Have you been waiting with bated breath for plug-in hybrid dual cabs?
Well you’re in luck, my friend, for not only are we getting the Ford Ranger and BYD Shark utes in PHEV form in a couple of months, GWM has locked in a plug-in version of its Cannon Alpha pickup for Australia, complete with 110km of EV range.
But do we need or want them?
And, with no fringe benefits tax (FBT) on novated leasing ending on April 1 2025 for PHEVs, buyers will have to get in early or miss out on this appealing incentive.
Concerningly, will these be plug-in white elephants once that date ticks over?
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Anyway, just before announcing the Cannon Alpha PHEV would land here late in Q1 of 2025, GWM offered EVCentral a quick test drive in a pre-production left-hand-drive version.
The golden beastie had been shipped in from China for local evaluation, and we had an off-road and on-track try at a private facility.
PRICE AND FEATURES
No locked-in details here, but with the combustion Cannon Alpha Hybrid costing $64,990 drive-away, expect the PHEV to add another $10,000+ to the driveway.
Increasing the bill (while remaining under the $91,387 luxury car tax threshold to stay eligible for FBT exemption) will be GWM likely bringing in the flagship Ultra and/or (as we tested) XSR grade. This has all the luxury cabin fruit, plus bush-ready off-road gear.
Think all-terrain tyres, underbody bash plates, steel bumper with winch, giant snorkel and – important bit this – more sophisticated coil rear suspension rather than cart-springs for a better on-road ride.
These Cannon Alphas are sized between traditional one-tonners like the Toyota HiLux and Ford Ranger, and giant US pickups like Rams and the Ford F-150.
Vitals are it’s a true off-road 4×4 ute with low range transfer case, tows 3500kg, wades up to 800mm, has 224mm ground clearance, there’s massive space for five occupants and a sizeable 37.1kWh battery under the ute tub.
Battery weight means a plunge in payload allowance – just 535kg for this PHEV. Not a great look for such a massive pickup, best labelled as a half-tonner.
But its impressive 110km WLTP range – sadly we didn’t have the chance to properly test this claim – gives this Cannon Alpha a compelling point of difference. If used as a work truck, urban jobs could be conducted in zero-emissions silence. Then on the weekend there’s opportunity to load up the family and kit (careful not to exceed that 535kg) and enjoy off-roading with no need for petrol nor diesel.
For reference, Ford says its new Ranger PHEV will have a target EV-only range “above 45km”.
Drivetrain stats are chunky. A 2.0L four-cylinder turbo petrol’s backed by an electric motor, delivering 300kW and 750Nm combined if there’s juice in the battery.
Exhaust it and you’re down 120kW/400Nm as the electric motor hibernates, leaving you with 180kW/380Nm from the petrol engine, drinking at a rate of 9.3L/100km. If you’re towing something heavy, that four-cylinder turbo is going to be working very hard to haul it and move the Cannon Alpha’s lardy 2775kg mass.
It handles DC charging up to 50kW, and we’re promised the battery goes from 30-80 per cent charge in 24 minutes this way. An AC port, if using a home wall box, delivers near empty to full in 6.5 hours.
Other inclusions on our test XSR were two front front recovery points, metal side steps, electric split tailgate (it’s very cool), protective tub liner and, thanks to V2L, a domestic power point in the tub and second in the cabin.
As a common theme with Chinese imports, cabins are dripping in luxury and features. This Cannon Alpha version may be the range topper, but it’s still strange having plush rather than utilitarian surroundings in a work truck.
Daylight pours through a sunroof (it sadly doesn’t stretch to rear seats), while faux leather chairs are electric, heated and sink-in cossetting, and there’s soft plastics for door tops, dash and centre console.
Space is vast and there’s ample storage, while the driver goes to work with a chunky gear shifter, large wireless charge pad, plenty of physical buttons and posh illuminated analogue clock.
Material quality is good, but not to be confused with most prestige brands, but it’s hard to fault the whopping 14.6-inch central infotainment screen, which despite only Chinese characters, proved swift operating and of decent resolution. It’s backed by a 12.3-inch digital driver display.
