Arrives with improvements fuelled by local feedback.
The 2018 Haval H9 has been unveiled by the burgeoning Chinese marque, and detailed ahead of its Australian market launch later this year. While the H9 was entirely developed in China, Haval is keen to point out that a lot of the improvements that have been made to the full-size SUV were in response to the feedback they received from our market.
One of the biggest changes to the H9 are under the skin, where the 2.0-litre turbo-petrol has been revised to put out more power and torque, with 180kW & 350Nm on offer (up 20kW & 36Nm from the outgoing car). Paired to that stronger motor is a new eight-speed ZF transmission (like the kind you’d find in a BMW), helping the 2018 H9 achieve 20% improved fuel efficiency, now 11.0L/100km (down from 12.1L/100km previously).
Aesthetic changes include little things like a more prominent grille, a new front bumper design with new fog light housings, 18-inch alloys, blind-spot monitoring and lane-departure warning as standard kit. The omission of autonomous emergency braking (AEB) is somewhat glaring, but this may be in line with Haval’s value-driven strategy. The cabin sees the addition of a full-colour screen within the instrument binnacle, which was added to the H9 in direct response to feedback they received, and looks reminiscent of the setups employed by modern Jeeps. Another lookalike is the new gear lever, which looks suspiciously like the gear levers you’ll find in an Audi.
Prices and additional specifications for the H9 SUV will be released closer to its launch, which the company affirms will be before the end of the year. If, value wise, it continues to stack up favourably against other three-row seven-seater SUVs, Haval may just have another hit on its hands.
For more information on Haval, check out our Showroom.
