GWM Haval Jolion Gearbox & Transmission Problems

Any time you have a burning smell in a car, you have a potential fire. If something is hot enough that you can smell it, it’s possibly hot enough to burst into flames, especially if it contacts a fuel or oil leak somewhere on the car.

The fact that the smell occurs when going uphill suggests that it’s something in the driveline (engine or transmission) that’s getting hot because it’s working hard. It could also be a cable or hose that’s incorrectly routed too close to something that’s getting hot (like the exhaust) and causing the smell. In any case, the answer to your question is no, it’s not normal and it needs investigating.

Sometimes, a new exhaust system will create the odd strange smell as it heats up the first couple of times this shouldn’t be happening after 9000km. You need to take the car back to where you bought it from and have the dealership fix this before a real fire takes hold, or something important melts and stops working.