Somebody signed off on our test car having yellow seat sides and door arm rests (each to their own), but there’s better news if you hop in the back.
The Alpha’s 3350mm wheelbase brings excellent rear space, and unlike conventional ute upright seat backs, this PHEV’s rear chairs automatically slide forward and offer a rear recline plus heating. Spoiling the kids even more are air vents, USB ports and that V2L socket.
While we all like a bit of luxe, it’d be savvy to scale back some of the niceties to enable a lower, more appealing price for this PHEV on our market.
DRIVING
It’s quite lovely, off-roading in silence.
With sunroof open and windows down, if gentle on the Cannon Alpha’s throttle it runs only on battery. No diesel rattle nor petrol rumble, no pollution spewed into nature, and we scaled hills, waded rivers and rock crawled only using the electric motor.
The petrol’s quick to chime in if it believes more shove’s needed, but we eventually found the EV-only mode (Chinese characters, remember) for our off-road course. Even so, the petrol still fired up with a heavier right foot, but we were promised it could remain EV only in a setting.
Without the petrol engine, there’s good response and ample torque from the electric motor for most obstacles. I’d suggest you could go a fair distance over most off-road tracks without burning fossil fuel.
Decent suspension and soft seats meant the off-road ride was plush, and with low range plus centre, rear and front diff locks, the big GWM felt more than capable on our test.
I’ll caveat that with it’s going to take years of real world, real owner testing in Aussie conditions before GWM will earn its stripes. Those rocking up to bush camp sites in a Cannon Alpha PHEV will doubtless receive as many cold shoulders as inquisitive questions from LandCruiser and Patrol owners.
But early signs are good, and the battery safety testing – crush, submersion, high-pressure and fire – appears to have been exhaustive.
It was hard to shut off the Cannon’s invasive driver assist and driver monitoring – a familiar problem with GWM products – but kudos to this big ute’s cameras.
These show the pickup’s sides, front, rear and overhead, and the giant central screen can be split to show numerous angles. It creates a transparent picture of the vehicle, showing obstacles beneath and ahead should your nose be pointing skywards.
Our only on-road test was on a mirror smooth test track, so hardly indicative of Aussie conditions.
As expected, the Cannon Alpha proved a lumbering thing, heavy and wobbly in turns. Acceptable, really, considering its size. Steering and brake feel were rather numb, but it’s certainly a light and easy thing to pilot, if you can handle its size.
In EV-only mode it’s not got much guts, but with the petrol combined, acceleration’s an eager 6.9 seconds to 100km/h. The nine-speed auto gearbox with paddle shifters took a while to wake up, but once rolling there’s pleasing pull.
PHEV economy figures are pointless to quote because it depends on how it’s used and for how long, but the combined number we’re given is 1.7L/100km.
VERDICT
This Alpha PHEV will join the Ford Ranger and BYD Shark plug-ins by 2025, and it’s a real unknown how Aussie buyers will take to them. Not least once FBT incentives are removed next year.
An obvious PHEV advantage is not the compromises of full EV utes and pickups – 4×4 capabilities, range anxiety and charging infrastructure included. You can get to a remote spot with exhausted battery and know there’s the petrol engine to get you home without the panic about recharging.
This Cannon feels capable off-road, happily hit 100km/h using electric only, and its 110km EV range should cover many bush adventures where speeds are slow and distances not mighty.
GWM’s seven-year warranty and five years capped price servicing helps this PHEV’s case, but pricing, when it comes, will be all-important.
SCORE:
3.5 out of 5
Cannon Alpha PHEV Specifications
Price: Est. from $75,000 (plus on-road costs)
Basics: Large dual-cab pickup PHEV, 5 seats, 4 doors, 4WD
Battery: 37.1kWh
Electric range: 110km (WLTP)
Economy: 1.7L/100km
Engine 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo petrol with electric motor, 300kW/750Nm (combined)
Towing: 3500kg
