PODCAST: New Haval H7 declares war on popular Jetour T2
· Citizen
Largely devoid of a direct rival, the Jetour T2 has been a runaway sales success since its local introduction a year ago.
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But the boxy-styled SUV is about to find life more challenging with the arrival of the new GWM Haval H7.
Starting at a price of R554 900, the new Haval H7 not only undercuts the Jetour T2’s range opener by R15 000, but the six-model derivative range also now include a greater choice of powertrains than before.
New Haval H7 makes Pitstop
On this week’s episode of our Pitstop podcast, we discuss the arrival of the new Haval H7. And we explain why GWM has decided to replace the first local H7 with a completely different one.
Where the first H7, which was introduced locally in 2024, was based on a car called the Big Dog in its home market in China, the new H7 is based on what is called the Raptor Menglong Plus in the People’s Republic.
The new Haval H7 still rides on a unibody platform, but now sports a boxier design. The Jetour T2‘s styling, which is largely based on that of the Land Rover Defender, is one of its major selling points and something that clearly did not go unnoticed by Great Wall Motors.
Plenty of choice
The new Haval H7 range offers a choice of three different powertrains; a 2.0-litre turbocharger petrol engine, a self-charging hybrid (HEV) and plug-in hybrid (PHEV).
The 2.0-litre blown petrol mill from before opens up the range. It produces 170kW of power and 380Nm of torque.
The HEV features a combination of a 1.5-litre turbo petrol engine and battery pack which produces a system total of 182kW/540Nm.
The PHEV comes in either single or dual motor configuration, the latter wearing the Hi4 nomenclature. In single motor form, the PHEV system makes a combined 240kW/540Nm. The addition of the second electric motor in the Hi4 raises the stakes to 280kW/670Nm.