A comprehensive history of early Wulings can be found
in Volume 2 of On a Global Mission: The Automobiles
of General Motors International
Wuling sold over one million units each year since
2009. With a 44% interest in
SAIC-GM-Wuling, General Motors regards Wuling as a GM marque, while in China it
is an ‘independent’ brand, in 2019, as for sales volume, the fourth one, incl.
commercial vehicles, (after Geely, Changan and Great Wall), and the ninth
overall. Wuling sold 5.47 million
Zhiguangs thus far, 4.92 million RongGuangs/Chevrolet N300, and 4.5 million
HongGuangs. 72,691 sets (including
complete vehicles and KD parts) were exported in 2019.
All contemporary Wuling models have rear-wheel-drive,
even the new electric HongGuang MINI EV, but not the
Wuling-branded Baojun models (Cortez and Almaz in Indonesia, and newly the
730), nor the new Victory, that was intended as a Baojun. Recent Wuling
specifications can be found at On a Global Mission: The
Automobiles of General Motors International
Wuling
Zhiguang V December 2016 - 2020
With the wheelbase 10 cm extended, this small
microvan, about 4 meters long, with a rear rigid axle and leaf springs was for
commercial use, and could be had with up to eight seats.
Zhiguang sales dropped from 90,000 in 2017 to 80,000
in 2018, and 43,000 in 2019, after these had lowered with some 100,000 each
year since in 2010 the 700,000 mark was neared, a number achieved in a similar
upward move since sales started in 2003.
The Zhiguang outsold its competitors Jinbei Xiaohai Lion X30 and
Dongfeng Xiaokang K07II in 2019, while the larger RongGuang S (60,000 in 2019)
now outsold the Zhiguang.
Though the Sunshine name was mentioned in China at the
start of its career, this name nowadays is only shown in publications in
English, and is not familiar to the Chinese.
The Zhiguang V sold only marginally, as compared to the Zhiguang, and by
2020, no National 6b engines appeared, nor for the Zhiguang S and the extended
Zhiguang, leaving the (3rd generation) 2013 model Zhiguang with 5 or
7 seats, as well as the pick-up models.
The speed limit for the Zhiguang and RongGuang S, equipped with the
upgraded 1.2 56 kW national 6b engine, became 100 km/h (105 km/h for the
extended RongGuang), while both RongGuang S and extended version are now
available with electrical power steering.
The original (2008) RongGuang is still popular in
South America as Chevrolet N300, and in Egypt as Chevrolet Move.
Liuzhou Wuling offers the RongGuang lwb based EV50 60
kW electric panel van with an advanced-looking front end since February 2020,
with SGMW-Wuling RongGuang EV models to follow in April.
Wuling
HongGuang S3 (CN120S) November 2017 -
This 7-seater was presented as Wuling’s first SUV (but
relocated as an MPV in March 2018), with the availability of an independent
rear suspension with ESC on the top models.
On an 8 cm extended HongGuang chassis, it kept the classical
longitudinally placed front engine with rear-wheel-drive. In 2019, about one quarter (88,500) of
HongGuangs were S3 models. An automatic
clutch model became available in March 2019, a Wuling novelty. This was not the 5-speed Aisin version, used
by Baojun for this 1485cc engine, but a Schaeffler-built 6-speed unit. The only Wuling with a conventional automatic
transmission has been the HongGuang S from August 2014 for about two years.
The HongGuang S3 effectively replaced the HongGuang
S1, which wasn’t a success. Firmer
footed, lower, but hardly wider than the HongGuang S, the higher price of the
S1 had persuaded people to opt for the Baojun 730. The S1 started being built as Wuling Confero
in Indonesia in July 2017, to which the 6-speed electronic clutch unit was made
available in spring 2019. The price
difference with the (second generation) Baojun 730 based Wuling Cortez was here
larger than in China. A more commercial
Wuling Formo was added in November 2018, with the ex-Daewoo 1206cc engine.
Wuling
new HongGuang S (CN115) August 2018 -
Still sold
next to its predecessor (CN112), which it is now only offered with a 1.2 engine and
leaf springs, this is the first rebodied basic HongGuang, itself dating from
September 2010. The rear axle is the
rigid 5-link with coils, but a base model with rear leaf springs was added in
March 2019. GM Media reported: “In the process of product design and construction, the new Wuling
Hongguang S changed the new MPV idea, brought the SUV feeling into the MPV, and
continued to promote the advantages of family space, power, fuel consumption
and other products.”
