Borrowing a few design notes from the Jeep Wrangler, the GWM Tank 300 is a capable off-road warrior that burst onto the Australian market in 2023. At a time when most car brands, especially Chinese ones, are embracing the EV transition, it can’t help but feel a little nostalgic to have a new car company embracing a traditional petrol off-roader.
The line-up currently starts at $46,190 for the Tank 300 Lux Diesel and ranges through to $60,990 for the range-topping Tank 300 Ultra Hybrid.
I’ll presume you mean the indicator stalk which uses a soft touch to indicate a lane change, and a firmer push to keep the indicators on until a turn has been made. There’s also some confusion when trying to cancel the indicators manually, and inadvertently indicating the wrong way. Plenty of people have complained about this, and some owners don’t seem to ever get used to it. That said, drivers of other models rarely find this setup to be a problem.
I checked with GWM who told me that there were no plans to make any changes to the indicator system on the current model Tank 300. The vehicle passes all safety standards for Australia and there’s no problem with the system that would require a safety recall or any other intervention. However, this feedback has reached GWM and – though nobody at GWM has said so – I wouldn’t be surprised if the next incarnation of the Tank 300 has a different indicator stalk system.
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This message will sometimes be seen in the Tank 300 when the battery charge drops below 12.5 volts. This can happen for a range of reasons, which can include that the key fob is too close to the car when it’s not being used (believe it or not). So don’t leave the key anywhere near the car when you’re not driving and see if that helps.
Other causes are accessories like dashcams that are either wired incorrectly or are not playing nice with the Tank’s body computer. You could try to disconnect the car’s battery overnight which may reset the computer to factory settings, but this seems like a pretty common fault with the Tank 300.
Being such a new car, the problem should not be the battery itself, but it would still be worth having it checked as well as the charging system to make sure there’s no problem there.
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Straight back to the dealer with this one. You either have a problem with the actual stereo unit, the screen that controls it or perhaps even the body computer which has the final say over functions like this one. Either way, it’s a warranty job for sure.
The dealer may be able to reboot the system to return it to normal operation, but whatever happens make sure the dealership logs and records the problem in case it comes back in the future. Sometimes even a problem that returns after the vehicle is out of warranty, if it was first detected when the vehicle was still under that warranty, may mean the problem is what’s called a pre-existing condition and the manufacturer is still obliged to fix it.
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The interior has a rugged, upright look and feel and gives the impression of being a capable off roader. The dual 12.3-inch digital screens are integrated and offer crisp graphics. The cabin is spacious without being overly roomy and the mixed materials offer visual appeal.
Standard gear in the Lux includes 17-inch alloy wheels, synthetic leather seats and steering wheel, power=adjustable front seats, dual-zone climate control, keyless entry and start, a sunroof, power-folding mirrors, paddle-shifters, a nine-speaker audio system with digital radio, built-in sat-nav, and a pair of 12.3 inch digital displays with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
The Ultra upgrades to 18-inch wheels, Nappa leather-accented seats, heated and ventilated front seats, a heated steering wheel, more adjustment for the front seats and a memory setting, a massage function for the driver’s seat, a wireless phone charger, and a nine-speaker premium audio system
Fossil Grey is standard for the Tank 300, but premium paint colours which are extra include Lunar Red, Pearl White, Dusk Orange and Crystal Black.
The Tank 300 has three powertrain options. There is a 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine delivering 162kW/380Nm and paired to an eight-speed automatic transmission.
There's also a petrol-electric hybrid with combined outputs of 255kW/648Nm matched with a nine-speed hybrid automatic transmission.
And the latest addition is a 2.4-litre turbocharged four-cylinder diesel with 135kW/480Nm on tap and matched with a nine-speed auto.
The GWM Tank 300 has five seats and the rear has a 60/40 split with a central fold-down armrest. Seats are either synthetic leather in the Lux or Nappa leather-appointed in the Ultra.
The Tank 300 offers 400 litres of boot space with all seats in place from the floor to the top of the rear seats, increasing to 1635L with the rear seats folded.
The Tank 300 petrol can accelerate from standstill to 100km/h (0-100km/h) in around 10 seconds, on the way to a top speed of 170km/h.
The HEV hybrid, in contrast, can manage 0-100km/h in about 8.0 seconds flat.
Fuel use for the petrol Tank 300 is 9.5 litres per 100 kilometres, and it requires 91 RON.
The figure for the hybrid is 8.4L, and the diesel is the most efficient at 7.8L/100km.