As major car brands struggle to secure enough supply to satisfy Australian demand, one of the fastest growing carmakers says its stock issues are improving and there are plenty of cars on the ground.
GWM Australia – short for Great Wall Motors – which sells the GWM Ute and the Haval SUV range was also hit with stock shortages due to pandemic related shutdowns and parts supply issues.
However, GWM Australia head of marketing Steve Maciver told CarsGuide that despite some rocky months, things were looking much better in the second half of 2022.
“Supply has actually improved for us pretty dramatically over the past couple of months,” he said. “We’re in a pretty healthy supply position at the moment. That certainly hasn’t been the case. I think probably eight or nine months prior to that, it was pretty challenging.”
Mr Maciver has confirmed wait times and stock levels for the entire Chinese-built model line-up, starting with the GWM Ute.
“Ute is another one that previously we were having a bit of supply challenge, a number of parts issues, essentially sourcing some parts as part of our global supply chain. Those issues have now also been resolved, and we’ve got good numbers of Ute, both on the ground and on our way to us as well.”
Supply of GWM’s Haval sub-brand is also looking healthier, with Mr Maciver confirming availability for the Jolion small SUV and the H6 medium SUV.
“We’re looking pretty strong at the moment on both those model line-ups. H6 Hybrid had been a bit of a challenge getting supply. But again, we understand that’s going to change very quickly, and we have some fairly healthy H6 Hybrid supply on its way.”
Mr Maciver added that there are dealers with some H6 stock right now, but if someone was to order an H6 Hybrid, they’d be looking at a wait of six or eight weeks.
That’s still a good deal shorter than the expected wait time for a Toyota RAV4 Hybrid which is stretching beyond 12 months.
The H6 line-up has expanded significantly since the start of the year, following the 2021 launch of the regular petrol models.
Since January 2022, GWM has added the generously equipped Vanta flagship variant to the Haval H6 range, as well as the Hybrid, and most recently, the swoopy coupe-style H6 GT.
Pricing kicks off from $32,990 (all pricing is drive-away) for the petrol-powered two-wheel drive Premium grade and it now tops out at $46,990 for the H6 GT Ultra.
If you’re after a petrol-electric hybrid, it is available in SUV body style and one equipment grade at $45,990.
Mr Maciver confirmed that the coupe-like H6 GT is not available with a hybrid powertrain.
All grades of Haval H6 were recently awarded a maximum five-star crash safety rating by the Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP).
For the moment, the dual-cab GWM Ute is available in one two-wheel drive variant from $34,990, while the three 4×4 grades run from $37,990 to $44,490.
Keyword: Want a hybrid family SUV but can't face the wait time of a Toyota RAV4? GWM Haval stock update confirmed for H6, Jolion SUVs and HiLux-rivalling GWM Ute