Great Wall vehicles ... any good ?

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Mark

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Topic # 114529 22-Feb-2013 14:21

Anyone here got an experience with Great Wall ? Just wondering how good their vehicles are (since they are cheap) ... safety ok ?

Looking for a replacement family car and the X200 looks good on paper.

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Reply # 767687 22-Feb-2013 14:54

Have a read of this http://www.nzherald.co.nz/motoring/news/article.cfm?c_id=9&objectid=10814784

Paulthagerous

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Reply # 767691 22-Feb-2013 14:59

Don't know anyone that has bought one but I have driven one. It was an x240. It wasn't too bad but to me it felt cheap. It just didn't handle ride or feel as good as, say, a Qashqai. My uncle who isn't a car person thought it was quite good. Reliability and safety no idea.

Best bet is to drive one and see what you think. Depending on what you were previously driving it may feel great or might be not so good.

A lot will come down to price. In the end it just wasn't that much cheaper than the Qashqai so he got one of those instead.

MikeB4

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Reply # 767692 22-Feb-2013 15:01

Most have done very badly in NCAP tests. They are built to a price and very low price. Personally I would not touch them.

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lxsw20

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Reply # 767693 22-Feb-2013 15:03

They are still a bit new to the market. Last I heard they were using copies of quite old Toyota and Mistubishi running gear.

They will catch up, just like the Japanese did back in the day and the Koreans have done in more recent years.

Wade

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Reply # 767706 22-Feb-2013 15:20

Resale will be the killer, I remember seeing a used one for some ridiculously low amount. That said the latest double cab Ute seems to be popular with fleets and privateers alike so will be interesting to see if the trend continues

Decal

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Reply # 767720 22-Feb-2013 15:27

My uncle got one brand new ( can't remember the model) and it died after 6 months...

ptinson

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Reply # 767729 22-Feb-2013 15:31

ANCAP for some Great wall cars.
http://rightcar.govt.nz/ancap-make-results.html?q=Great+Wall

meat popsicle

scuwp

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Reply # 767739 22-Feb-2013 15:48

The new ones are doing OK now in crash tests, some even 5 stars. That said you get what you pay for. I am seeing more and more on the road now since they tidies up their crash ratings.

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Handsomedan

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Reply # 767770 22-Feb-2013 16:59

I've seen plety of them on the road, but whenever i do, I think that if I owned one, I'd de-badge it.
They look like an older model Nissan or similar and I quite like that look, but there's just the stigma attached to Chinese vehicles that's hard to shake.

If you have no intention of ever selling it and you enjoy the ride in a test-drive (I'd try to take it for a weekend), then I'd say take the leap.

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mattwnz

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Reply # 767782 22-Feb-2013 17:08

I think the only reason to buy one would be price alone. They certainly wouldn't win any design awards by the look of them.

I was a bit concerned when I read this, and how NZ rules aren't as stringent as Australias http://www.nbr.co.nz/article/wr-car-torque-bm-p-126716

mattwnz

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Reply # 767784 22-Feb-2013 17:10

Handsomedan: I've seen plety of them on the road, but whenever i do, I think that if I owned one, I'd de-badge it.
They look like an older model Nissan or similar and I quite like that look, but there's just the stigma attached to Chinese vehicles that's hard to shake.

If you have no intention of ever selling it and you enjoy the ride in a test-drive (I'd try to take it for a weekend), then I'd say take the leap.

There used to be a stigma with Japanese ones too, but now they are the most reliable. Korean too have upped their quality. Chinas may too overtime. Chinas electronics these days tend to be pretty good.

old3eyes

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Reply # 767858 22-Feb-2013 19:14

mattwnz: I think the only reason to buy one would be price alone. They certainly wouldn't win any design awards by the look of them.

I was a bit concerned when I read this, and how NZ rules aren't as stringent as Australias http://www.nbr.co.nz/article/wr-car-torque-bm-p-126716

The only reason the ADR is like it is is to protect the failing Ozzy car industry from all these evil foreign cars from coming cheap into the country by jacking up the price. I remember a couple of years ago BMW NZ who was bringing cars in with the UK spec decided to bring them in to the ADR to keep shipping cost down. Problem was that under the ADR specs the price up by about $4K to $6K

Regards,

Old3eyes

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Reply # 768035 23-Feb-2013 08:58

"Solid as, I reckon

EDIT: oops wrong brand

Cambo

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Reply # 768045 23-Feb-2013 09:37

I wouldn't use the word 'good' in the same sentence as Great Wall.

I'll tell you a bit of info about Chery, which is similar to GW - both Chinese companies, part-owned or assisted by the Chinese government. Both have entered partnerships with other more reputable manufacturers, and have been accused of stealing technology. Both have very cheap build quality, which may be improving. They cost-cut by not paying for technology from other manufacturers, and cut corners in building the vehicles, yet they are striving to show themselves as capable competitors to western manufacturers.
The dealerhship that I work at used to have the Chery franchise here in Chch, but we gave it up shortly afterwards. New vehicles would arrive off the boat and fail the initial WoF inspection for a raft of mainly safety-related reasons. Very poor welding on the chassis would come off when pushed with the tip of a pen. Certain models are also banned in some Australian states due to poor safety.
Part of my job is to check-over customers cars to keep a record of dents, scratches, broken or missing trim etc. On one particular day a 1 year old Chery had a larger list compared to a 24 year old Peugeot; the list included windscreen trim not fitted correctly, clunks ftom the suspension, rubber moulding coming loose.
Sit in a Chery and turn on the A/C, and suddenly on the highest setting it sounds like a hair-dryer in your face. But all of these are now accepted as par-for-the-course.
I have heard stories of the quality of Great Wall vehicles too, from mechanics who work on them.

Essentially, you get what you pay for. However I would suggest a Ssangyong over a GW - SY have come along in leaps and bounds in quality from their previous models. They have Mercedes engines too!

Batman

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Reply # 768090 23-Feb-2013 11:02

If you want a car that goes from a to b most of the time and need scrap metal in about the day after it runs out of warranty go for it

If that's not your cup of tea go for the tried and tested

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