Make / Model Search
News - Market Insight - Market Insight 2025Market Insight: GWM chalks up 200,000 salesAccelerating sales, consolidation of brands secure GWM’s place in Australian top 1025 Aug 2025 AFTER a false start in 2009 under independent importer Ateco Automotive, GWM (formerly Great Wall Motors) has this month chalked up a milestone 200,000 sales since the brand first appeared Down Under.
The Chinese car-maker passed 150,000 sales in Australia less than 12 months ago and is on track to deliver more than 50,000 new vehicles here during 2025.
What started with a pair of rather underwhelming one-tonne utes (and a little later a mid-size SUV) derived from Japanese vehicles, the GWM line-up has evolved to include eight models on its current local menu: Ora small electric hatch, Haval Jolion small SUV, Cannon and Cannon Alpha utes, Tank 300 and 500 large 4x4 SUVs, Haval H6 and Haval H6 GT medium SUVs plus another scheduled soon, the H7 SUV.
Head office in China took control of the brand here in 2016 and since then, sales have progressed to the point where GWM now comfortably ranks as a top ten brand by sales in Australia.
As of July, GWM accounted for 4.6 per cent of Australia’s total new-vehicle market, ranking seventh position in that month’s sales charts – a bee’s whisker in front of fellow Chinese brand BYD and among a bevy of Japanese and Korean makes – and Ford.
In hard numbers, July 2025 VFACTS data shows GWM products found homes with 4721 customers last month (up 42.2 per cent against a market that rose 3.6 per cent), contributing to 29,910 sales so far this year, a 20.4 per cent increase on the 24,843 out the door this time last year (against an overall market which shrank by 2.7 per cent YTD).
Interestingly, GWM has yet to see one of its models on the top ten sellers list with Chery’s Tiggo 4 small SUV the only Chinese product currently able to achieve that particular milestone.
GWM is no doubt confident of progressing further up the line thanks in part to its keenly priced portfolio that features a broad mix of powertrains including ICE (petrol and diesel) and NVES-friendly battery electric, plug-in hybrids and hybrids that have wide appeal in a complex, currently evolving market in terms of powertrain preferences.
The company will likely further benefit from a localisation program across all its vehicles that recently saw car calibration expert and former Holden engineer Rob Trubiani join GWM in Australia as product engineering manager.
His brief is to localise the ride and handling characteristics of GWM’s cars – making them more suitable to Australian roads and potentially take on a global role influencing dynamics years before a given model launches.
Underlining the above, GWM has leased the Lang Lang proving ground in Victoria from Vietnamese car-maker Vinfast to assist in its car set-up program.
GWM says its strong performance in Australia has firmly positioned this market as one of its most important international growth hubs.
“Local buyers have embraced the brand’s combination of value, advanced technology, and competitive ownership benefits, helping drive GWM’s global strategy,” says the company.
GWM Australia and New Zealand head of marketing and communications Steve Maciver described Australia as “becoming a significant cornerstone of our global operations”.
“Our local success will only accelerate as we continue to invest here – demonstrated by the recent announcement of product localisation with Rob Trubiani and our residency at the Lang Lang proving ground.
“We are proud to have handed over our 200,000th vehicle in Australia and sincerely thank every GWM customer for the trust they have placed in our brand.”  Read more6th of August 2025  VFACTS: July market remains buoyantJuly new car market buoyant despite Australia’s economic woes, sales up 3.6pc year-on-year29th of July 2025  GWM hopes Trubiani’s local tuning goes globalThree months in, GWM’s ex-GM handling guru is making inroads on tuning program28th of July 2025  GWM confirms launch of boxy Haval H7Haval H7 hybrid priced as GWM adds ruggedly styled twin to H6 medium segment SUV |
Click to shareMarket Insight articlesResearch Market Insight Motor industry news GoAutoNews is Australia’s number one automotive industry journal covering the latest news, future and new model releases, market trends, industry personnel movements, and international events. |
Connect with us
Facebook Twitter Instagram