The facelifted Greatwall Haval H5 ‘European Style’ has been officially listed on the Chinese market. Greatwall uses the ‘Haval’ name for its line of SUV’s. The original Chinese is Hafu (哈弗). Greatwall used to use the English translation ‘Hover’ but found out that the Hover-name was already registered in the US and many countries in Europe. Greatwall therefore changed Hover to Haval.

To make things a bit more complicated: Greatwall still uses Hover as the English name in China. To makes things a little bit more complicated yet again; there are two versions of the H5. Both share the same platform and price but have a different exterior design. This here is the ‘European Style‘, the other one is the ‘Zhizun‘, which can be translated as ‘Wisdom’. The Zhizun is formerly known as ‘GCK Edition’.

Greatwall Haval H5 Zhizun.

Outgoing Greatwall Haval H5 European Style. Basically the same car, facelift a small affair indeed, just a slightly different grille and bumper.

Now back to the new car. Price starts at 92.800 yuan and ends at 168.800 yuan. Huge price range due to the engines. Cheapest cars come with an ancient 2.4 from Mitsubishi with 136hp and 200nm. Then its up to Greatwall’s own 2.0 with 122hp and 170nm, next is the 2.0 turbo with 150hp and 310nm. There is also a 2.5 diesel for export with 109hp and 300nm.

Pics via Autohome.

The Greatwall Haval H5 debuted at the Beijing Auto Show in April, it looked ready for the market right there but it took Greatwall another seven months to get it ready. It now is, price starts at 125.800 yuan and ends at 168.800 yuan.

Size: 4650  x1800×1745, wheelbase is 2700 and weight is 1830kg. 2WD or 4WD, 5 speed manual or auto. Engine: 2.4 petrol with 100kw and 200nm. Top speed: Greatwall doesn’t tell, it’s easy to see why not…

The Greatwall Haval H5 is the successor  of the Greatwall Hover. It comes in two: this one called ‘GKC Edition’ with a typical new Chinese front with a huge grille and one other called ‘European Style’ with a much more modest front. Except for the front both cars are completely identical and both will hit the market at the same time in a few months. Because this one is for China only it gets a petrol engine, diesel is forbidden for passenger cars in most of the country.

Size: 4650 (1 cm longer compared to the EE, that’s that grille) x1800x1745, wheelbase is 2700 and weight is 1830kg. 2WD or 4WD, 5 speed manual or auto. Engine: 2.4 petrol with 100kw and 200nm. Price will start around 145.000 rmb.

The Greatwall Haval H5 is the successor  of the Greatwall Hover. It comes in two: this one called ‘European Style’ with a modest front and one other called ‘GKC Edition‘ with a typical new Chinese front with a huge grille. Except for the front both cars are completely identical and both will hit the market at the same time in a few months.

The H5 ‘European Style’ is also meant to spearhead Greatwall’s invasion of Europe, that is why the name. For that it got a Diesel which those Europeans like, especially the Italians ’cause a diesel means less tax and so more money for vino.

Size: 4649x1810x1735, wheelbase is 2700 and weight 1900kg. RWD or 4WD. Engine: 2.0 Diesel with 110kw and 380nm. 5 speed automatic. Top speed: 160km/h. Price in China, with a petrol engine mind, will start around 145.000 rmb.

Greatwall turned their good old Hover into a separate brand, this in line with almost all Chinese manufacturers. Motto seems: “brands, you can’t have enough of ‘m!”  This is the new Hover H5, meant to crack Europe. The old Greatwall Hover is already for sale in several countries in Eastern Europe and in Italy in Western. The H5 is said to come with better safety-thingies so it can go all the way in the Old Continent.  Nice idea, but that ancient 2.4 litre Mitsubishi 136bhp engine won’t help.

It certainly loox better and more modern but it is hard to speak of a ‘new’ car, the engine is the same as in the old one and I’ve never heard much good of it. I have a Beijing-Jeep in Beijing and the maintenance is done by a small company specialized in helping foreigners with the Chinese masses of paperwork. They used to have over 300 Beijing-Jeeps on maintenance but since tha car is no longer made, it still is but under the Beiqi-nameplate, many foreigners went for a Greatwall Hover. Miss Pang, owner of the company, told me the always broke down and her company so had much more work on the new Hovers than ever on the old Beijing-Jeeps. But; maybe things improved with this new H5.

Classy, but is needs an old fashioned key to start.

Of course we wish Greatwall best, but can’t say we are convinced. Price in China will be around 120.000 rmb, price in Europe yet unknown but will be at least 20.000 euro.

A spyshott all alone, I got only one, of the new Great Wall H5 meant for the European market. GW’s new Hover will be split in two: a boring H5 and a more exiting H5 CUV. The boring car, which you see above, will try to hit it in Europe from 2011.

Renderings from a leaked GW brochure show the European Edition H5. The actual test car seems lower on it’s wheels, more like a station wagon than a suv. It will end up somewhere in the middle, note GW listing the Honda CRV as a competitor. The size of the EuroH5: 4790x1920x1820, wheelbase: 2920, ground clearance: 22 [I question that] and a curb weight of 2010 kg.

The H5 CUV.

Someone got his or her hands on a internal Greatwall brochure about the brand’s future and put it on the web. Thanks, someone. As many other Chinese automakers Greatwall believes one brand is not enough so it will have three: Greatwall, Hover and Wingle. ‘Hover’ will so become a brand name.

The current ‘Greatwall H(over)3′ will be replaced by the Hover H5 and the current ‘Greatwall H(over)3 CUV’ by the Hover H5 CUV above.  Confusing it is, mad one would say, fortunately the brochure contained a chart:

Left the ‘Greatwall’-brand which will mostly make sedans and smaller passenger vehicles, the three middle columns are the ‘Hover’-brand which mostly will do SUV’s, the column on the right is the ‘Wingle’-brand which will make commercial vehicles such as small pick up trucks. Confusion cleared, it all makes sense.

The H5 CUV will be a more luxurious and stylish machine than the…

…more humble H5. Both though are based on the same platform. Compare dashboards:

Style.

Cheap. It’s a personal thing off course, look again, they are the same.

They call everything a SUV these days, for me this is a MPV, like some Chryslers are. Greatwall calls it the Hover H6 SUV.

But it loox all right, bit of this and a bit of that made it a nice machine together. Very likely on the same platform again with the same engines as the other H’s. That is a modern 2.0 or an older 2.4, you can’t have all at Greatwall; buyer to choose.