2025 Haval H6 Ultra hybrid review reveals some major flaws
Impressive value is balanced with some performance shortfalls in the updated Haval H6 Ultra hybrid SUV.
Remember when many Aussies swore they’d never buy a Chinese car? Yeah, about that.
Any “reservations” we had weren’t just blown out of the water, they were strapped to a rocket and fired into the sun. We’ve bought more than 200,000 Chinese-made cars this year alone. That’s one in every five new cars sold.
And don’t think you’re dodging it. Your neighbour’s “American” Tesla? Built in Shanghai. Hyundai’s next big EV? That’s coming from China, too. The only country that sends us more cars is Japan.
We’ve seen the proof. The local Great Wall Motors (GWM) dealer down the road from our place, once a place of quiet contemplation, now looks busier than the Bunnings snag queue on a Saturday morning. Which brings us to this: the GWM Haval H6.
The last H6 we drove was somewhat “meh”. This new one is updated, and GWM is clearly desperate for you to notice.
They’re offering a 1.99 per cent comparison rate with no deposit. Or, if you still use cash, they’ll just lop $2000 off the price. Our test was in the two-wheel drive Ultra, which is currently $43,990 drive-away.
What do you get?
The big interior change is a new column shifter, which frees up space for your stuff and a better-positioned wireless phone charger. You also get a chunkier steering wheel and a massive 14.6-inch touchscreen.
As expected, the Ultra trim has just about everything, including man-made leather trim, dual-zone aircon, eight-speaker sound system, panoramic sunroof, heated/cooled front seats with power adjustment, power tailgate, Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, power tailgate with kick sensor, push-button start and a 10.25-inch digital driver display.
Mercifully, the “Hello GWM” voice assistant is smarter than before. It can open the sunroof, alter the radio, change the temp … all kinds of work that used to be handled by buttons and dials. This is vital, as it’s the best way to bypass the touchscreen, where GWM has hidden the climate controls about three menus deep.
White is the only external complimentary colour, with black, pearl and grey all requiring an extra $495 investment. Inside the choice is black or cream.
Peace of mind comes via a seven-year warranty, with roadside assistance covering five laps of the sun. Capped price servicing is slightly below mainstream costs, and GWM does have a good spread of dealerships – something many of this year’s 10-odd newcomer Chinese brands can’t rival.
How was the drive?
They’ve fettled the handling. And it’s better.
But the engineers clearly forgot to tell the front tyres about the hybrid’s massive torque. A quick stab of the throttle in the dry will often result in a chirp of the tyres. In the wet, it’s frankly treacherous.
We had it on one damp incline and could have spun the tyres for 400 metres if we hadn’t chickened out. The Hankook F1 Evo rubber can’t be blamed either, they have a reputation for delivering reasonable grip in all conditions.
And it’s not just the wheel spin. The petrol engine and electric motor combination has the refinement of a bar fight on occasions at slow speeds. Every time we drove up our driveway, the car lurched like a learner driver. It made parking at home a sphincter-tightening exercise.
There is a new all-wheel drive version of the H6 hybrid which would be worth consideration for the extra $3500 investment.
Generally the 2WD version performs well in just about all conditions, with reliable and consistent handling, but the flaws are jarring.
For a hybrid it’s predictably efficient, and our test saw average fuel consumption of 6.2L/100km.
Would you buy one?
Kel: This was a far better experience than the H6 I remembered. There is a good reason why you see so many on the roads. But I couldn’t handle the infotainment system with the aircon controls hidden in the touchscreen and the slow speed hybrid hesitation.
Grant: Step out of something a few years old and drive the H6, it feels like a monumental step forward with an alluring sticker price. Although dig a little deeper than the specification sheet and trade-offs are exposed. Excellent features, great price, but a mediocre drive.
