Great Wall Motors will team up with Shelby American on a tougher Ute.
The GWM Ute Baja Snake will be revealed at the Shanghai motor show in the coming weeks with what looks like a Ford Ranger Raptor-rivalling suspension setup.
“We’re not in a position to comment on future product other than to say that we continue to work with our Head Office colleagues to explore options for widening the GWM range here in Australia,” a GWM spokesperson told CarExpert.
“Suffice to say that if we can make the business case stack up for any new products that might be on the drawing board, then we’ll look to make them available to buyers Down Under.”
Images shared by Greg Kable on Twitter reveal a tougher exterior, with a prominent sail panel over the tray and an aggressive front bumper.
It’s not yet clear what will power the car, given the GWM engine line-up is made up exclusively of four-cylinder engines.
The GWM Ute sold in Australia is powered by a four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine with 120kW of power and 400Nm of torque, sent to all four wheels through an eight-speed ZF automatic transmission.
Although the Ford Ranger Raptor shows small-displacement engines can be fitted to high-performance off-roaders, Shelby American is known for cars such as the F-150 Super Snake Sport.
With a supercharged V8 engine under the bonnet, it can sprint to 100km/h in just 3.5 seconds from standstill.
Were it to come to Australia, the Baja Snake would go head-to-head with the Ford Ranger Raptor and Nissan Navara Warrior.
The current range kicks off with the GWM Ute Cannon at $33,990 drive-away, the Cannon-L grade driven here is $37,990 drive-away, and the flagship Cannon-X costs $40,990 drive-away.
A high-end Baja Snake could undercut the Raptor ($77,690 before on-road costs).
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