2025 Haval H9 priced overseas: Could this affordable retro-styled alternative to the LandCruiser Prado be a hit in Australia as GWM looks to lock-in its lead over the Chinese competition?

Haval has priced its hero model, the H9 off-road SUV in its home market of China.

Launching in three variants, the H9 arrives with a starting price-tag which is equivalent to $41,400 Australian dollars, which, once you add the roughly 15-20 per cent price increase Australian versions attract, seems to line-up with potential local pricing mooted by the brand at the H9’s reveal at the Beijing motor show in April this year.

While the H9 has not yet been locked in for Australian launch, speaking to media at the Beijing show GWM's local communications boss Steve Maciver said the H9 could serve as the brand’s “second seven-seater” to sit below the Tank 500 in its range.

“Now we’ve had Australians here [at GWM HQ in Baoding, China], it’s safe to say we’re impressed with the product. We could have a second seven-seater in our market, but obviously pricing is key to that.

“There could be some price differential in that the Tank 500 has technology and features the H9 doesn’t need. The Haval SUV strategy is to be capable, but not as capable as the Tank series,” he said.

He also suggested there was a push from GWM HQ to have the H9 as a hero product, even in export markets, and that, if they wanted it, right-hand drive was possible within a 12 month window of its overseas launch.

The H9 has just arrived in the Chinese market exclusively with a 2.0-litre turbo-petrol engine (165kW/385Nm) with an eight-speed ZF-sourced automatic transmission in four-wheel drive with mechanical differential locks. It is not yet available with any of the brand’s hybrid drivetrain options which are being rolled out in the Tank range, the latest of which, an off-road focused system dubbed 'Hi4-T' will first arrive on the new Haval H7 next year.

The three variants announced for China include the ‘Explorer’ (AU$41,400 equivalent), Tuojing (AU$44,700 equivalent) and the Extreme topping out the range (AU$47,624 equivalent).

The circa $50,000-$60,000 pricing region would place the H9 in a similar position to the smaller five-seat Tank 300 (the Tank 300 is 4760mm long, while the Haval H9 is 5070mm long), but well above the current head of the Haval range, the H6, which tops-out at $45,990. Maciver indicated that if the H9 were to arrive in Australia it would only be as a seven-seat offering in order to carve out a suitable niche.

The brand also pitched the possibility of the H9 having a point of difference by being fitted with the same 2.4-litre turbo-diesel engine (135kW/480Nm) as fitted to the Cannon Alpha ute, although Mr Maciver said Australia’s recently-introduced New Vehicle Emissions Standards (NVES) would make the petrol powertrain the more likely of the two options.

“Diesel would be a tough argument given everything that’s happening. We can weigh that up. There’s no point in bringing something just because we like the idea of it. The business case has to stack up.”

Interestingly, similar comments were made around the Haval H7 (also known as the Big Dog in its Chinese home market) at the Beijing show, a car which has now been confirmed for an Australian arrival.

GWM’s range is swelling on the back of new-generation products and a push to introduce a range of sub-brands in Australia, including the Tank off-road and Ora EV marques.

A recent document leak suggests Hi4-T plug-in hybrid versions of the Tank 300, Tank 500, and Cannon Alpha could be due in 2025, along with a PHEV version of the H6 mid-size SUV. This will join the now-confirmed Haval H7 which will act as a hybrid off-road alternative to the H6 in Haval’s range.

Elsewhere, the brand is looking to expand on its Ora range potentially with the Ora Sport four-door coupe and an as-yet unseen SUV model, and has also suggested the Tank range could be topped-out with the Tank 700 - a 3.0-litre twin-turbo plug-in hybrid large military-styled off-roader which could easily breach the $100K mark as the brand’s aspirational flagship model.

Either way, GWM will have a fight on its hands in the next year or two as more rivals from China arrive. Haval will face increased competition from the likes of Chery and GAC, while the Tank SUVs and Cannon utes are looking at a rivalry with BYD’s Shark and potentially its Leopard hybrid off-road sub-brand.