Rare Sales Decline for Tank Brand—How Will Great Wall Motor Defend Its Market Position?

Great Wall Motor’s Tank brand, which had maintained uninterrupted sales growth for four years and held the top spot in China’s off-road SUV market for 54 consecutive months, has now experienced an unexpected decline. According to the company’s latest production and sales report for June, Great Wall Motor recorded total wholesale sales of 569,800 units in the first half of 2025, reflecting a modest year-on-year increase of 1.81%. However, the Tank brand reported a rare setback with wholesale sales reaching 103,700 units, down 10.67% compared to the same period last year.

As the dominant force in China’s off-road SUV segment, holding over 50% of the market share, Tank’s current challenge lies in defending its long-standing leadership. The Tank brand made its debut on July 24, 2020, at the Chengdu Auto Show, where Great Wall Motor’s premium brand WEY unveiled the Tank 300—a compact, intelligent luxury off-road SUV built on the company's proprietary "Tank·WEY" off-road platform. The unexpected market performance of the Tank 300 soon surpassed that of its parent brand, becoming one of the key sales drivers for Great Wall Motor, even as the broader off-road segment remained highly niche.

In June 2020, the best-selling off-road SUV was the Toyota Prado from FAW Toyota, with just 3,282 units sold. The BAIC BJ40 and Great Wall Haval H9 followed with 1,658 and 1,448 units respectively. The Nissan Terra ranked fourth at 1,021 units, while the fifth-ranked model sold only 386 units. Against this backdrop, expectations for the Tank 300 were conservative. However, following its December 2020 launch, sales rapidly climbed, and the Tank 300 soon became the off-road SUV market leader.

The Tank brand became independent in April 2021 at the Shanghai Auto Show, joining Haval, WEY, GWM Pickup, and Ora as Great Wall Motor’s fifth standalone brand. That year, Tank 300 sales totaled 84,600 units, setting a new record in the domestic off-road SUV market and surpassing WEY’s 58,400 units.

In March 2022, the Tank 500 entered the market as a mid-to-large business-class luxury SUV. By the end of the year, Tank’s total sales reached 125,700 units, with the Tank 300 alone contributing over 100,000 units. The Tank 400Hi4-T was launched in September 2023, pushing annual sales to 162,900 units. With the introduction of the Tank 700Hi4-T in February 2024, Tank closed the year with total sales of 232,200 units.

Given the brand’s premium positioning, Tank also became a major contributor to Great Wall Motor’s profitability. Chief Growth Officer Li Ruifeng previously noted that both the GWM Pickup and Tank brands hold nearly 50% market share, serving as key drivers of brand strength and profit margins for the company.

At the start of 2025, Great Wall Motor set ambitious targets for the Tank brand, aiming for at least 40% global growth, or 320,000 units in total sales, including 240,000 units domestically. However, sales began declining in 2025. Except for February and May, each month in the first half of the year recorded negative growth. Cumulative wholesale volume from January to June reached 103,700 units, representing a year-on-year decline of 10.67% or a decrease of 12,400 units. Compared to the annual global target, only about one-third of the goal was achieved in the first six months.

Signs of slowing growth had already emerged by August 2024. Before that, Tank had maintained over 30% year-on-year growth for 12 consecutive months. Growth fell to 11.42% in August, 3.80% in September, and turned negative in October, although it recovered slightly in November and December.

The sales downturn cannot be attributed to a single model. Several models under the Tank lineup experienced varying degrees of decline. According to Bitauto data, Tank currently offers seven models, including the Tank 300, 400, and 500 series and their corresponding NEV versions, along with the Tank 700 NEV.

The Tank 300 remains the flagship model. In the first half of 2025, the internal combustion version sold 38,300 units, while the Tank 300Hi4-T, launched in March, sold 14,000 units, bringing the combined total to 52,300 units—a decrease of about 5,770 units year-on-year.

