Chinese car manufacturer Great Wall will kick-off sales in the UK this autumn with a pick-up aimed at small business users.
The double-cab pick-up, to be powered by a new 2.0-litre diesel engine, is expected to significantly undercut other pick-ups in the market. A final naming decision has not been made for the UK, however the pick-up is expected to be called Steed, rather than the Chinese market Wingle, a shortened version of ‘winged eagle’.
“Great Wall Motors is a value brand, they don’t perceive themselves as a cheap brand,” Paul Hegarty, managing director of Great Wall UK told BusinessCar.
“Great Wall’s aim is to be the Chinese equivalent to Toyota. The quality is much higher than people expect.
“The pick-up will appeal to small business customers. It’s easy to put into that market. We’re not sure who we’ll take market share from, but we could come in at a price that will take sales away from some of our rivals’ second-hand vehicles.”
While Hegarty would not be drawn on a price, the current lowest-cost entrant in the UK pick-up market is the Isuzu Rodeo priced from £11,434 (excluding VAT), itself nearly £2000 less expensive than the next lowest cost pick-up, the Mitsubishi L200.
Hegarty added: “We will come up with a contract hire offering too, although a large proportion of our market are not even VAT-registered. This gives us the advantage that we’re £200 cheaper for every £1000 less we are than our rivals.”
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