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Haval just named its new SUV the "Big Dog": Chinese take on a Land Cruiser Prado scores what could be the world's strangest name


If we've learned nothing else from the Boaty McBoatface debacle, it's that the public can't always be trusted to come up with the best name for something. And so it is with the new Haval DaGou, with the Chinese brand's new mid-size SUV set to receive a weird (and more than a little bit wonderful) name courtesy of public poll. 

The DaGou translates literally to "Big Dog", or the Haval Big Dog to be more specific. The name was chosen among a list of equally curious monikers, including Battle Axe, Wolf and Reactor.

But Big Dog has taken the big prize, and by some margin, though it must be said, whether Haval sticks with that name in international markets remains to be seen.

The Big Dog (to be honest, we just like writing that), is a cool-looking, retro-themes SUV designed, according to Haval, to land somewhere between an "urban SUV and a hardcore off-road vehicle". A little like a Toyota LandCruiser Prado, then.

Details are a little thin on the ground for now, but we do now the Big Dog will sit on a 2738mm wheelbase, which is just shy of the Prado's 2790mm wheelbase. The Chinese SUV will also serve up some 200mm of ground clearance - more than the Prado's 195mm.

Engine spec detail is sparse, but international reports have the Big Dog rocking a 1.5-litre engine good for 125kW and 285Nm, with a bigger 2.0-litre engine pumping out 165kW and 385Nm.