In 1984, China imported the Romanian TAB77 8x8 wheeled APC technology but it never entered production. In the 1980s, as the PLA shifted its doctrine from an all out people's war to a "local war under local condition," the wheeled APC needed to accommodate its newly designated rapid reactive units. A number of proposals were suggested, among them, the WZ551 and the TAB77.The WZ551 was one of the