Say the name Haval and car people’s faces remain stern, with a possible slight frown from those who suspect that the brand is from China. The rights to the Haval name are owned by Great Wall Motor and no, it’s not a mark of quality or great engineering and design prowess.
However, brand perception is never stagnant, and if they have more to come in the vein of the bold concept they showed off at the Beijing motor show, then the frown is replaced by a raised eyebrow.
Called the Haval Concept SUV Coupe, it looks every bit as good as any concept the Europeans would feel comfortable turning up with at the show, sporting a modern face, with slim, aggressive headlights, and a nicely sculpted side profile with a rising waistline – it’s not revolutionary, not even as far as concepts go, but it does the job of showing off the badge.
We didn’t really understand what the car’s designer, simply referred to as Pierre, said at the beginning of the official blurb: “As a concept-to-be model, Haval Coupe represents Haval’s frontier concept for the future and the standard of Haval’s desired products for consumers.”
We assume it means the Coupe previews an actual production model.
The study features a plug-in hybrid powertrain “featuring eAD technology” that is good for 2.2 l/100km or 106 mpg US/128 mpg UK. Performance numbers are kept secret, but its makers do tell us that it comes with all-wheel drive.
By Andrei Nedelea
PHOTO GALLERY
