SHAH ALAM, 17 Jan — The compact sport-utility vehicle we knew as the Haval M4 is now known as the Haval H1 following a revamp by China-based Great Wall Motors Company Limited, in a rebranding exercise with the objective to boost its international sales, especially in Asean.
The name Haval itself is derived from “Have All”, based on Great Wall Motors’ brand value of letting its customers have it all, in terms of not only vehicles at affordable prices, but also equipped with the latest technology.
The Haval H1 features a 1.5 litre VVT engine supposedly derived from a Japan-made engine — engine power is 106 horsepower with a maximum torque of 138Nm. Drive is to the front wheels through a 6-speed AMT (which denotes ‘automated manual transmission’ — similar to what we have seen in the Proton Savvy).
AMT’s are great for fuel efficiency, offering the directness of a manual transmission with zero transmission slip, at the same time providing automatic shifting — however they take some getting used to. I personally like the AMT, but some people find it difficult to adjust their driving style to suit the AMT.
With the name change, the Haval H1 remains mechanically the same as its predecessor, and the only difference is a new chrome front grill.
Prices remain the same, but the manual version has been discontinued. Three variants are offered, namely the H1 Comfort, priced at RM60,017, the H1 Premium, priced at RM65,852, and the H1 Elite at RM72,659. All prices are OTR without insurance.
Local distributor Go Auto Chief Executive Officer Ahmad Azam Dato’ Sulaiman said the company hopes to strengthen the brand locally with the re-branding exercise.
The company also offered a ‘Buy Back Guarantee’ scheme which guarantees a buy back value of a minimum of 50 per cent within five years of ownership.
He went on to state that Go Auto has made history in the local automotive sector by being the first company to be awarded a car manufacturing licence for energy efficient vehicles, adding that both H1 and H2 models received EEV recognition.
