Great Wall Motors, China’s largest SUV maker is waiting Government’s approval to officially enter the Indian market. The company has announced to invest 1 billion USD in the country. In fact, GWM is working towards acquiring General Motor’s Talegaon plant in Maharashtra.
Great Wall Motors is planning to its Haval SUV brand, which has presence in most of the international markets. The company has trademarked the Haval Drago nameplate in the Indian market. The Drago is basically the Haval DaGou (Big Dog) premium off-road SUV. It is claimed to be an affordable rival to the likes of the Ford Bronco & Land Rover Defender in the select markets.
GWM had showcased the new version of the Haval Dargo at the Jedah Motor Show in Saudi Arabia. In terms of proportions, the new Dargo is 4,620mm in length, 1,890mm in width and 1,780mm in height, and has a wheelbase of 2,738mm.
The Haval Drago comes with some design changes to differentiate itself from the Chinese Haval DaGou. It gets a new trapezoidal radiator grille, new bumpers, new LED headlamps and subtle use of chrome. The cabin looks largely identical to the Chinese model. It gets a 10.25-inch fully digital instrument console and a large 12.3-inch touchscreen infotainment system with multiple connectivity options.
The Haval Dargo is equipped with two petrol engines – a 1.5L turbo and 2.0L turbo. The new engines are claimed to offer power output ranging between 169bhp to 211bhp. A 7-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox sending the power to all-4 wheels will come as standard.
