Chengdu, China: Great Wall Motors is well known for building affordable alternatives to the established bakkie players, but the double cab that you see here could take things to another level altogether.
Unveiled at the Chengdu Auto Show in China over the weekend, the GWM Shanhai Cannon (and no, that’s not a mis-spelling of Shanghai) presents itself as a more luxurious alternative to the P-Series, which also wears the Cannon badge in some markets and the unfortunate Poer label in others.
Based on the GWM Tank 600 SUV, which is something of a Toyota Prado rival, the Shanhai Cannon will be offered with a choice of petrol, petrol-hybrid and diesel engines.
The sensible diesel option takes the form of a new 2.4-litre turbocharged motor, while the performance flagship is a 3.0-litre turbocharged petrol motor that’s paired with a nine-speed automatic gearbox and four-wheel drive system as standard.
The carmaker has not released outputs as yet, but the version fitted to the Tank 600 is said to produce around 260kW. Finally, there’s a hybrid powertrain that pairs an electric motor to a 2.0-litre turbopetrol engine.
It’s way too early to say whether the new GWM Shanhai Cannon will be launched in South Africa, but Australian media outlets have received confirmation that it is under consideration for that country, CarExpert reports. Of course, the launch of a right-hand drive variant for Aus could certainly pave the way for a South African introduction.
But don’t expect it to be cheap. According to Drive, Australian pricing is likely to start around the AUD 60 000 mark (about R700 000), which would pit it against the likes of Ford’s Ranger XLT in that market.
The new GWM Shanhai Cannon does appear to offer a lot in the way of luxury, however.
“Shanhai Pao (Cannon) also has an ultra-luxurious advanced business cockpit, and high-end intelligent driving assistance, fully automatic parking and other technological configurations to achieve the ultimate luxury super pickup,” GWM said.
All that remains to be seen is whether GWM/Haval South Africa has it on the radar for local sale.