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GWM’s new 4.0-litre V8 engine guns for the heavy-hitters
The combustion engine, as we know it, may be under siege due to tighter emission regulations. Most brands that can’t just cull it from the get-go opt to downsize, while others are fully embracing the electric or hybrid route.
But then there’s GWM that’s doing something completely different. The Chinese marque has gone ahead and built a 4.0-litre V8 twin- twin-turbo petrol engine and, instead of abandoning it, it’s electrifying it, and we got to see it firsthand at the Shanghai Auto Show during its unveiling. The new V8 is set to take over from the current V6 lurking in some of GWM’s international models.
GWM emphasised that despite most brand downsizing their engines, there are still people out there who want the power of the V8 unit. Look at the Mercedes-AMG G63 with its V8 engine, it’s still thriving.
Details regarding the new hybridised V8 engine are still scarce, but what we learned during its debut is that GWM has developed it entirely in-house, and it’s meant to power most of its vehicles. The Tank 300 Hooke, an off-road-focused variant of the Tank 300 also revealed at the show, is expected to be the first model to make use of the V8 before other GWM models, including the P Series. And that can only mean one thing: a serious and tough competition for the Ford Ranger Raptor.
If it all comes to pass, the Tank 300 Hooke will be a serious contender, going head-to-head with the likes of the Jeep Wrangler Rubicon, Land Rover Defender, and, although it’s hard to admit, the Mercedes-Benz G-Class G450. Interestingly, the former recently ditched its 3.6-litre V6 engine for a smaller 2.0-litre capacity, and the latter only uses a 48V mild-hybrid system. That said, the Tank 300 Hooke could very well play in a league of its own.
And power? Well, we are still waiting to chat with the engineers in the coming days, but early reports suggest it could push out as much as 450kW and around 800Nm of torque.
Summing it up at the media conference, GWM Tank’s global brand vice president, Gu Yukun, made it clear that GWM isn’t just following trends, it’s setting new ones. He further went on to say that the company has “solved problems that many overseas carmakers have not.”
When asked about the future of big engines, Gu Yukun summed it up by saying that the brand still believes there’s a place for new energy, and for the V8.
In a world where most are downsizing or abandoning V8s altogether, GWM’s bold move feels like a breath of fresh air, and we’re here for it. More information about the new V8 will be revealed in due course.
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