The first
HongGuang S from August 2013, incorporating a Chevrolet-style chrome-plated
bar, had elevated HongGuang sales to over 500,000, depressing Zhiguang/Sunshine
sales under the half million mark, and keeping Wuling as the top car model
seller in China for 15 years in a row from 2003 up to 2017 (10 years Zhiguang/Sunshine,
5 years HongGuang). In 2019, with
375,000 units, total market HongGuang sales ranked third after the Volkswagen
Lavida and Great Wall Haval H6, but it kept the first place among MPVs.
Following GM
Media “the nameplate has been especially popular among small and intermediate
enterprises, as well as private entrepreneurs, for personal and business
use”. About 6% of all HongGuangs in 2019
had the 1.2 engine. Both ‘classic’ and
new HongGuang S models are 7-seaters, but 5-seat and 8-seat configurations are
possible. A 60 kW electric EV version is
in preparation.
Wuling
HongGuang V (CN110V) March 2019 -
On a 13 cm
longer wheelbase and with the 1485cc engine, this commercial-orientated model with sliding passenger door and a leaf spring rigid rear axle, is sold next to the cheaper
RongGuang V, which is basically the same vehicle also in terms of inner and
outer dimensions. Originally, this new
HongGuang V was meant to be sold as RongGuang V to succeed on it, itself
launched in 2015 as a HongGuang V, to be renamed
later that year to
set it apart from the HongGuang MPV, with the original RongGuang and S
basically a different smaller design.
Both have a
short front end, with the driveshaft to the rear wheels beneath the floor. Some 160,000 RongGuang V were sold in
2019. The new HongGuang V is a
sturdy-looking 7-seater, but also available as a 2-seater or 5-seater, just as
the RongGuang V, which has also an 8-seat option. The side middle door of the HongGuang V has a
width of over 700 mm, making it more convenient to load cargo and easier for
passengers to get in and out. It is
known as Chevrolet N400 as a panel van or as a minibus, with in some markets
the availability of the 1.2 engine, which in China came only by July 2020.
At 4000L,
the maximum cargo volume of the HongGuang V is 300L less than that of the
RongGuang V.
By August
2021, it arrived as Chevrolet Tornado Van in Mexico.
Wuling
HongGuang Plus (CN150M) October 2019 –
With the
same wheelbase as the HongGuang S3, but over 10 cm wider, the HongGuang Plus
looks more solid, without the wedge shape of the S3, which as a turbo has about
the same price as the Plus. The new car adopts “2”, "2 + 2 +
3" and "2 + 3 + 3" seat layouts, followed by a “2+3” 5-seater in December 2019. The maximum cargo volume is more than 3 times
as big as for the S3. In November 2019,
one HongGuang Plus was sold against each five HongGuang S.
The
HongGuang plus is 5 cm lower than the HongGuang V, while the tailgate threshold
height is 5 cm higher, and the maximum cargo volume is between that of the
RongGuang V and the HongGuang V. The
rigid rear axle has leaf springs for the basic models, and coil springs for the
others. In May 2020, the non-turbo
1485cc engine became available, accompanying the 1451cc turbo.
In December
2020, top versions with ESC were added.
Wuling
730 March 2020 –
This is a
Wuling-branded Baojun 730 Classic.
Wuling
EV50 July 2020 –
This is the
first official Wuling electric vehicle, a long-wheelbase RongGuang Panel Van
(first released in August 2011) with a 60 kW motor and a drive range of 252 or
300 km. In October 2020, a 5-seater
(Panel Van) model was added.
Wuling
HongGuang MINI EV (E50) July 2020
–
This
four-seater New Energy Wuling was announced in March 2020 with presale from
May, resembling a "square box" Japanese (fwd) kei car, but much
shorter and with two doors, and an upper hatchback. The length is over 290 cm, the width under
150 cm, and the weight about 700 kg. The
power is 20 kW. Depending on capacity,
the NEDC battery life is corresponding to 170 km and 120 km. Charging time is
about 7 to 9 hours.
