GWM Tank 600 takes aim at Toyota Prado

The GWM Tank 600 has been outed in China this week, and the all-new large SUV – which sizes up closely against the Toyota Prado – is under consideration for release in Australia.

The 2022 Tank 600 is powered by a 264kW/500Nm 3.0-litre turbocharged petrol V6 that hooks up with a nine-speed automatic transmission.

It has a premium look to it, with plenty of chrome adorning the front-end, but adheres to the Tank sub-brand’s rugged off-road mantra, as evidenced by the impressive ground clearance and a full-size spare wheel attached to the tailgate.

It will also be underpinned by a traditional ladder-frame chassis.

There are few other official details on the Tank 600 at this stage, with more expected when it rolls into the 2021 Chengdu motor show from August 27.

However, GWM Australia marketing chief Steve Maciver has already confirmed to carsales that the 600 is one of several Tank models being studied for the Aussie market.

“It’s under consideration,” he said.

“We’re looking at the entire Tank range, there’s a number of options we can look at – but no decisions have been made at this point.”

As previously reported, the flagship Tank 700 – a rival for the Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series and Nissan Patrol – is also on GWM’s radar for Australia, while the smaller Tank 300 is likely to kick-off the sub-brand’s launch here as an affordable alternative to the Jeep Wrangler.

Perhaps the biggest hurdle to achieving a viable local business case for the Tank 600 is that the related Haval H9 has already started making a name for itself here and will soon enter a new generation.

“We look at every opportunity we’ve got. At the moment we don’t know what the new H9 is going to look like so we’ll look at what’s available to us,” said Maciver.

GWM has big plans for Australia with the Tank sub-brand set to join the fast-growing GWM Ute and Haval brands, while the Ora range of electric vehicles is also expected to launch here.