Are GWM and Haval the Same? Understanding the GWM Brand Family

Not the same thing, but the same company. GWM is Great Wall Motor, the parent. Haval is its SUV sub-brand, spun off as a standalone marque in 2013. In Australia everything now sells under the GWM master brand, so the car once called a Haval Jolion is officially a GWM Haval Jolion. Tank, Ora, Wey and the Cannon utes sit alongside Haval as separate sub-brands within the same group, which is why a Tank 300 is a GWM but not a Haval.

The Brand Family at a Glance

Measurement	What it covers
GWM	The parent and master brand, Great Wall Motor
Haval	Mainstream SUVs: Jolion, H6, H6 GT, H7
Tank	Ladder-frame off-road SUVs: Tank 300, Tank 500
Cannon	Utes, known as Poer in China
Ora	Small electric cars
Wey	The premium brand, named after the founding family

Where This Comes From

Brand history, the 2023 strategy change and model naming come from company announcements and published reference and motoring sources. We are an independent aftermarket retailer with no affiliation with Great Wall Motor.

How Haval Became a Brand

Haval started as a product line rather than a brand. The first-generation Haval H6 launched in 2011 and became China's best-selling SUV for eight consecutive years, with more than four million built. That success pushed GWM to concentrate on SUVs and phase out sedans and hatchbacks.

In March 2013, Haval was spun off as a standalone brand with its own logo, becoming GWM's second brand after the original Great Wall nameplate.

Others followed. Wey arrived in 2017 as the premium arm, named after founder Wei Jianjun's family. Tank and Ora came later, covering off-road and electric respectively.

What Changed in 2023

This is the source of most of the confusion, and it was a deliberate decision.

GWM announced it would adjust its multi-brand strategy for export markets. GWM became the master brand, and the previously standalone Haval, Ora, Tank and Wey were repositioned as sub-brands beneath it.

The practical effect on badging:

• Model names gained a prefix: the Haval H6 became the GWM Haval H6
• The rear badge changed: GWM began replacing the Haval logo with a GWM wordmark, first seen in Australia on the Jolion
• One dealer, one brand: export markets receive products from several sub-brands through a single network

So if you have seen the same car wearing a Haval badge in one place and a GWM badge in another, nothing was rebuilt. The branding was consolidated.

Haval in Australia

Haval launched here in 2015 with four dealers, moving to factory-backed local distribution the following year. The network grew to 15 dealers by 2017 and to 68 by early 2024.

That history is why older Australian listings, service records and accessory catalogues still say Haval while newer ones say GWM. Both refer to the same vehicles.

Which of Your Cars Is a Haval

A simple rule: if it is a mainstream road-focused SUV, it is probably a Haval. If it is a ute, an off-roader or an electric city car, it is not.

• Haval: Jolion, Jolion Max, H6, H6 GT, H7
• Not Haval: Tank 300, Tank 500, Cannon, Cannon Alpha, Ora, and the incoming Wey models

The Cannon's Chinese sub-brand name, Poer, is an acronym the company says stands for powerful, off-road, enjoyable and reliable. It was the first vehicle sold here under the rebranded GWM name, launching locally as the GWM Ute before being renamed Cannon.

Why This Matters When Buying Parts

This is where the naming genuinely costs people money and time.

• Search both names. A listing for Haval Jolion floor mats and one for GWM Jolion floor mats may be the same product, and one may be cheaper or in stock
• Check the model year, not the badge. Badging changed without the vehicle changing, so a badge is not a reliable way to identify a generation
• Watch for genuinely different vehicles sharing a name. The current Haval H7 is a completely different vehicle from the one it replaced, and parts do not carry over
• Use your VIN. It settles what you have regardless of which name a seller uses, as covered in our Jolion VIN location guide

Warranty documentation reflects the same history, applying to new GWM and Haval vehicles sold through authorised dealers, so an older Haval-badged car is covered on the same terms.

The Scale Behind the Badge

Context for anyone weighing up a relatively unfamiliar brand. GWM's total sales reached 1,233,292 vehicles in 2024, of which the Haval brand accounted for 706,234.

Haval is not a side project. It is the volume core of a company building more than a million vehicles a year, which matters for parts supply and long-term platform support.

Common Mistakes

• Thinking they are rival companies: Haval is owned by GWM
• Calling a Tank 300 a Haval: Tank is a separate sub-brand
• Assuming a badge change means a new model: the 2023 strategy change was branding only
• Searching one name only: parts are listed under both
• Trusting a name to identify a generation: the H7 nameplate now covers two unrelated vehicles