Is this China's new Toyota RAV4 fighter? Haval's latest answer to the Hyundai Tucson and Kia Sportage prepares for battle

Chinese car brand Haval is preparing another facelift of its H6 SUV.

The Toyota RAV4 and Kia Sportage sized family-hauler is rumoured to be unveiled at the coming 2024 Beijing auto show in a few weeks.

According to reports out of China, the facelifted H6 is 50mm longer than the before and is due for some refreshed styling.

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Scarce pictures show a redesigned grille and new dynamic headlights, while Haval has ditched the strip lights on the rear end in favour of conventional tail lights.

Power options are believed to remain unchanged. Australian versions use either a 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine or a petrol-electric hybrid set-up.

Petrol versions make 150kW and 320Nm and are paired with a seven-speed dual clutch automatic transmission.

Hybrid variants use a 1.5-litre four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine matched with an electric motor and small battery to produce 179kW and 530Nm.

It’s unclear whether the facelifted model will make it to Australia as the next-generation H6, which is expected to be based on a slightly different vehicle from the brand’s China catalogue named the Haval Xiaolong MAX.

That vehicle is bigger than the current H6 in all directions and is expected to be able to accommodate plug-in hybrid tech.

It is believed to use a 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine and potentially a circa-19kWh battery that delivers an electric-only driving range of 86km.

The facelifted Haval H6 does away with the rear strip light.

The door is left open for the facelifted version to arrive in Australia, though.

The Haval Xiaolong MAX-derived version isn’t expected for about a year so the soon to be revealed H6 could fill the gap in the Chinese brand’s Australian line-up.

As with the Jolion and related Jolion Pro, Haval may also keep the existing H6 around as a more value-oriented option in its range.

More details will be available after the car’s reveal in a few weeks time.

Haval has firmly established itself as a mainstream brand in Australia during the past few years.

Through the first three months of this year it has sold more than 10,000 vehicles, which is good enough to surpass brands such as Honda and Volkswagen and put it just behind Subaru.

The H6 is one of the better selling vehicles in the range with more than 2200 registrations so far this year, which is just behind the smaller Jolion compact SUV.