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Now that it has arrived in the form of the GWM Tank 300, it kind of makes us wonder why it’s taken so long to get a ladder-chassis, off-road four-wheel-drive with a conventional (rather than a mild or PHEV) hybrid driveline on to the market here.
After all, if the idea of a rough-tough off-roader with the range of a conventionally fuelled vehicle, combined with the urban smarts of a hybrid SUV doesn’t make sense, please tell us what does.
GWM has launched the Tank 300 in two forms at the moment, the cheaper Lux and the ritzier Ultra, both with super sharp pricing and, crucially, both with the hybrid platform.
Of course, not only is hybrid tech a novelty at this end of the market, the GWM brand itself is still something of a mystery to many consumers.
Yes, it’s Chinese, but where does it fit into the big picture in terms of safety and quality? And does that make the Tank 300 a trend-setter, or a curiosity that may never take off?
Sharp; there’s no other way to describe the pricing of the Tank 300. The base model Lux is a handy $55,990 drive-away, while the Ultra is $5000 more at $60,990 drive-away.
Both those figures undercut the Tank’s most obvious competition (the Jeep Wrangler and Land Rover Discovery Sport) by around $20,000, or more.
And there’s no shortage of standard equipment to make those prices look even better. Even the Lux gets a powered driver’s seat, twin 12.3-inch info and entertainment screens, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, ambient interior lighting, digital radio, powered, folding and heated mirrors, LED lighting, a sunroof, tyre-pressure monitoring and 17-inch alloy wheels.
The extra five grand asked for the Ultra adds 18-inch alloys, Nappa leather seats, heated and cooled front seats, extra charging, USB and power outlets (including a 220-volt socket), wireless charging, a heated steering wheel, automatic parking and an upgraded stereo.
The rest of the interior is high-end, too, with quilted upholstery and plenty of plush touch-points.
A really nice feature is the ability to offer the driver a screenshot of the terrain they’re crossing at that instant. By using the forward-facing camera to collect an image of what’s in front of the car, the system can then extrapolate what’s under the car in real time and represent that with a graphic which removes the car to show only the surface being crossed. Hard-core off-roaders will call it cheating. Tank owners will love it.
Fundamentally, this is a vehicle that amounts to a game changer in terms of its engineering. The off-road SUV world is a pretty slow moving animal at times, and while soft-roaders have been much quicker to jump on to the benefits of hybrid running gear, the off-road sector has been dragging its heels for no good reason.
The GWM Tank 300 is, meantime, a proper off-roader. It’s roughly the size of a Jeep Wrangler or Land Rover Discovery and has the approach, ramp-over and departure angles to offer the ground clearance off-roaders need.
That’s largely because it’s built on the ladder chassis of GWM’s utes, giving it the essential architecture for going bush.
And while it’s not news to owners of hybrid SUVs, that dual-tech driveline means range anxiety in the outback shouldn’t be a problem (any more than it is for conventional-vehicle owners) while the GWM will also be able to use its battery regeneration to recoup some power used going up each dune, as it rolls down the other side.
And in town, where a hybrid is at its best advantage, the driveline should improve fuel efficiency.
Come to think of it, rumbling around in the bush and dropping off rocks and into creeks should give the regeneration function a pretty good workout, too.
That means the Tank has the potential to be more economical in the very situation (off-road) that sees conventional four-wheel-drives at their thirstiest.
From a visual point of view, there’s a bit of new Ford Bronco around the front end, some Hummer in the glasshouse profile and maybe even a hint of early International Scout. Yet it’s not so derivative as to pose difficult questions about its lineage.
Jump inside, and it’s immediately obvious this is not a big car. That impression is only added to by the small side windows and the fairly upright windscreen, as well as the high-waisted dashboard.
Getting in and out seems more difficult than it should be thanks to the very wide side-steps which you need to almost climb over. With mud on them, these steps will be your dry cleaner’s best friend.
The front seats are comfy enough but seem a bit narrow across the shoulders, and the rear bench is best for four as the middle passenger misses out on under-thigh support thanks to the shape of the rear pew. There’s plenty of rear legroom, however, and even with the sunroof, there’s no shortage of headroom.
You’d imagine the huge swathe of touchscreen dashboard would dominate, but actually, it’s the rest of the detailing including the quilted upholstery and circular air-vents (reminiscent of a late-model Mercedes-Benz) that stand out, mainly thanks to their contrasting colours and textures.
The interior is home to plenty of USB ports, 12-volt sockets and storage nooks, and both vanity mirrors are lit.
The side-hinged single-piece tailgate will raise some eyebrows in a world dominated by top-hinged doors, and although it opens wide enough, it reveals a luggage space that looks a bit on the cramped side.
The inside of the tailgate, however, features two take-away hooks and a luggage net, and there are nets, 12-volt sockets and four tie-down points in the rear, as well. Three child-seat restraints are also spaced evenly across the 60/40 split rear seat.
Drive selection is via the now ubiquitous rotary dial, and while the gear selector looks like a prop from a Terminator movie, it actually has a nice action and is ergonomically sound.
The Tank 300 hybrid can tow up to 2500kg.
