China’s “King of Pickups” has now decided to challenge world-class opponents.
On the evening of August 18, Great Wall Motors (GWM) officially released its new pickup brand “Pao” (“Pao” means “cannon” in Chinese”) or P-series at the Beijing GWM Brand Experience Center. The new pickup truck model with the new badge also appeared at the same time, and announced the pre-sale price of 126,800 to 159,800 yuan (~US$18,280 – US$23,037).
Update: GWM Pao Pickup (Passenger Version) has launched in Chinese market with price range from 126,800 – 159,800 yuan ( ~US$18,280 – US$23,037 ), powered by 2.0T, paired with 8AT; and the Commercial Version are priced at 104,800 to 128,800 yuan (~US$15,108 – US$18,568), offers 2.0T in both diesel and gasoline engine, paired by either manual or 8AT.
“The Pao (P-series), born for the break, reinvents the global pickup force layout, the goal is the world’s top three!” This sentence from Li Ruifeng, vice president of GWM and general manager of the sales company, also saw the determination of GWM in the pickup market.
At the same time, GWM’s “1-2-3” strategy was announced, which kept the Chinese and export sales as the absolute No.1 (in Chinese brand); by 2020, the annual sales exceeded 200,000; in 2025, the global cumulative sales exceeded 3 million.
In terms of appearance, the Pao (P-series) pickup uses a new design language, but it still maintains the tough style that pickups should have. The front face features an oversized grille, and the addition of chrome trim enhances the texture, giving a very domineering visual experience. The Pao pickup has a silver front bumper with black trim and is wild.
At the same time, the new pickup has also replaced with new “P”-like badge. According to the GWM’s official, the badge “P” represents “Power and Strength”, “PK” (Challenge and Innovation) and “Perfect and Extreme Life”, which is also the spiritual connotation pursued by Great Wall Cannon.
In terms of body size, the length/width/height are 5410/1934/1886mm, the inner dimensions of the truck bed are 1520/1520/538mm, the wheelbase is 3230mm.
The interior design of the Pao pickup is very luxurious. A lot of soft materials and leather wraps are used in the car, it is worth mentioning that the leather seat and the door trim panel are stitched into a diamond shape, which makes the interior more luxurious. In addition, the 9-inch central control large screen on the right side of the multi-function steering wheel is also a highlight. The Pao pickup will be equipped with the latest intelligent network connection system of GWM, integrating high-precision voice recognition, entertainment control and other functions, it can also remotely control vehicles through mobile phone interconnection, such as remote starting of vehicles, control of air conditioners, and oil quantity detection.
The Pao pickup also features push button starter, ACC adaptive cruise, smart parking, seat heating and other configurations. In terms of safety configuration, the car is equipped with the latest generation Bosch 9.3 version ESP, 360 panoramic image, reversing image, Blind Spot Monitor, smart front view, 12 radar probe as well as L2 autopilot driving system
In terms of power, it will be powered by GW4C20B 2.0T petrol engine with maximum power of 145kW(194 hp)/4000-5500 rpm and peak torque of 360 Nm/1800-3600 rpm. The transmission system is matched with 8-speed AT from ZF and four-wheel drive system. In addition to the passenger pickup, GWM will also provide commercial and off-road pickups in the future.
The GWM P-Series pickups are based on the new P71 platform from Great Wall Motors. It will have three variants such as passenger pickup, commercial pickup and off-road pickup. Due to the different positioning, the three pickups differ in appearance, interior, and configuration. The pickup launched this time is the Pao passenger pickup.
The Pao off-road series pickups will feature three differential locks, wading depths up to 900 mm, and it will be equipped with wading, winch, off-road shock absorbers, crawl control, tank turn and other off-road configurations.
The Pao commercial pickup series is a pure electric version with a closed container that comes with the original factory and has a cruising range of up to 500 kilometers.
The Pao commercial version will be released at the Chengdu Motor Show on September 5th. The off-road series will bring more information to later soon.
Unlike other Chinese competitors’ pickup strategies, GWM pickups are independent as an all-new brand now. The
More than halfway through 2019, although the GWM pickup has firmly occupied the Chinese pickup truck market of 30%, it also holds the No.1 in the Chinese pickup sales list, but the sales performance in the first half seems to be somewhat unsatisfactory.
According to the July 2019 production and sales report issued by Great Wall Motors, the company’s cumulative sales volume from January to July was 72,953 units, down 1.58% year-on-year. Although it has declined, it can also outperform the market. However, the company’s brand sales in July was only 8075 units, down 11.15% year-on-year, a relatively large decline.
Previously, Great Wall Motors’s pickup products used the badge of Great Wall Motors’ company logo, it’s changing in recent years, the company is undergoing brand adjustment: in 2016, the company released the high-end passenger car brand WEY; in 2018, the company named its pure electric car brand “ORA”. At this conference, GWM finally ushered in the change of its pickup brand.
The adjustment of the brand may be a way for GWM to establish its popularity in different market segments and deepen the brand’s personalized label. Previously, the launch of the ORA brand made it a preliminary success in the new energy market. Whether the Pao (P-series) can become famous overnight, it still needs to watch after the market test.
Do you like the GWM PAO P-Series pickup?
