LED light bar. Even the rear bumper and exhaust finishers appear to carry over untouched. The same applies to the profile. Senat 900 Stretching 202.4 inches (5.14 meters), the Senat 900 comes in either a four-seat VIP configuration or a more conventional five-seat layout. Inside, the carryover is near total. The cabin is essentially unchanged save for the badge on the steering wheel hub, and even that keeps the same shape as the Hongqi unit. Buyers get Nappa leather and wood trim, heated, ventilated, and massaging seats, and a full suite of driver-assistance systems. Also like the Hongqi, the Senat 900 launches with a 3.0-liter turbocharged V6 making 326 hp (243 kW) and 332 lb-ft (450 Nm). It’s mated to an eight-speed automatic with standard all-wheel drive, good for a 62 mph (100 km/h) sprint in 6.5 seconds. Air suspension is fitted as standard. Production is already rolling at a former Toyota plant in St. Petersburg, and orders for the Senat 900 are now open in Russia. Pricing kicks off at 12 million rubles, about $162,800 at current exchange rates, for the five-seat version and climbs to 12.5 million rubles ($169,600) for the four-seat VIP model. Hongqi H9 Aside from its front grille, the Senat 900 is virtually identical to the Hongqi H9.