Advertisement

Great Wall C20 EV – an electric compact crossover

April 24, 2012 at 8:15 am By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, Great Wall, International News

Sharing centre stage with the Haval E in Beijing is the C20 EV, which is an electric version of the company’s C20R compact crossover.

The five-seater EV runs with a permanent magnet synchronous motor offering a rated power of 42 hp (32 kW) and peak power of 80 hp (60 kW), with nominal torque being 88 Nm and at peak, 180 Nm.

The 19.2 kWh-rated lithium-ion battery on this one is good enough to give the car a range of more than 100 km on a NEDC cycle run, and around 160 km at a constant 60 km/h pace. Charge time to capacity is eight hours, via a household power outlet.

No definite numbers shouted, performance-wise, but GWM says the maximum speed is better than 130 km/h and the 0-100 km/h time is less than 15 seconds. There’s also mention of a five-year or 100,000 km warranty with this one – guess that should cover the battery as well.

19 Comments    

Great Wall Haval E SUV debuts, scissor doors and all

April 24, 2012 at 2:19 am By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, Great Wall, International News

Greetings from Beijing, where Auto China 2012 kicked off yesterday, with more than can be chewed in terms of displays. My first stop was at the Great Wall Motors stand, where the Haval E hybrid SUV made its debut.

The company proudly says the concept vehicle has been researched and developed independently by it, and as such is very much a showcase of its capabilities and expertise. It’s striking, for sure, with scissor doors being the leading visual design element.

It wears a 242 hp and 490 Nm BSG light-duty hybrid system, which is made up of an electric drive motor offering 94 hp and 270 Nm, partnered with a GW4813 1.3 litre engine, which puts out 148 hp and 220 Nm, the latter mated to a 6DCT transmission.

The 4,390 mm-long vehicle has a kerb weight of 1,600 kg, and performance specs include a 8.0 seconds time for the 0-100 km/h sprint and a 190 km/h maximum top speed.

In pure EV mode the max achievable speed drops to 130 km/h, as does the sprint time, to 10.7 seconds from 0-80 km/h. The Haval E does however manage an operating range of 80 km range running purely in electric mode.

The features list includes a panoramic sunroof as well as an interior kitted out with a multi-functional electroluminescent display matched to a human-machine interface.

The blue theme is played up on – aside from it being found in the instrument and display lighting in the cabin, the headlamps and front grille display a lighter tinge, almost lavender-like even. Oh, but no mistaking that found on the wheels!

10 Comments    


Steed leads charge for Great Wall Motor Company in UK

April 19, 2012 at 10:13 am By Chris Ng Filed Under Cars, Great Wall, International News

Now here’s some news. Great Wall Motor Company is the first Chinese carmaker to sell its products in the UK, starting this month. The company’s vehicles – assembled at its new European plant – will be sold in 40 dealers, all newly appointed and hand picked.

The vehicle that gets the honour of becoming Great Wall’s – and indeed China’s – first UK offering is the 2012 Steed pick-up truck, which we know as the Wingle. The Chinese carmaker says is ‘equally adept as a workhorse or a weekend getaway vehicle’.

The Steed runs with a 2.0 litre, 16-valve turbocharged diesel engine that is said to give good mileage of 34.0 mpg, or about 6.9 l/100km; no other performance figures are given. The vehicle, equipped with a ‘on demand’ 4WD system, has a max payload of 1,050 kg, among other numbers.

Great Wall’s first will come in two trim levels – the Steed S and the Steed SE. The Steed S is kitted with 16-inch alloy wheels, daytime running lights, remote central locking, a Thatcham-approved Category 1 alarm, electric front and rear windows, Alpine CD/radio with USB and Bluetooth, steering-wheel audio controls, air-conditioning, heated front seats and full leather interior.

The Steed SE comes complete with everything the Steed S has, plus body-coloured hard top canopy and spoiler, chrome trimmed daytime running lights and side bars, black roof rails, load bay liner and rear parking sensors.

Great Wall is giving a three-year/60,000-mile (or 96,560 km) mechanical warranty, a six-year anti-perforation warranty, three-year paint warranty and three-year roadside recovery and assistance package. There’s also the promise of inflation-proof servicing plans, service pick-up and drop-off, and arranging test drives in a customer’s location of choice, if it’s within 32 km of the dealership.

Given the fact that the Brits are spoilt for choice when it comes to vehicle selection, I wonder if Great Wall has done enough to kick-start a revolution.

4 Comments    

Great Wall Motor opens its first European plant in Bulgaria

February 24, 2012 at 5:54 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, China, Great Wall, International News

Chinese carmaker Great Wall Motor has opened its first factory in Europe, a major part of its strategy to grow in the region. Great Wall’s plant in Bulgaria will assemble 50,000 units of the Hover SUV, Steed pick-up and Voleex city car models. The Hover is sold in Malaysia as the Haval H5, while the Steed is branded as Wingle here.

