1 Sep 2016
The Great Wall brand returned to Australian roads in the form of the facelifted Steed dual-cab light commercial utility.
Sales of China’s best selling ute ground to a halt under the previous importer during a a dispute with the Chinese parent company but the brand returned to offer a cut-priced workhorse.
The facelifted ute - with a new larger chrome grille and new head lights - was offered in 4x2 and 4x4 guises, with petrol power available in the former only and neither power plant has anything other than a six-speed manual gearbox bolted to it for now.
The base model is powered by a EuroV fuel-injected 2.4-litre petrol engine which generated 100kW and 205Nm, teamed with a five speed manual.
The diesel drivetrain gets a six-speed manual and a EuroV 2.0-litre common-rail turbodiesel which produced 110kW at 4000rpm and 310Nm of torque from 1800 through to 2800rpm, claiming an ADR fuel economy figure of 9 litres per 100km.
A 1010kg payload for the tubliner-equipped tray, four tie-down points and a braked towing capacity of 2000kg was among its working credentials.
Despite claiming to target farmers and tradies, the standard features list was decent, with 16-inch alloy wheels (and a full-size steel spare), man-made Comfort-Tek ‘leather’ trim, carpet floor trim, a tilt only adjustable leather-wrapped steering wheel and gearshifter, power windows and heated exterior mirrors, heated front seats, climate control, cruise control with steering wheel-mounted controls, a six-speaker sound system with USB and Bluetooth, side steps and a sports bar.
The safety features list included automatic headlights and wipers, an auto-dimming centre mirror, tyre pressure monitoring system, six airbags, halogen headlights, LED tail lights, daytime running lights, front fog lights, Bosch electronic stability control, hill-start assistance, five lap-sash seat belts, rear parking sensors but no reversing camera and no ANCAP rating was announced at the time of launch.
It measured 5345mm long, 1800mm wide and 1760mm tall, making the Steed 305mm longer than its predecessor and 30mm higher the maker claimed the rear tub is 155mm longer but ground clearance sits at 171mm across the range.
