Ready to attack: GWM prepares Tank 300 by revealing price

Having made the confirmation towards the end last year, Great Wall Motors (GWM) has shed more light, and indeed pricing details, on the rugged Tank 300 due to make its first South African appearance at the Nampo Harvest exhibition in Bothaville in the Free State next week.

Already on-sale in Australia the Chinese brand has identified, along with South Africa, as key right-hand-drive markets, the Tank 300, like the newly confirmed Ora, will be sold as the GWM Tank 300 rather being marketed under the standalone Tank brand as the case is in China.

Petrol and hybrid

For South Africa, GWM will offer both powerplants available in China and Down Under; the conventional 2.0-litre turbo-petrol from H6 GT revised to produce 162kW/387Nm, and the 2.0-litre HEV that develops a combined 258kW/615Nm.

ALSO READ: Battle ready GWM Tank 300 rolling into South Africa in 2023

On the former, the only transmission available is the familiar ZF-sourced eight-speed automatic, while the twin parallel hybrid gets a uniquely tuned nine-speed automatic.

Off-road

Based on a ladder-frame chassis and measuring 4 760 mm long, 1 930 mm wide, and 1 903 mm, the Tank 300 rides on a 2 750 mm wheelbase and while the hybrid is equipped with a full-time four-wheel-drive system with selectable low-range, the normal petrol utilises a conventional part-time setup with 2H,4H and 4L settings.

Claimed ground clearance is 224 mm, towing capacity 2 500 kg and wading depth 700 mm. The breakover, departure and approach angles are as follows; 23.1-degrees, 34-degrees and 33-degrees. Depending on the trim level, up to three locking differentials similar to the Mercedes-Benz G-Class is available.

Price and spec

A line-up that will include a second model, the Toyota Land Cruiser-sized 500 with more set to follow, the Tank 300 will be priced from R685 900 to R851 900 with exact spec to be announced later.

In Australia though, two trim levels are available; Lux and Ultra, with the former boasting equipment such as a Crawl Control function, electric driver’s seat, a dual 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster and infotainment system, a nine-speaker sound system, tyre pressure monitor, the intricate Tank Turn that reduces the turning circle to 300 mm off-road, ambient lighting, folding electric mirrors, 17-inch alloy wheels and LED headlights.

On the Ultra, the so-called Comfort-Tek faux leather upholstery makes way for Nappa leather and the sound system upgraded to a premium nines-speaker Infinity audio.

Also standard are 18-inch alloys, a massaging function for the driver’s seat, heated steering wheel, heated and cooled front chairs, a wireless smartphone charger and expanded ambient lighting colours.

The recipient of a five-star ANCAP crash rating, the Tank 300 gets seven airbags as standard, along with Autonomous Emergency Braking, Lane Keep Assist, Adaptive Cruise Control, a surround-view camera system with transparent “under chassis view”, Lane Departure Warning, Rear Cross Traffic Alert with Automatic Braking, front and rear parking sensors, Driver Attention Alert and Traffic Sign Recognition.

More details soon

In Australia, the Tank 300’s colour palette comprises five mono-tone hues; Pearl White, Crystal Black, Fossil Grey, Lunar Red and Dusk Orange.

More detail alluding to the complete model breakdown and their respective price tags, will be divulged either at Nampo or at the official South African market debut later this year.

Additional information and images from carexpert.com.au.

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