The factory in Lovech, 150 km northeast of capital Sofia, will initially build cars for its host market before exporting to other European countries. Investment in the Lovech plant by Litex Motors, a joint venture company in which Great Wall holds a minority stake, is targeted to reach 100 million euros.

Great Wall exported 83,000 vehicles from China to 120 countries last year. In Europe, Great Wall currently sells cars in Italy and Bulgaria. The company plans to launch the Steed/Wingle in the UK next month. The company is also making great strides in its Dakar Rally programme, click here to read more.

13 Comments    

Great Wall making great strides in its Dakar programme

February 18, 2012 at 5:24 pm By Anthony Lim Filed Under Cars, China, Great Wall, International News

Some news about Great Wall – the Chinese automaker has certainly been making great strides in its Dakar Rally programme, which it began getting involved in back in 2010.

In the 2012 edition of the rally raid, which ran last month and was won by Stephane Peterhansel in a MINI All 4 Racing, the company’s Haval Racing Team managed to place well in the top 10, with the Haval race SUV driven by former FIA Cross Country world champion Carlos Souza ending the gruelling race ranked 7th, the best result ever achieved by a Chinese racing team in the rally. The other Haval, with Chinese driver Zhou Yong at the helm, finished 20th.

Nothing like continued participation to drive home the points – the third-generation Haval racing SUVs gained significant improvements over the earlier machines by drawing on the experience of the previous two years. The 2012 race Haval ended up shorter than its predecessors in order to offer better driving and control characteristics, and significantly, replaced the gasoline mills previously with a diesel option. Score yet another for the oil burner.

4 Comments    

Great Wall Motor forms JVs with Bosch and BorgWarner

November 15, 2011 at 5:25 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, China, Great Wall

Great Wall Motor, the latest automotive brand from China to enter Malaysia, announced that it has formed joint ventures with America’s BorgWarner and Robert Bosch GmbH of Germany to engineer key components. Both companies already supply parts to GWM.

The partnership with Bosch will develop engine management systems and brakes. In 2006, Bosch started supplying common rail fuel systems for diesel engines used in Great Wall’s Haval SUV and Wingle pickup, both of which are available in Malaysia.

The JV with BorgWarner is to design timing chains for transmissions and torque management systems. By the end of this year, Great Wall’s Haval H6 will be equipped with BorgWarner’s torque management system. BorgWarner has produced parts for Great Wall since 2005, supplying the privately owned carmaker with turbochargers and transfer cases.

14 Comments    

Great Wall Motor lining up Shanghai IPO to raise funds

August 2, 2011 at 2:03 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, China, Great Wall

Great Wall Motor Co, China’s biggest maker of pick-up trucks, is lining up an initial offering in Shanghai to fund its product development plans. The SSE offering seeks to sell as much as 10% of the company, which unlike many Chinese automakers, is privately owned.

Based in Baoding in China’s Hebei province, the Hong Kong-listed company plans to issue as many as 304 million shares, according to a prospectus posted on the China Securities Regulatory Commission’s website. This is actually GWM’s second try, after regulators rejected its request for a Shanghai listing in 2008, with no reason given. The commission will review the new application tomorrow (Aug 3).

Great Wall, the latest entrant into the Malaysian market with the Haval SUV and Wingle pick-up truck, recently formed partnerships with big companies to up the level of tech in its products. The parties include Autoliv Inc, Valeo S.A and Shanghai Brose Automotive Components Co.

Last year, Great Wall sold a total of 390,000 units, registering a year-on-year increase of 70%. Of this total, 150,000 units were the Haval, while the Wingle contributed 100k to the cause. The group also saw a turnover of 29 billion yuan, or USD 4.5 billion, in 2010.

Click here to read our launch post of the Great Wall Haval and Wingle.

1 Comment    

Great Wall Motor comes to Malaysia – Haval diesel SUV at RM120k, Wingle pick-up truck starts from RM59,888!

July 30, 2011 at 4:34 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, China, Great Wall, Local News


UPDATE: Mega hi-res gallery added after the jump

There’s a new auto brand in town, and it’s the Great Wall from China. Brought in by franchise holder Green Oranges Sdn Bhd, the brand, which is privately owned and named after China’s famous world wonder, will be introduced to Malaysians via two models – the Haval H5 SUV and the Wingle pick-up truck.

The two are the brand’s most traveled models, and are sold in Europe and Australia, among other markets. What this means is that they would have passed the higher safety and emissions standards that these markets require.

Let’s start with the Haval H5. It’s a five-seater mid sized SUV that’s much larger than the other Chinese SUV in our market, the Chery Tiggo. With a length of 4,649 mm and wheelbase of 2,700 mm, the Haval is 84 mm longer than a Honda CR-V, and almost all that length advantage (80 mm) is in the wheelbase.

And at 1,735 mm, the Haval also stands taller than the current crop of SUVs except for the similarly boxy Nissan X-Trail.

But we reckon that the Haval’s main selling point isn’t size, but its diesel engine, as the only other SUVs offering oil burners are the Hyundai Santa Fe and Chevy Captiva, both priced much higher.

