Australians and Americans may be addicted to large SUVs, but Chinese new car buyers are also increasingly enjoying them.
In China there is a whole segment of SUVs longer than 5.2 meters, almost all of which have a “9” in their name. And now comes another participant who Wey V9X.
Wey is GWM’s premium brand launching in Australia this year – although treated as a sub-brand like Haval and Tank.
After being touted by Wey, the V9X now appears in the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) documents he shared CarNewsChina.
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The V9X is a fairly large SUV measuring 5299 mm in length, 2025 mm in width and 1825 mm in height with a wheelbase of 3150 mm.
For comparison: GWM’s Tank 500 – similar in size to a Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series and itself equipped with three rows of seats – is 5078 mm long, 1934 mm wide and 1905 mm high and has a wheelbase of 2850 mm.
The V9X will introduce the new GWM One architecture, a new “super platform” that will support everything from sedans and SUVs to small and sports cars, supporting a range of powertrains including gasoline, plug-in hybrid, diesel hybrid, electric and hydrogen fuel cell.
However, Wey’s flagship SUV will reportedly use a plug-in hybrid powertrain with a 175kW 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine and an electric motor, capable of 0-100km/h acceleration of between 4.4 and 4.7 seconds, depending on battery charge level.
It is also reported to have an 800V electrical architecture, with the MIIT filing citing a maximum electric range of 363km and a nickel-manganese-cobalt (NMC) battery with unspecified SVOLT capacity.
There will reportedly be three rows of seating, with a pair of captain’s chairs in the second row and a bench in the third row, bringing the total number of seats to six. However, the interior has yet to be revealed.
Air suspension may be available, while the vehicle shown in the MIIT documents appears to have a LiDAR unit, which works in conjunction with the vehicle’s cameras and radar units to power active safety and driver assistance technology.
The design fits perfectly with other Chinese 9-Class SUVs, with a long and boxy body with rounded edges and continuous lighting elements at the front and rear.
The Wey V9X will enter a busy segment, with the recently launched BYD Great Tang electric SUV and the Xpeng GX electric and range electric SUV alongside the Aito M9, which is also offered as an electric or EREV.
There are also the plug-in hybrids Denza N8L and N9, Lynk & Co 900 and Zeekr 9X, the IM LS9 EREV and the Nio ES8 EV.
It is currently unclear whether the new Wey flagship will be launched in Australia.
Founded in 2016, the Wey brand is currently at the forefront with the Lanshan (Blue Mountain) SUV – a three-row plug-in hybrid SUV with a length of “only” 5156 mm.
It is one of only three models currently offered under the Wey brand, the others being the Gaoshan People Mover (expected in Australia this year) and the Mocha, a mid-to-large PHEV crossover SUV.
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