GWM-Ora Lightning Cat confirmed for Oz

Life for the inbound Hyundai IONIQ 6 could be a bit tougher than anticipated when it arrives Down Under next year following news that the more powerful, longer range and quite possibly cheaper new GWM-Ora Lightning Cat is also destined for Aussie showrooms.

carsales has it on good authority that the slinky four-door Lightning Cat will follow in the tyre tracks of the GWM-Ora Good Cat hatchback – which will likely to be called something else – as the second Ora-branded EV to be offered in Australia, and there’s no doubt it will be a direct rival for the streamlined Hyundai.

GWM Australia is predictably remaining tight-lipped on the matter and reiterated that an Aussie introduction for the GWM-Ora EV brand is yet to be locked in despite a pair of Good Cats being spied testing around Melbourne.

But we understand GWM will introduce both the Ora electric and Tank off-road brands in Australia later than expected in 2023, and the Lightning Cat sets up an intriguing battle between an established heavyweight and an aspiring newcomer in what’s an emerging niche segment.

Measuring 4855mm long, 1880mm wide and 1495mm tall, the IONIQ 6 rides on a 2950mm wheelbase and will be offered locally in single- and dual-motor guises, the gruntiest of which will churn out 239kW/605Nm and dispatch 0-100km/h in a claimed 5.1 seconds.

Meantime the Lightning Cat, which was described by many as a shrunken Porsche Panamera when it debuted in concept form at the 2021 Shanghai motor show, is 4871mm long, 1862mm wide, 1500mm tall and rides on a 2870mm wheelbase.

GWM-Ora specifically describes it as a “super streamlined pure electric coupe” and the Lightning Cat is available in its native Chinese market with single- and dual-motor powertrains.

The most powerful of them outputs 300kW/680Nm, resulting in a claimed 0-100km/h sprint of 4.3 seconds, and incorporates a 79.6kWh battery pack that yields a sizeable 600km CLTC cruising range.

Comparable driving range figures for both models are hard to come by and it’s worth noting that CLTC numbers are more generous than the WLTP numbers, but the 2WD versions of both models will reportedly eclipse 600km on a single charge.

The pair of electric sedans can hardly be split on their drag coefficients either – 0.21Cd for the Hyundai versus 0.22Cd for the Ora – but it’s also worth noting that, unlike the 2WD IONIQ 6, the 2WD Lightning Cat is understood to be front-drive not rear-drive.

GWM Australia has long held an interest in the Lightning Cat, with local marketing and communications boss Steve Maciver spilling the beans in June last year when news of GWM-Ora’s local chances first broke.

“There’s a couple of cars we are looking at and probably most likely is the Good Cat,” he said at the time.

“The other car we’re looking at is the Lightning Cat. It was a concept unveiled at the [2021] Shanghai motor show… we’ve been asked by the factory if this is something we would consider.”

For anyone not up to speed on the IONIQ 6, it’s the four-door sedan sibling to the lauded Hyundai IONIQ 5 crossover and therefore shares the same e-GMP underpinnings.

We’ll be sure to do a full bench test between the IONIQ 6 and the Lightning Cat when the local data for both models is confirmed in the coming months, not to mention a head-to-head comparison once they’ve launched next year.

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