Great Wall may relaunch Haval H8 SUV in January
Great Wall Motor Co., which halted sales of the Haval H8 SUV twice this year, may resume deliveries of its flagship vehicle in 2015, Chairman Wei Jianjun said.
The H8 may come out in January at the earliest, Wei said Friday in response to Bloomberg queries after a media briefing in the Chinese province of Hebei. Great Wall is working with German parts maker ZF Friedrichshafen AG in tackling an issue involving the H8's rear axle, a task that requires several rounds of modifications, he said.
Great Wall shares are headed for their worst year since 2008 after the company repeatedly delayed the introduction of the vehicle, the company's first SUV priced in the 200,000 yuan ($32,500) segment that's dominated by foreign brands. The delays, which occurred because of quality concerns, undermined the Chinese automaker's credibility over its ability to move beyond making cheap vehicles.
"This is a car that people are looking forward to -- it's a symbolic car for the company," said Yang Song, a Hong Kong-based analyst at Barclays Plc. "People have been waiting to see what they can do in the higher-end SUV segment."
H6 sales
The company isn't looking to add more sedan models in the immediate future, Wei told reporters. Great Wall will ensure that any more vehicles it introduces will be "in line with international standards and competitive," he said.
Monthly sales of the company's H6 SUV is expected to exceed 30,000 units, Wei also said. The company delivered 25,709 units of the model in August, according to Great Wall.
The Haval remains the best-selling SUV line in China, with 32,800 deliveries in August, according to data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.
On May 9, the carmaker suspended H8 sales for the second time this year after customers had reported hearing "knocking noises" in the transmission system at high speeds. At the time, the company said sales of the vehicle would not resume until it is deemed to be built to a "premium standard."
The introduction of the H8, Great Wall's most expensive SUV, was first halted in January after the auto press panned the vehicle in test drives.
Great Wall shares are headed for their worst year since 2008 after the company repeatedly delayed the introduction of the vehicle, the company's first SUV priced in the 200,000 yuan ($32,500) segment that's dominated by foreign brands. The delays, which occurred because of quality concerns, undermined the Chinese automaker's credibility over its ability to move beyond making cheap vehicles.
"This is a car that people are looking forward to -- it's a symbolic car for the company," said Yang Song, a Hong Kong-based analyst at Barclays Plc. "People have been waiting to see what they can do in the higher-end SUV segment."
H6 sales
The company isn't looking to add more sedan models in the immediate future, Wei told reporters. Great Wall will ensure that any more vehicles it introduces will be "in line with international standards and competitive," he said.
Monthly sales of the company's H6 SUV is expected to exceed 30,000 units, Wei also said. The company delivered 25,709 units of the model in August, according to Great Wall.
The Haval remains the best-selling SUV line in China, with 32,800 deliveries in August, according to data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.
On May 9, the carmaker suspended H8 sales for the second time this year after customers had reported hearing "knocking noises" in the transmission system at high speeds. At the time, the company said sales of the vehicle would not resume until it is deemed to be built to a "premium standard."
The introduction of the H8, Great Wall's most expensive SUV, was first halted in January after the auto press panned the vehicle in test drives.