The
motor/E-axle is at the rear in between the compound crank torsion beam.
The
female-oriented Macaron (sweet meringue-based French confection in a variety of
colors), launched in April 2021, introduced driver’s airbags (not obligatory in
China) to the MINI EV and standard independently tilting of the rear seats (an
option on other models since September 2020), and has the alloy wheels of the
earlier models replaced by cute-shaped steel wheels. The Macaron is 4,800 yuan
more expensive than the regular model, of which there is also a 4,000 yuan
cheaper basic version without air conditioning. Technically, both lines are
identical.
Raw Coconut
White and Merlot Blue "autumn colors” were added in October 2021 to the
existing Avocado Green, Lemon Yellow and White Peach Pink, all with a white
roof. An optional solid-color roof is available.
After more
than 200 days of listing, HongGuang MINI EV has sold more than 200,000 vehicles
in total (300,000 by August 2021). It sold 96,674 vehicles in the first quarter
of 2021. A 29 kW model with the 170 km range extended to 200 km is in
preparation.
A 30 kW
model with the silver Wuling logo is expected.
At the April
2021 Shanghai Auto Show conference, Wuling announced that the Hongguang MINIEV
CABRIO will officially put into mass production in 2022.
Wuling
Victory (CN220M) November 2020 –
Promoted as
the 4+X "big four-seater family
car", this 6-seater (2+2+2) MPV has the same underpinnings as the Baojun
RC-6, lifting Wuling finally out of its rear-wheel-drive layout image. The third-row seats can be independently and
completely stored flush with the floor.
The two middle-row seats are equipped with a four-way slide, the front
and rear sliding distance is as long as 56 cm.
The 1.5 turbo engine will soon be mated by the new one with direct
injection.
The Victory
uses the new silver Wuling logo, which represents Wuling's high-end and global
products
A hybrid
version with a naturally aspirated Atkinson cycle 2-litre engine will be
launched soon.
Wuling
Zhengtu March 2021 -
This is a
double cab 5-seater pickup with a length of over 5 meters, sporty-styled
without reminding of a minitruck. The
engine is the 1485cc LAR 73 kW. It has a
semi-integral body, and six leaf springs at each rear wheel. Optional narrow or wide side steps are
offered. Zhengtu means Journey, as did
the people mover Zhengcheng that was available from December 2014 till
2017.
Wuling
Zhengcheng August 2021 -
Even longer
than the Zhengtu, is the new Zhengcheng, with the body of the Hongguang Plus
extended to 515 cm, on a 318 cm wheelbase and with sliding doors, and 7
(2+2+3), 8 (2+3+3) or 9-seat (2+2+2+3) layout, the latter with a 47 cm wide
side corridor at the 2 center seat rows, next to a two-seat window-sealed
version.
Wuling
Xingcheng (Asta) September 2021 -
This first
Wuling SUV is technically based on the (front-wheel-drive) Baojun 530/560 but
with the availability of 18-inch wheels.
The transmission is a 6-speed manual or CVT gearbox. The car was officially unveiled at the April
2021 Shanghai International Auto Show and go on sale in September. This is the second model with the silver
Wuling logo.
Wuling
Nano EV
This is a
Baojun E200 clone with 24 kW (less 5 kW) and the limited (5,000 units) version
of the Nano EV [Crazy Animal City] was jointly launched by Wuling and Disney at
the 2021 Tianjin Auto Show, which opened on September 29. Marketing will start in November. The battery life is 305 km.
SAIC-GM-Wuling
In 2019,
SAIC-GM-Wuling sold 1,660,007 units in the domestic market, a drop of nearly
20%. As early as 2015, SAIC-GM-Wuling
became the first car company in China with an annual production and sales
volume of over 2 million units. The sales volume has exceeded 2 million units for
four consecutive years.
The SAIC-GM-Wuling
Indonesia subsidiary was officially put into operation in 2017. It is not only
the first Chinese auto company to invest in Indonesia, but also the first time
that a Chinese auto brand has invested in equipment and resources overseas to
build its own brands and products. In
2019, 25,000 vehicles were sold.
With thanks to: https://www.chinacarforums.com/
21 October, 2021