This 2.0 TCI engine is a modern common rail unit (CRDI system by Bosch) with Variable Geometry Turbo (VGT, by Borg Warner), and it produces 148 hp and 310 Nm of torque from 1,800 to 2,800 rpm. Mated to a 5-speed automatic with Shiftronic, fuel consumption is rated at 6.8L per 100 km.

The Haval is a part time 4WD machine, and changing modes from 2WD (rear driven) to AWD can be done on the fly at speeds of up to 70 km/h. The standard kit list includes dual airbags, ABS, EBD, Traction Control, leather seats (with electric adjustment for driver), reverse camera, cruise control, auto air con and a full colour touch screen factory head unit with DVD/USB/Bluetooth compatibility.

One unique feature not found elsewhere is a tyre pressure monitoring system (TPMS) that’s displayed at the rear view mirror.

The other model is the Wingle double cab pick-up truck. This is the latest version of the Wingle, and it features a smart looking VW style nose in place of the cartoonish face that some might remember testing on our roads some time back.

Its Isuzu roots are obvious from the dash, but the Wingle has steering audio controls and adjustable height headlamps, among other standard kit. Dual airbags, ABS and EBD are also in the list, as are leather seats.

The Wingle is powered by a 2.5-litre commonrail diesel engine with 107 hp and 300 Nm of torque, the latter produced from 1,800 to 2,400 rpm. The Mitsubishi derived turbo unit isn’t the VGT type, but the standard type. No auto option for the Wingle; the engine is exclusively paired to a five-speed manual ‘box. You can however, choose from 4X2 or 4X4 variants. Shift on the fly is available on the latter.

Both Great Wall models will be locally assembled at Green Oranges’ own plant in Gurun, Kedah, but the few early units are brought in from China, which is a common arrangement. Green Oranges CEO Mohd Azli SM Nasimuddin said that CKD production will start in mid August, and assured that parts will not be a problem – the company already has RM2 million worth of parts kept in Segambut, and all 12 dealerships nationwide are 3S centres.

If all goes well, Malaysia will be the right-hand drive production hub for these two Great Wall models. Green Oranges is already stepping into the Cambodian market as we type, and today signed an MoU to collaborate with a Cambodian GLC.

The Haval SUV is priced at RM120,000 OTR while the Wingle is priced at RM59,888 for the 4X2 and RM69,888 for the 4X4. The SUV comes with 5 years warranty (or 150k km), 5 years free maintenance and 5 years auto assist, while the Wingle comes with a 3-year warranty.

If you want to check the cars out in the metal, head on to the new wing of Sunway Pyramid, where Green Oranges have set up an outdoor display area.

Huge hi-res gallery and exclusive driving impressions are after the jump!
[Read more...]

168 Comments    

Great Wall Motor engages Ricardo to develop DCT gearbox

April 1, 2011 at 4:42 pm By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, China, Great Wall

It looks like even the Chinese automakers are jumping onto the dual clutch transmission bandwagon! Ricardo has announced that it has signed a tentative agreement to provide Chinese automaker Great Wall Motor Co (which makes the Hover SUV above) design services for a 6-speed dual clutch transmission as well as an advanced gasoline engine. Ricardo has a Chinese technical center in Shanghai, and has over 20 regular customers in China which it provides consultancy services to. It’s other Chinese clients include Chery Automobile Co and Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp, both of which it assists in the development of hybrid powertrains.

14 Comments    

Great Wall assembles Hover and Wingle in the Philippines

March 4, 2011 at 1:01 pm By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, China, Great Wall

Great Wall Motor has started assembling vehicles in the Philippines, making it the first Chinese automaker to do so. The assembly plant is a joint venture between Great Wall and its domestic vehicle distributor Statemotor Corp.

The plant has a capacity of 10,000 vehicles a year, and will roll out Great Wall’s Hover SUV and Wingle pickup truck. If its venture with Manila based Statemotor goes smoothly, Great Wall will also proceed to assemble its Voleex sedan in the ASEAN country, a company spokesman revealed. By the way, the Hover scored a surprising 4-star crash test rating in the Australasian NCAP.

In 2010, Great Wall’s total sales exceeded 390,000 units, including 50,000 overseas sales. This year, the Baoding based carmaker aims to up sales to 500,000 units, including 70,000 overseas sales. News reports state that Great Wall operates CKD plants in Indonesia, Vietnam and Malaysia as well, although we’ve yet to hear anything about that. We have however seen the Wingle undergoing testing in Malaysia.

Will the brand kick start operations in Malaysia this year and join counterparts Chery, Changan and Jinbei in the quest to seek acceptance from Malaysians? We’ve seen that low pricing can sway carbuyers – the Chery Eastar MPV found over 2,600 buyers in 2010 (more than the Toyota Rush and Fortuner) while the Era Jinbei is fast gaining popularity as an affordable passenger van. Click here to see what Great Wall has to offer.

9 Comments