Great Wall’s Haval H6 PHEV is the third plug-in hybrid that we have driven in as many weeks.
Dating back to 2011, the third generation H6 made its debut at the 2020 Chengdu Motor Show.
And, all jokes aside, it’s the first Haval to sit on the ‘Lemon’ platform – we kid you not.
H6 is GWM’s all-time, best-selling model, with more than 4 million sales globally.
The plug-in version was added in 2021, with a new-look front and available in petrol, hybrid, and plug-in hybrid form.
“Every inch of the H6 has been meticulously considered,” we’re told.
STYLING
There’s an H6 for just about everyone, with prices ranging from $35,990 for the entry level petrol model through to $50,990 for the top-of-the-line plug-in hybrid with all-wheel drive.
The standard, self-charging hybrid is priced from $40,990, while you can get into the plug-in version from as little as $44,990. Premium paint adds $495 to the price.
Plug-in hybrids have really taken off in the Australian market with the arrival of cheaper, more accessible Chinese models.
The attraction is their versatility, with their ability to operate in pure electric or fuel-saving petrol-electric mode – without any range fears.
H6’s Chinese competitors include the BYD Sealion 6 and Geely Starray EM-i.
These wagons are all roughly around the same price and offer the same kind of performance and range.
Our test vehicle, the front-drive H6 Ultra PHEV is priced from $47,990.
All-wheel drive takes this figure to $50,990 – all prices before on-road costs.
The plug-in hybrid (PHEV) with a turbocharged engine was introduced here with the facelift in July 2025.
Up front, the cascading grille carries the Haval logo, thankfully no longer in garish red.
At the rear, the full-width light bar has been replaced by sharply angled, individual tail lights giving the wagon a more contemporary look.
However, the ‘Haval’ badge at the back has been replaced with ‘GWM’, reflecting the brand’s transition to a single, unified identity.
Of greater note, the facelift saw the introduction of GWM’s AT1 program (Australian Tuning) that draws on the skills of former Holden engineer Rob Trubiani to tune ride and handling.
It’s the same path taken by both Kia and Hyundai years ago, and could turn out to be a game changer for the brand.
H6 is the first model to benefit from this tuning and it shows in spades.
Standard kit includes artificial leather and two-zone climate air, with rear outlets, power-adjustable heated and cooled front seats, with driver-seat memory and a heated steering wheel.
There are also 19-inch alloys, push-button start, adaptive cruise control, head-up display, auto high beam, traffic sign recognition, LED lights all-round, auto lights and wipers, auto-dimming rear-view mirror, rear privacy glass, electric tailgate and panoramic sunroof.
The PHEV comes with rear parking sensors, but for some strange reason misses out on sensors for the front.
H6 is converted by a seven-year unlimited kilometre warranty, along with an eight-year unlimited-kilometre battery pack warranty. There’s also five-year roadside assistance and five-year capped price servicing.
INFOTAINMENT
Infotainment consists of a 14.6-inch touchscreen powered by the GWM’s Coffee OS.
There’s Bluetooth, voice control, AM/FM and DAB+ digital radio, built-in satellite navigation, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, plus eight-speaker audio (PHEVs boost the number of speakers to nine).
Telematics provides remote access and control of various vehicle functions.
Two USB A-ports are provided in the front, a USB-A and USB-C port in the rear, and a dashcam port located near the mirror, with 12-volt sockets in the front and in the luggage area, along with wireless phone charging.
SAFETY
H6 carries a full five-star safety rating from ANCAP.
In order to confirm integrity of the battery and safety of high voltage electrical systems in hybrid and PHEV variants, additional frontal offset and oblique pole tests were conducted.
As a result, the previous five-star safety rating was extended to all petrol, hybrid, and PHEV variants of H6.
Seven airbags are standard, including a centre airbag to stop those in the front from banging heads in a side impact crash.
A 360-degree camera with 180 degree overhead transparent chassis view is fitted.
Autonomous emergency braking applies to car-to-car, vulnerable road user and junction assist scenarios.
There are also blind spot alert and a lane support system with lane keep assist, lane departure warning, and emergency lane keeping, plus an advanced speed assistance system that keeps to current speed limits.
ENGINES/TRANSMISSIONS
The hybrid powertrain in the H6 PHEV produces 240kW of power and 540Nm of torque in front-wheel drive form, with a dual-speed dedicated hybrid transmission.