The Tank 400 series recorded cumulative sales of 18,900 units, down roughly 630 units year-on-year. Over 80% of these were NEVs. The fuel-powered version, launched in late February, failed to surpass 1,000 units in monthly sales. The Tank 500 series sold 28,800 units, with more than 70% being NEVs—wholesale volumes dropped by approximately 2,000 units. The Tank 700 NEV sold 3,664 units in the first half of the year, down about 4,000 units compared to last year.

Within less than a year, Tank went from rapid growth to declining sales, raising concerns about the future of this domestic off-road SUV leader. Market saturation is one factor behind the shift. Previously, the hard-core off-road segment was primarily occupied by a few traditional players such as Tank, BAIC, and Ford. Recently, BYD’s Fang Cheng Bao entered the field, siphoning off potential Tank customers. According to Tank’s internal classifications, models like the Fang Cheng Bao, which feature electric AWD, do not meet the standard of true off-road vehicles.

Tank categorizes SUVs into four levels: standard city SUVs; “light off-road” with AWD and at least one differential lock; “strong off-road” with a body-on-frame design, mechanical AWD, and three differential locks; and military-grade vehicles. By this definition, models like the Bao 5 from Fang Cheng Bao, while equipped with a unibody frame and three differential locks, lack mechanical AWD and are thus not considered “strong off-road.” However, industry standards generally recognize such models as part of the hard-core off-road segment.

The Bao 5 has been one of the standout performers over the past year. Following a ¥50,000 price cut in July 2024, its sales surged, coinciding with the timing of Tank’s deceleration. With the exception of January and February, the Bao 5 consistently maintained monthly retail sales above 4,800 units, reaching a cumulative total of 27,100 units in the first half of 2025—significantly overlapping with the Tank 300's target demographic.

Fang Cheng Bao’s Bao 8, priced between ¥379,800 and ¥423,800, directly competes with the Tank 700 NEV, which ranges from ¥428,000 to ¥700,000. Before the Bao 8's release, the Tank 700 NEV maintained monthly retail sales above 1,000 units. After the Bao 8’s launch, Tank 700 NEV sales dropped to around 500 units, while Bao 8 stabilized at around 2,000 units per month, totaling 13,000 units in the first half.

Geely and Chery have also entered the hard-core off-road market. Geely introduced the Galaxy Warship and Chery unveiled the Jetour Traveler G700 during the 2024 Shanghai Auto Show. Although not yet available for sale, these models further intensify competition in an already niche segment.

Tank is also facing internal competition from sibling brand Haval. As Tank grew into a dominant off-road brand, Great Wall Motor increasingly infused off-road capabilities into Haval’s lineup. Models like the Haval Raptor PHEV, though built on a unibody frame, offer sufficient off-road features and superior comfort and fuel efficiency, appealing to buyers who might otherwise choose a Tank 300. The Raptor PHEV delivered strong sales in the first half of 2025. Haval also offers off-road-capable models such as the Haval Raptor ICE, H5, and H9.

Facing mounting pressure in the traditional off-road space, Tank has begun shifting toward the broader “light off-road” market to seek growth. In October 2024, the company introduced the Hi4-Z platform, which, like the Bao 5, uses dual electric motors for AWD instead of mechanical AWD found in Hi4-T. Tank classifies Hi4-Z models as “light off-road.”

While slightly less capable off-road than Hi4-T, the Hi4-Z system offers a larger battery, improved fuel efficiency, and supports more advanced cockpit and autonomous driving technologies, making it more suitable for urban SUV users with occasional off-road needs.

The Hi4-Z system debuted in the 2025 version of the Tank 500 NEV. According to official data, 3,668 units were delivered between January 1 and January 20, though further data has not been disclosed. Still, the brand is aggressively promoting Hi4-Z. According to media reports, Tank plans to release Hi4-Z versions of the Tank 400, Tank 700, and an updated Tank 500 in the second half of the year. All three will feature intelligent driving systems with LiDAR supplied by Yuanrong Qixing and chips powered by NVIDIA’s Orin-X.

These Hi4-Z-equipped models, featuring electric AWD and smart driving capabilities, closely mirror Fang Cheng Bao’s offerings. Whether Tank can use this platform to regain lost market share and return to growth remains to be seen. This development will continue to be monitored.