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GAC is launching in Australia this month with a small SUV and a mid-size SUV, which can compete in two of the highest-volume gross sales segments in our market, nevertheless it’s additionally lobbing with a folks mover.
Individuals movers, aka MPVs or minivans, are standard in markets like China and Japan the place they’re usually used as government transportation, however they’re decidedly much less fascinating in Australia the place they’re usually perceived as household haulers for teenagers to get all soiled and sticky.
The plug-in hybrid GAC M8 will enter a wider folks mover phase containing 17 fashions… however which is totally dominated by only one, the Kia Carnival, which final yr held a whopping 74 per cent share.
And whereas the folks mover phase has been usually trending upwards in Australia since a nasty stoop in 2020, final yr simply 13,654 of those sensible household haulers reached Australian consumers.
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That’s greater than the general sports activities automobile phase (10,633) however lower than mainstream mid-size passenger automobiles (24,740) and lightweight automobiles (26,317).
Regardless of this, GAC is following in fellow Chinese language model Zeekr’s footsteps by together with a folks mover amongst its mannequin vary from launch.
“Sure, in Australia there are only a few manufacturers which give an MPV. That is fairly an identical scenario in China again to possibly 10 years,” Cheney Liang, deputy common supervisor of GAC Australia, instructed CarExpert.
“Earlier than the M8 [launched in China], it was simply the [Honda] Odyssey as the most well-liked one. However after the M8 goes to the market, it really expands the market, the market turns into larger than earlier than.
“I feel after the M8 involves the Australian market, there might be some change within the prospects as a result of at this second for the Carnival… A lot of the prospects have an Asian background, nevertheless it has already modified just a little bit. The Aussies begin to purchase [people movers].”
GAC Australia has but to announce pricing and specs for any of its fashions, although this data is predicted to be launched later this month.
The M8 was launched in China in 2017, with the present era following in 2022.
Automotive Information China reviews the M8 was one of many best-selling folks movers in China in 2024, behind the Denza D9; the Toyota Sienna produced by the GAC Toyota three way partnership; its Granvia twin which, not like the defunct Australian-market Granvia, is a frivolously restyled Sienna produced by the FAW Toyota three way partnership; and the perennially standard Buick GL8.
It additionally managed to outsell the Honda Odyssey by over two-to-one.
The Australian folks mover market may be very completely different. The Carnival has lengthy dominated right here, consolidating its market share as once-popular rivals just like the Toyota Tarago and Honda Odyssey left the native market.
Regardless of the arrival lately of rivals just like the Ford Tourneo and Hyundai Staria, nothing has been capable of shake the Kia’s iron grip available on the market phase.
Even a competitively priced rival from China, the LDV MIFA, hasn’t made a lot of a dent. Simply 166 of those have been delivered this yr to the top of October, with its electrical MIFA 9 sibling recording a negligible three deliveries.
The M8 is predicted to be extra inexpensive than the electrical MIFA 9 and its Zeekr 009 rival, the latter of which has notched up simply 104 deliveries this yr.
GAC’s MPV providing will stand out by providing plug-in hybrid energy, one thing not but current on this phase in Australia, with rivals as an alternative providing both petrol, diesel, hybrid or electrical energy.
Unusually, GAC has chosen to prioritise a folks mover over passenger automobiles, although mild, small and medium automobiles are extra standard general right here.
“Earlier than we determined the merchandise coming to Australia, we had to perform a little research, and we noticed that the passenger [car segment] market share is dropping down, so we determined to deliver right here the most well-liked – which is the SUVs first,” stated Mr Liang.
“We nonetheless haven’t selected all of the fashions that can come sooner or later. It could have an opportunity, if the shopper wants.”
GAC affords all kinds of passenger automobiles throughout its GAC Auto/Trumpchi, Aion, and Hyptec manufacturers.
These vary from the small electrical Aion UT hatchback via to the aggressively styled GAC Empow mid-size sedan, all the best way as much as the wild Hyptec SSR supercar.
GAC Australia will provide fashions from all three manufacturers beneath the GAC banner, although it hasn’t confirmed which automobiles it’ll launch after the preliminary trio due this yr – solely that it’ll have eight fashions on sale by the top of 2027.
Engineering automobiles for right-hand drive isn’t presenting an impediment for the model.
“We’ve got already designed the platform we name the worldwide platform that may [support] each right-hand and left-hand [drive]. Additionally we have now many right-hand drive markets,” stated Mr Liang.
In keeping with Automotive Business Evaluation, GAC was the eleventh best-selling auto group in China in 2024. Aion was the best-selling of its three manufacturers, ending the yr as China’s twentieth best-selling auto model with 349,550 gross sales – simply behind GM’s Buick (367,412) and GWM’s Haval (383,857).
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