While the Chinese home market sees a Tank 300 with a diesel engine option, the models destined for Down Under are both powered by the same 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine making 180kW at a fairly high 5500rpm.
That engine is tied to a nine-speed automatic transmission with an electric motor chiming in to provide another 78kW. Max out both powerplants and you’re looking at a total of 258kW and 615Nm of torque.
The base-model Tank gets a locking rear differential, while the more expensive version gets a locking front diff, as well.
Those locking differentials come into play when the driver dials up the 'Torque on Demand' 4WD system which locks the diff(s) and picks up the low-ratio gears in the transfer-case for some bog-holing or rock-jumping.
Suspension is by coils all round with an independent front suspension system and a live rear axle.
This is difficult to put an actual number on as GWM hadn’t announced the fuel economy test results when we drove the car.
However, previous estimates have put the combined fuel consumption number to be between nine and 10 litres per 100km.
That puts the vehicle in slightly thirstier territory compared with the conventional turbo-diesel variants of the main competition, but still ahead of the petrol-engined Jeep Wrangler.
If that seems a bit high, consider that GWM itself claims the hybrid driveline is not just about reducing fuel consumption, it’s also about driveability, on and off road.
The Tank 300 was ANCAP tested last year and managed the full five stars for safety.
Both variants of the vehicle get autonomous emergency braking, stability control, lane-keep assist and lane-departure warning, adaptive cruise-control, traffic sign recognition and six air-bags including full-length side-curtain air-bags.
There’s also a 360-degree camera system and rear-cross traffic alert with an active function. The Tank is also set up for Level 2 autonomous driving.
Basic Warranty
5 years / unlimited km warranty
ANCAP Safety Rating
Like other GWM products, the Tank 300 comes with the full seven-year/unlimited kilometre factory warranty.
GWM has not yet announced whether the high-voltage components of the hybrid driveline will also come under the same warranty terms.
The Tank 300 gets five years of included roadside assistance and there’s capped price servicing available although GWM hadn’t finalised the price of that package when we drove the car.
Let’s start with a disclaimer here. Our drive of the Tank 300 consisted of a short – but reasonably technical – off-road course and a very short stretch of gravel secondary road.
As such, it’s impossible to give much of an impression of its acceleration and absolutely no idea of its behaviour in traffic or at open-road velocities.
We’ll have to re-drive the car when we get hold of one for a week, so stay tuned for that.
Meantime, we can tell you a bit about how the drivetrain feels. And that is that the acceleration is actually very good with the electric motor chiming in to boost throttle response and send the Tank towards the speed limit with a large degree of conviction.
No, it won’t be winning any drag races, but it’s sharper and perkier than a lot of turbo-diesels, particularly when first setting off.
The ride quality on even lumpy terrain was the first surprise. With coil springs at each corner, even the live rear axle couldn’t spoil the impression that the car has decent – if not stellar - wheel articulation and better than average ride plushness.
In fact, it’s this feature that probably stands out above the rest of the deal, although higher speeds over outback corrugations may not suit it as well as the slow-and-steady rock-crawling we were able to sample.
Again, we’ll just have to wait and see.
Making any definitive statements about the Tank 300 will have to wait until we’ve had more time behind the wheel in a variety of settings and conditions.
But what we can tell you is that the vehicle appears to be a decent off-road performer and with more aggressive tyres will probably go beyond where the majority of owners will point it.
It’s also a step up in quality terms from the GWM product we’re more familiar with and there seems to be a bit more flair in both the presentation and the materials used.
The vehicle is probably going to appeal to couples rather than families thanks to its overall dimensions and space inside, but it’s worth mentioning that not every adventurer wants a full-sized station-wagon off-roader. Similarly, the 2500kg towing limit will be a deal breaker for some, but not others.
The one area where the Tank reverts to GWM type, of course, is when it comes to the value-for-money proposition, and at the launch price, the Chinese brand could well be about to mount the next rung on the sales-race ladder.
Note: CarsGuide attended this event as a guest of the manufacturer, with meals provided.
| Vehicle | Specs | Price* | |
|---|---|---|---|
| LUX Hybrid | 2.0L, Hyb/ULP, 9 SP AUTO | $52,470 – 60,280 | 2023 GWM Tank 300 2023 LUX Hybrid Pricing and Specs |
| Ultra Hybrid | 2.0L, Hyb/ULP, 9 SP AUTO | $57,090 – 65,670 | 2023 GWM Tank 300 2023 Ultra Hybrid Pricing and Specs |
| LUX Petrol | 2.0L, —, 8 SP AUTO | $43,560 – 50,600 | 2023 GWM Tank 300 2023 LUX Petrol Pricing and Specs |
| Ultra Petrol | 2.0L, —, 8 SP AUTO | $47,190 – 54,890 | 2023 GWM Tank 300 2023 Ultra Petrol Pricing and Specs |
| Price and features | 9 |
|---|---|
| Design | 8 |
| Practicality | 7 |
| Under the bonnet | 7 |
| Safety | 7 |
| Ownership | 7 |
| Driving | 7 |
$55,990
Lowest price, based on new car retail price
