China’s Great Wall Motor Launching Luxury Brand

Great Wall Motor plans to establish an upper-luxury car brand to compete against Rolls-Royce, Bentley and Mercedes-Maybach as well as homegrown Chinese rivals Hongqi and Yangwang.

Developed under the working title ZX, the brand is set to launch this year. It will concentrate on the development, production and sale of a New Energy Vehicle (NEV) – a Chinese automotive industry term covering plug-in hybrid, battery-electric and fuel-cell electric vehicles.

The first model from the Great Wall Motor luxury brand will be a sedan aimed to rival the Rolls-Royce Ghost, Bentley Flying Spur, Mercedes-Maybach S580 sedan, Hongqi H9 and recently revealed Yangwang U7.

A sketch of the 4-door model boasts a bold design with traditional proportions, sheer surfacing and a generous amount of brightwork detailing within the flanks and window surrounds.

The timing for the sedan’s introduction has not yet been revealed, though a concept is expected to be unveiled at the Beijing auto show in April.

The conception, design and engineering of the ZX have been carried out in China with input from Great Wall Motor’s network of R&D centers, including those in Austria, Germany, Japan and the U.S.

The luxury band also plans an upscale SUV to compete against the Rolls-Royce Cullinan, Bentley Bentayga, Mercedes-Maybach EQS SUV, Hongqi LS7 and Yangwang U8 (pictured, below). 

Models from the upper luxury brand will be sold through a dedicated sales channel separate from that of Great Wall Motor and its existing brands, which include Haval, Ora, Tank and WEY.  

The company recently began a recruiting program for the development of a direct-sales network with Feng Fuzhi, former retail sales director at Li Auto, among its key appointments.

Great Wall Motor is active in over 60 markets worldwide. Its global sales in 2023 totaled 1,230,704, a 15.3% increase over 2022. Significantly, its global exports rose by 82.5% last year to 316,018. Across its five brands, it launched 10 new NEV models in 2023, with sales totaling 262,003.

ZX is the latest attempt by Chinese automakers to compete against the traditional luxury-car elite with electric models. In 2023, BYD launched Yangwang, a similarly conceived brand whose luxury models are positioned in the RMB1,000,000-plus ($139,000) market in China.

Great Wall Motor originally revealed its intention to enter the luxury sedan market with the unveiling of the retro-inspired Futurist concept at the 2020 Beijing auto show.