Can Chinese Automaker GWM Compete with Rolls-Royce?

China’s Great Wall Motor
Recently, challenging the luxury market
Expectation to compete against Rolls-Royce

The automotive brand wants to become a symbol of China by borrowing the name of the Great Wall of China, one of China’s symbols.

China’s Great Wall Motor (GWM), founded in China in 1984, is the largest SUV and pickup truck manufacturer in China. GWM, which did not produce sedans until 2010 and had a high market share of pickup trucks, recently announced the launch of a luxury brand.

The luxury brand of the Great Wall car scheduled to be released was revealed as codename ZX. In particular, GWM plans to establish a luxury vehicle brand to compete against Rolls-Royce, Bentley Mercedes-Maybach, and homegrown Chinese rival Hongqi.

Catching up with Rolls-Royce, Bentley
Hongqi is likely to be the biggest rival

In 2020, GWM announced that it would enter the luxury market for the first time. The first model from the Great Wall Motor luxury brand will be a sedan aimed to rival the Rolls-Royce Ghost, Bentley Flying Spur, Mercedes-Maybach S580 sedan, and Hongqi H9. According to published renderings and reports, it is said to be longer than Hongqi’s H9, with a total length of over 5.5 m (about 18 feet).

GWM also announced that it will launch vehicles equipped with various powertrains besides internal combustion engines to enter the luxury market. GWM plans to launch gasoline, hybrid, and electric vehicles and develop and produce luxury versions of their main sales vehicle, the SUV.

Short brand history
Not free from plagiarism controversy

The basis of the luxury market is usually the launch of products based on a long history and technology based on that history, but as mentioned earlier, GWM has not been established very long, and other than the high sales growth rate of SUVs and pickup trucks, GWM hasn’t shown much yet.

Nevertheless, GWM’s declaration of luxury challenge is a well-founded confidence in the phenomenon of exports to countries such as South America and Europe. However, suspicion of plagiarism, one of the biggest problems faced by most Chinese automakers, remains a problem that needs to be resolved.

Overcoming technology and design
Creating a luxury brand in mainland China with Hongqi?

Hongqi, one of the first brands to compete after launch, has a long history in China and is already famous as the official ceremonial vehicle of Chinese President Xi Jinping. The biggest challenge is to overcome the short brand history with technology and design.

Despite the plagiarism controversy over several models and the negative perception of Chinese-made vehicles, GWM continues to build brand value. With the declaration of eco-friendly luxury, attention is focused on whether the automaker can succeed as a Chinese luxury vehicle brand.