Auto Guangzhou: Five wackiest cars

As the largest annual motor show in the world’s biggest automotive market, Auto Guangzhou is becoming increasingly important to the global auto industry and the 19th instalment didn’t disappoint.

And while this year’s Guangzhou International Auto Exhibition (GIAE), as it’s also called, lacked some of the impact of previous shows in part because some cars simply failed to turn up – here’s looking at you, Ford Mondeo – there was no shortage of excitement.

Here we bring you some of the wackier production and concept cars to grace the 12 halls of a Chinese motor show that has been held more times than the alternating Beijing/Shanghai headline acts.

Earlier reports that GWM would concentrate on fuel-cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) at the 2021 GIAE proved way off the mark and instead it seems China’s biggest SUV and pick-up maker will concentrate on high-end EVs for now.

Looking like a Mad Maxesque mash up of a Pontiac Firebird and a Hyundai IONIQ 5, the first model from new GWM brand Saloon certainly makes an entrance and in a world of identikit cars its unique design may prove a winner.

Previewing a large luxury electric sedan expected to go on sale in China in June 2022, the Saloon Mecha Dragon measures 5.2 metres long and boasts an EV range of 802km (NEDC) along with claimed 0-100km/h acceleration in just 3.7 seconds.

Thanks to an 800V electrical architecture it can add 401km of range in just 10 minutes, says GWM, while sizeable outputs of 405kW and 750Nm come courtesy of permanent magnet motors both front and rear.

Like pretty much every higher-end EV launching in China, the car is equipped with Lidar sensors, but the Mecha Dragon claims to be first with four.

Including its Great Wall, Haval, Wey, Ora and Tank brands, GWM sold almost one million vehicles to October this year (up 22%), including more than 110,000 exports to Australia, Russia, Middle East, Africa, South America and Asia.

So you can expect to see the Mecha Dragon, also called the Jijialong, exported to a range of markets eventually, although the Saloon brand name might prove difficult to trademark.

Songsan caused a stir at last year’s Beijing show with its Corvette C1-inspired SS Dolphin, and now it has returned to Guangzhou with the equally retro and partly convertible Monterey concept.

Channelling a 1960s American vibe, the Monterey goes full hog with the chrome and its dimensions are huge at 5180mm long and two metres wide.

The roof at the back is cut away over what the company calls the boss seat – rear bench to you and me – and Songsan says it’s aiming for 150,000 annual sales of by 2025.

Despite talking of rockets and jets in its press release – OK that was to do with its lighting – Songsan’s latest model will be available with three powertrains when it enters production: petrol, PHEV and fully electric.

The petrol engine is a turbocharged 3.0-litre unit, while the plug-in hybrid gets a 2.0T. The EV version is claimed to hit 100km/h in only 3.8sec.

It is unclear where its powertrains are sourced from and what lies beneath the Monterey. The Songsan Dolphin was reportedly based on BYD underpinnings, but a representative at the show denied rumours the company is connected to BYD so it appears this car-maker is as enigmatic as its products.

GAC always puts in a strong showing on home turf at Auto Guangzhou and, of all the large state-owned Chinese car-makers, it tends to push the design boundaries the most.

This year GAC displayed two concepts, including the relatively mundane teardrop-shaped Time and the very abstract Vision Emkoo.

Inspired by breaking through the sound barrier, the latter shows the Trumpchi brand’s new design language of ‘Science and Technology Industrial Aesthetics’.

Obviously, the covered wheels are the first thing to catch your eye but there are also very sharp lines. Further differentiating it from other mainstream models is a high rear-end and low front, plus Cyberpunk detailing such as the illuminated grille and slim lightsabre-style tail-light strip.

GAC says the design showcases the look of future models and the interesting thing is that the concept is an EV – not that it seems to be a working car.

A a few years ago GAC farmed out its electric models to the newly created Aion brand, but it seems the Trumpchi car-maker is electrifying once again. 

In much of the world people-movers are a dying breed, but not so in China where they are even coveted. And if there is one vehicle that typifies the market, it is likely the Buick GL8, which is currently in its third generation.

At the 2021 GIAE, Buick not only showed a concept for the next generation with the GL8 Flagship but went a step further with its Smart Pod concept.

Riding on General Motors’ Ultium EV platform, it is an autonomous vehicle designed to create a comfortable, intelligent environment for commuting.

The Smart Pod’s box-like shape maximises interior space for occupants and, being fully autonomous, no space is taken up by controls. While the interior could be partly seen through the windows, the doors weren’t opened at the show.

However, GM claims it has a multi-variable seating arrangement including fully reclinable sleeper seats. Other features include 50-inch retractable retina LED screens, along with an AI operating system that allows the vehicle to adapt to its users in terms of comfort, entertainment and lifestyle.

Honda might be a Japanese company, but it’s its Chinese presence that is driving the brand’s electrification.

With two joint-venture partners in China – Dongfeng and GAC – Honda showed two near-production models, one for each partner, based on the SUV e: concept shown last year in Beijing.

However, in October Honda previewed three new concepts, two of which were shown for the first time in the metal – if that’s what they’re actually made of – at the Guangzhou show.

While the Dongfeng Honda stand got the e:N Coupe, the GAC display gained the e:N SUV. It features Cybertruck-like angular looks, but the sharp edges give way to an aggressive front-end lighting design shared across all three concepts.

The SUV is the beefiest of the three and the production version should be launched around 2024, as part of a plan to only launch fully electric and hybrid models in China from 2030.

Related: GWM Super Pickup concept revealed