Great Wall Motors Announces Massive Malaysia Push - 4 Brands, Local Assembly, Electrification

Great Wall Motors is back in Malaysia, and in a big way. Today the Chinese automotive group announced an ambitious plan to take on the established brands here, and they just might pull it off.

At an officiation ceremony held at their headquarters in the heart of Kuala Lumpur themed “Go With Malaysia”, representatives of the company’s Southeast Asia division outlined our market as their next endeavour following a successful market entry into Thailand.

“We will continue to deepen the Malaysian market by increasing investment in the country by carrying out localized assembly through cooperation with Go Auto Group”, said Mr. Cui Anqi, Managing Director of Great Wall Motor Malaysia.

Haval H6 and Jolion incoming to Malaysia

Though the GWM brand might not be a household name to most of us, it's subsidiary marques such as Haval might more likely strike a familiar chord. That’s just one of the brands the auto giant plans to use to gain a solid foothold against other incoming mass-market rivals such Chery, GAC, and more pressingly, Geely-backed Proton.

The SUV-centric Haval, which had previously sold cars here under GoAuto, will be fielding the H6 and Jolion. They will be joined by the highly anticipated retro-stylish Good Cat from GWM’s electric-only brand Ora, which we previewed back in May. According to Great Wall Motor Sales Malaysia, the car is being prepared for a Q4 2022 launch.

Ora Good Cat to be launched in Q4 2022 in Malaysia

The Good Cat was also on display at the GWM’s Jalan Ampang HQ lobby, though this is but another preview occasion. Pricing and a reveal of its specifications will be made at a later date closer to the final quarter of this year.

GWM Tank and POER 

An unexpected inclusion to their Malaysian rollout is Tank, a GWM brand that focuses on more rugged off-road vehicles. With its brash and boxy design, the Tank 300 bears a striking resemblance to the Jeep Wrangler or new Ford Bronco while the larger Tank 500 seems to take inspiration from RAM trucks at the front end and the Toyota Land Cruiser in profile.

Alongside this, the POER brand will also be entering the arena with its own range of pickup trucks. We’ve also happened to have taken a closer look at one of these models earlier this year but expect a more comprehensive spread of products to be revealed in 2023, which is when GWM really plans to kick things into high gear.

For 2022, as mentioned, we can look forward to the launch of the Ora Good Cat and possibly the sportier Ora Good Cat GT, perhaps topped off by the POER pickup truck in limited units before they presumably shift to local assembly to ensure price parity with class strongholds such as the Toyota HiLux and Isuzu D-Max.

Mr. Anqi also added that, in terms of after-sales service, Great Wall Motor will also set up a spare parts centre in Malaysia that is accompanied by a technical service team. The customer service centre, which operates around the clock, is designed to offer end-to-end service to Malaysian consumers for complete peace of mind.