GWM Ora debuting at Nampo as South Africa’s cheapest new EV

Great Wall Motors (GWM) has confirmed that two of its newly launched marques, Ora and Tank, will be making their first South African showing at the Nampo Harvest Day exhibition in Bothaville in the Free State next week.

Joining the Haval Jolion HEV and a limited edition version of the P-Series bakkie, the much anticipated Ora Funky Cat, that will simply become Ora in South Africa and sold as the GWM Ora rather under the Ora brand itself, will premier as South Africa’s most affordable new electric vehicle.

What is it?

Displacing the Mini Cooper SE that has been the country’s most accessible EV at R742 102 until, the Ora will retail from R716 900 to R915 900 depending on the trim level, with outputs of 126kW/250Nm.

Measuring 4 235 mm long, 1 603 mm tall and 1 825 mm wide while riding on a 2 650 mm wheelbase, the Ora’s 48-kWh lithium-ion battery pack is chargeable from either a AC or DC outlet, with GWM claiming a waiting time of 41 minutes from 10-80% using a 80 kW version of the latter.

ALSO READ: What South Africa can soon expect from GWM and Haval

Range

Although it didn’t mention the Ora’s exact range, in Australia, the 48-kWh model will travel 310 km and the bigger battery 63-kWh variant up to 420 km.

Worth noting though is that despite the Long Range and sporty GT models being equipped with the larger battery, power and torque figures are unchanged from the standard version.

As a comparative, the three-door Cooper SE makes 135kW/270Nm and will do 217 km before requiring a visit to the plug.

Spec

Exact specification of the Ora is due to be released soon, though Down Under, items on offer include a dual 10.25-inch touchscreen infotainment system and instrument cluster, electric front seats, wireless smartphone charger, surround-view camera system, automatic climate control, LED headlights and 18-inch alloy wheels.

Features on the safety side consist of Autonomous Emergency Braking, Forward Collision Warning, Rear Cross Traffic Alert with Automatic Braking, Traffic Sign Recognition, Lane Keep Assist, Lane Departure Warning and Adaptive Cruise Control.

Reserved for the sporty Ora GT is model specific front and rear bumpers, 18-inch alloys and door sills, red brake calipers, a hands-free electric tailgate, heated steering wheel, Auto Park and a panoramic sunroof.

Down Under, five two-tone colours are available; Hamilton White, Glacier Blue, Mars Red and Aurora Green contrasted with a black roof, and Sun Black matched with a white roof.

More details soon

As mentioned, GWM is expected to confirm exact specification either at Nampo or at the Ora’s eventual market launch, but based on the given price estimation, expect all three derivatives available in Australia to become available in South Africa.

Additional information and images from carexpert.com.au.

NOW READ: Electric Mini: Scalextric for grown-ups