“What do you think of Haval? The cars are quite cheap, and I am thinking of buying my mother one,” said the Managing Director of one of the companies I used to work for over a decade ago.
“It has everything she needs in a car, and it is quite well priced, it makes more sense than a Proton,” he continued.
This conversation took place back in the early 2010s, a time when barely anyone was talking about cars from China. And the companies that did import them only did so half-heartedly, with little in the form of aftersales support.
Fast forward a little more than a decade and the global automotive landscape is an entirely different one.
China is leading the way; the Europeans are feeling the effects of China’s industrial might. The Americans and the Canadians have waved the white flag and decided that they cannot take the fight to China, so they have imposed 100% import tariffs on Chinese cars to protect their local brands. Which is quite cowardly but understandable since Malaysia does the same as well.
On the local front, Malaysia is at the forefront to watch the rise of the Chinese automotive might.
Chinese brands are not only in Malaysia, but they are here to stay. Some have set up local assembly plants, created jobs and have shaken up the landscape by offering incredible products at a fraction of the usual price.
This is very much different than a certain American company that has shied away from local assembly, hires few Malaysians and pays little to no duty. It may claim to be training a few Malaysians but that does not benefit most Malaysians. And it is also slow to roll out the infrastructure it promised to implement.
On the contrary, Chinese companies have done a lot more for Malaysia and its people.
The elephant in the room though is the amount of trust Malaysians have on Chinese cars. This may stem from the aforementioned independent importers and distributors that did not have the foresight to offer proper aftersales service.
But that has changed. Take Great Wall Motor (GWM) for example, it has invested millions into the local economy with the setting up of glimmering 3S centres around the country. This has created hundreds if not thousands of jobs either directly or indirectly through the appointment of dealerships.
GWM has also taken things a step further with the setting up of a local assembly program with a full-fledged plant located in Pegoh, Alor Gajah, Melaka. And unlike the previous local assembly program, this plant will not only assemble cars with internal combustion engines but will also build hybrids and electric vehicles. This will further improve the skills of local Malaysians, making the country even more competitive on the world stage.
Malaysians should be particularly excited about the upcoming launch of the locally-assembled Haval H6 Hybrid (officially known as the H6 HEV which stands for Hybrid Electric Vehicle but let’s stick to calling it a Hybrid for this article).
The C-Segment SUV will compete against the likes of the Proton X70, Toyota Corolla Cross, Volkswagen Tiguan, Chery Tiggo 7 Pro, Mazda CX-5 and the mighty Honda CRV, among many others.
We recently drove the yet to be launched car and found that there are a number of reasons why Malaysians should be excited for the H6 Hybrid.
For starters, GWM Malaysia says the H6 Hybrid will be priced at under RM145,000. Though there is no official pricing as yet, GWM has used this same strategy of teasing the price before the actual announcement and as history has shown, when GWM Malaysia says it’s going to be under RM145,000, you can believe them.
At that price point, it is bound to make life difficult for the likes of the Corolla Cross, Mazda CX-5 and perhaps even the Proton X70. You can be forgiven for thinking that the X70 does have a fighting chance against the H6 Hybrid since it is cheaper. But GWM Malaysia is going to be offering a 10-year or one-million-kilometre warranty on the vehicle and an eight-year or one-million-kilometre powertrain warranty on the hybrid transmission, high voltage battery and cables as well as for the transmission control unit.
That alone puts the Haval H6 Hybrid on a pedestal since it is the only company that offers such a warranty.
Then there is the design and exterior features such as LED Matrix headlamps, LED taillights, 19-inch wheels and that large grille which morphs into the body work. GWM calls the grille the Star Matrix Grille, and it undeniably looks good.
The interior too is bound to impress, but there is just too much rose gold for this writer’s liking. It looks too tacky, and that beige leather could get dirty as time passes, especially around the arm rest area.
The basic controls too could benefit from physical buttons and switches, such as changing air-conditioning settings, selecting drive modes, and even turning on the ventilated seats. Placing them over multiple menu layers in the infotainment system can be distracting, but that’s not an issue that is exclusive to Haval, many manufacturers are guilty of this, and we can only hope that this changes over time.
However, that is where the complaints end because there is plenty to love about the H6 Hybrid as well.
The seats for one are as comfortable as they look while overall spaciousness is impressive. Even the boot space measures in at a hearty 560 litres, which is good enough for an epic road trip or even run a small stall out of.
The interior also gives you a full panoramic roof with an electronic shade, powered driver and passenger seats, head-up display, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto which you access through a 12.3-inch infotainment screen while the digital meter cluster measures in at 10.25-inches.
The H6 Hybrid comes together nicely on the move. It offers a suspension system that consists of a MacPherson Strut up front, and a Multi-Link set up at the rear. The suspension has been tuned for Malaysian roads and is slightly stiffer than its Chinese sibling.
Even so, it still does a brilliant job at absorbing the bumps, dips and even rolls over potholes without the passengers feeling anything. The suspension may have been stiffened but you still feel the car squat and dive under acceleration and heavy braking. A slightly stiffer suspension is also always better than one that is too soft because the latter can sometimes give you motion sickness.
The stiffer suspension also gives you better control of the car and the 1,720kg SUV does feel like it is glued to the road. But the steering feel though can be a little odd as there is some free play when the wheels are pointing straight. In the Standard driving mode, the steering feels too light and disconnected, but it is well sorted in Sport mode, where that free play tends to disappear. So, at higher speed, the H6 Hybrid performs at its best in Sport mode.
Refinement too is brilliant. In fact, it is so good that it is easy to reach some dangerous speeds without you even noticing it. The only thing that may give away the speed is the tyre roar from the Hankook Ventus S1 Evo SUV tyres, which are the exact same tyres as the Chinese market H6 Hybrid.
The hybrid powertrain is of course the star of the show. The internal combustion unit is made up of a 1.5-litre, four-cylinder, turbocharged engine which puts out 150PS and 230Nm of torque by itself.
The electric motor on the other hand puts out a further 130PS and 300Nm of torque for a combined 243PS and a gargantuan 530Nm of torque. You may think that this will give you some face warping acceleration, but the powertrain has been designed for efficiency rather than brute power.
On that front, the H6 Hybrid accelerates to 100km/h in 7.7 seconds and tops out at 175km/h. The official fuel consumption figure is 5.8-litres per 100km, while we saw a real world figure of 8.8-litres on a drive to Desaru in Johor. But it must be said that we were well past the speed limit, driving confidently knowing that there are over 30 active and passive safety systems working to keep us safe.
All in all, the Haval H6 Hybrid is an SUV that many Malaysians will end up loving. Our crystal ball says that we will end up seeing many of them on our roads, though there might be some initial scepticism about aftersales support. But that will quickly be address through the dozens of 3S centres GWM Malaysia plans to introduce around the country.
The competition is surely heating up especially for the Japanese players who have been entrenched in the market for so long, but in this situation, Malaysians as a whole will win because you can’t argue against having options, especially ones that give you more for less.
Specifications:
Engine: 1.5-litre, 4-cylinder, turbocharged
Power: 150PS @ 5500rpm
Torque: 230Nm @ 1500rpm
Electric Motor: 130PS & 300Nm
Combined Power: 243PS and 530Nm
Transmission: 2 Speed Dedicated Hybrid Transmission
Price (As tested): Yet to be launched
We like: Design, Refinement, Spaciousness, Warranty
We don’t like: Rose gold trim, Steering feel, No spare wheel
