GWM has now sold 200,000 vehicles in Australia, achieving the milestone late last week after more than 16 years of operating locally.
The 200,000th vehicle was a Fossil Grey Tank 300 sold in Victoria by South Morang GWM Haval.
It comes only 27 months after the 100,000th GWM was sold in Australia in March 2023, with the brand’s sales increasing rapidly over the past three years.
A record result in the first half of 2025 saw GWM post 25,189 sales, propelling it to seventh place overall – its highest yet – with its sales rate on track for a record annual result of 50,000 units in 2025.
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“Australia is becoming a significant cornerstone of our global operations,” said Steve Maciver, head of marketing and communications at GWM Australia, in a statement.
“Our local success will only accelerate as we continue to invest here – demonstrated by the recent announcement of product localisation with [ex-Holden engineer] Rob Trubiani and our residency at the Lang Lang [former Holden] Proving Ground.
“We are proud to have handed over our 200,000th vehicle in Australia and sincerely thank every GWM customer for the trust they have placed in our brand.”
The milestone comes as other Chinese brands also post rapid sales increases, most notably BYD – which has recorded 62,971 deliveries since it arrived in Australia in 2022.
MG has already posted more than 200,000 sales since it relaunched here in 2013 under Chinese ownership, with 224,731 cumulative sales reached by the end of 2024.
However, these sales figures underscore the gap between brands and market-dominant Toyota, which sold a record 241,296 vehicles here last year alone – more than double that of runner-up Ford on 100,170.
GWM is continuing to add to its current model lineup with the mid-size Haval H7 SUV arriving this month and the Tank 500 PHEV expected in showrooms in October. A couple of electric vehicles (EVs), joining the existing Ora hatchback, are also due by the end of next year.
It’s also teased a supercar under development – although not confirmed for Australia – as well as a 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 petrol-hybrid powertrain that could find its way under the bonnet of GWMs sold here.
Great Wall Motor began operating in Australia under Sydney-based importer Ateco – which now brings in Ram Trucks, LDV and Renault among others – in 2009, before the factory took over in 2016.
The V240 dual-cab ute, forerunner to today’s GWM Cannon, was among the first vehicles the Great Wall brand offered in our market.
It was powered by a 2.4-litre petrol engine, the basis for its ‘240’ name, with a five-speed manual transmission, one-tonne payload and 2250kg braked towing capacity.
The V240 was accompanied by the body-on-frame X240 SUV, as well as the short-lived SA220 ute.
Great Wall was the first in a flurry of Chinese brands to arrive in Australia, though some quickly withdrew and have yet to return (JMC, ZX Auto) while others exited our market but relaunched later to greater success (Chery).
The marque was joined by Great Wall Motor’s SUV brand, Haval, in 2015. Launching with the H2, H8 and H9 SUVs, Haval took a notable step upmarket from the Great Wall brand and its budget-priced utes and SUVs.
The company’s local operations eventually came to be known as GWM Haval with the Great Wall name dropped from vehicles, replaced with the GWM acronym.
GWM has subsequently moved away from treating Haval as a separate brand in Australia. Instead, the company sells vehicles from the Haval, Ora and Tank brands under the GWM banner locally, though it retains unique badging for certain models.
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