With all-wheel drive, this rises to 268kW and 760kW, giving it a 0-100km/h time of 4.8 seconds.
Either way, they’re impressive figures.
DRIVING
H6 is a mid-sized, five-seat wagon that is 4703mm long, with a 27638mm wheelbase and between 560 and 1445 litres of luggage capacity – the latter with rear seats folded.
Apart from real leather trim (Comfort-Tek is a euphemism for artificial), there’s not much missing from the equipment list.
Oddly, that is, except for rear parking sensors and automatic parking which are unaccountably missing in this grade.
A column-mounted gear selector frees up space on the centre console for additional storage and provides space for the wireless phone charger.
Like the Geely, a small 10.25-inch screen sits above the steering column and serves as the instrument cluster.
An automatically activated parking brake adds to ease of use.
With a 55-litre tank, H6 takes standard 91 RON unleaded.
Claimed fuel consumption with a fully charged battery is 1.0L/100km (1.1L for AWD).
If you’re slack and let the battery run down, consumption rises to 5.0L/100km (5.3L for AWD).
Sadly, we confess to being apathetic and were getting 5.9L/100km after more than 250km of driving.
With energy consumption at 18.4 kWh/100km, the PHEV has a pure electric driving range of 106km or 100km for the AWD version.
Unfortunately, these figures are under the older, more lenient NEDC test regime, that car companies continue to quote because they look better in print.
A WLTP figure of 80km is closer to the mark.
The 19.09 kWh battery can be charged from 30 per cent to 80 per cent in 28 minutes using a DC charger (at a rate of 34kW), or from 15 per cent to 100 per cent using an AC charger in under three hours (at 6.6kW).
Who we wonder wants to half-charge their battery when that presumably means half the range too?
The hybrid system operates in both series or parallel mode, powering the wheels or battery, with EV, EV Priority and Intelligent Hybrid modes.
There’s also the usual drive mode options: Normal, Eco, Sport or Snow.
Steering weight can be adjusted, with comfortable, sport or light settings.
There is also adjustable regenerative braking with the option of one-pedal driving – although the latter does not bring the vehicle to a complete stop.
Driving the H6 PHEV feels much like its competitors around town, but with a bit more get up and go.
Find some twisty roads, however, turn up the wick and the wagon comes to life, with braking and handling that is superior to its Chinese compatriots.
Handling is safe, predictable and planted, with strong mid-range throttle response and impressive braking.
The wagon has a substantial, dare we say Commodore, feel, absorbing bumps rather than crashing over them, with very little rebound.
Whatever Great Wall is paying Mr Trubiani, it’s money in the bank.
But it’s not all peaches and cream. The interior feels drab and dated in comparison to competitors, with too many features controlled from the touchscreen, taking attention away from the road.
Then there’s the annoying driver seatbelt which must be locked in before the brakes will release and the wagon can move off.
It’s a great idea, safety-wise that is, but not a very practical one.
The throttle exhibits some overrun, evident as the car continues to accelerate after lifting off the accelerator, forcing the driver to brake – sometimes hurriedly.
This can be unnerving in stop-start traffic and parking behind another vehicle on a steepish driveway, where the car tends to leap forward on liftoff, threatening to ram the car in front.
The column-mounted transmission lever has another trap waiting where it is possible to put the car into reverse if you mistake the gear lever for the indicator stalk with your foot on the brake (e.g. queuing for a left-hand turn).
With little in the way of labelling it took some time to work out how to engage cruise control which as it turns out is via – you guessed it – the gear selector.
Head-up display as usual is almost invisible with polarised sunglasses and the power-operated tailgate often refused to respond to the key fob. Other than this the PHEV is a keeper.
Braked towing capacity is 1500kg. A tyre repair kit is provided in the event of a flat tyre.
SUMMING UP
Of the three so-called ‘super hybrids’ that we’ve driven in recent weeks, H6 is the more expensive but dynamically better.
It’s let down by a drab, rather uninspiring cabin fitout and in this regard, some contrasting trim would help to break the monotony.
Beauty is however in the eye of the beholder.
RATINGS
Looks: 7.5
Performance: 7.5
Safety: 8
Thirst: 7.5
Practicality: 7.5
Comfort: 7
Tech: 7.5
Value: 7.5
Overall: 7.5
