Great Wall Motor’s smallest car for India is the R1 electric hatchback!

GWM R1 can be had in China with either a 28.5 kWh or a 33 kWh battery pack; it is claimed capable of more than 300 km range in the NEDC cycle

Great Wall Motors of China will soon enter the Indian market with their range of vehicles. The Chinese automobile giant will launch vehicles under different brands in the Indian market and one of the most interesting vehicles from the brand will be an electric car. GWM showcased the new GMW R1 at the 2020 Auto Expo and it is expected to enter the Indian market in the coming months. When launched, it will become the most affordable electric vehicle in the Indian market.

The small, micro hatchback is a part of the 10 vehicles showcased at the 2020 Auto Expo by the manufacturer. The small electric car named as the R1 caught the attention of the most at the 2020 Auto Expo. It is already on sale in the Chinese market under the Ora brand and touted as the cheapest electric vehicle in the world. The GMW R1 sells at a price of Rs 7.2 lakh after subsidies in China.

The price of the vehicle in the Indian market is not known or indicated by the manufacturer yet. However, it will be very affordable and will be able to compete with the Mahindra eKUV, which was launched at the Auto Expo at a price of Rs 8.25 lakhs.

GMW showcased two different trims of the car at the Auto Expo and both of them look equally good. To start with, the R1 gets round headlamps with DRLs integrated to them. There is a thick white enclosure in which the headlamps are positioned. The charging point is also located at the front of the vehicle. The headlamps get projector lamps. It gets a dual-tone paint scheme with a white base with contrasting colours. The two variants of the GWM R1 get alloy wheels and wheel covers separately and look quite good in real life.

The car comes powered by a 33 kWh battery pack that generates a maximum of 47 PS and peak torque of 125 Nm. It is a city car and can reach a top speed of 100 km/h. It also gets a fast charging option and can reach 80% charging level in just 40 minutes using a DC charger.

The cabin of the GWM R1 also looks quite impressive and funky. It gets a 9.0-inch touchscreen with voice command system, dual airbags, ABS, parking sensors, reverse camera system, tyre pressure monitoring system, hill start assist and many more such features. There is also autonomous emergency braking system but it is unlikely to be available with the India-spec version. The manufacturer has kept the cost low by offering features like butterfly rear windows.

It is early times to make a judgement as to what will pan out. The Ora R1 comes equipped with a nine-inch touchscreen infotainment system, reversing camera, Hill Start Assist (HSA), Tyre Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS), in-car connectivity features, four speak audio and so on.

The manufacturer will launch its first vehicle in the Indian market in 2021. Haval H6 will be the first car from the manufacturer after which all other vehicles will be launched in a phased manner.