In the business world, sales and marketing is the utmost important department to bring up a brand, and when this department runs wild, with broken promises...it could be an early sign of failure. The Great Wall M4 looks great, and it is in fact handsome, and arms with an extremely low selling price, it should immediately sell like hot cake. However, if you dig around in gwm.my facebook account, you could notice a lot of complaints and uncertainties from soon-to-be owner of the M4. Try dropping by the Green Oranges showroom in Glenmarie (Yes, that is the distributor company name), the experience is a horror as well. Impolite salesperson and no test drive available (although there are rows of manual version of M4 park outside and a show car with automated transmission inside). Waiting time for the car could be months and months...as in most facebook complaints, it could be very frustrating from all broken promises by the company. If one could recalled, the Greatwall M4 is the first certified EEV in Malaysia, with its own assembly plant in Gurun Kedah. Looks like when an orange change its colour, it could be sign of being "rosak"...
Powering the mini SUV, is a 1.5-litre VVT engine, where one sales person claimed it is from an older Toyota VVT engine, but most claimed it is from a Mitsubishi 4G15 derived unit. But in actual fact, the engine is like a copycat unit of Toyota's 1NZ-FE, and fully developed in house by Great Wall. It could produce a modest 105hp/138Nm of power, and achieve 6 litres/100 kilometer fuel economy, and if these figures were true, it could be quite impressive. China manufacturers are now keen on making world car, thus the M4 is equipped with dual airbags, ABS system and ESP (Electronic stability control). However, the ESP on/off button could not be found in the car, thus wonder how true this is? Asking their sales person equivalent to talking to a rock, and checking for further information from the web return nothing. Great Wall even go further in publishing the ABS is from Bosch to ensure the public the M4 has some traits from the German. We all knew very well there are not a lot car safety components manufacturers in the world, and let's hope the airbag is not from Takata! A deep dive into the engine compartment reveal the neat layout, clean and some component in Chinese wording...pray for the quality! The Varta battery installed is reputable, but this is the CBU show car, and when it is being assembled locally, most likely you will see an unknown brand being replaced into it.
When you pay peanut, you get monkey, thus don't set your expectation high if you were buying it. For the dirt cheap Perodua Axia's price, hard plastics are fully loaded in the car. Big room of improvement is needed to improve the build quality. A short walkaround reveal most control buttons are flimsy, and you could try the door lock button here, be gentle not to damage their "show car" though. Proton took decades to get the glove box right, so don't expect a China made M4 could have a perfect fit for this as well. Rubber seal on the windscreen is not being seated well, further adding a big gap for the plactic cover between the wiper and engine compartment. After a rain of car wash, most probably the engine compartment will be cleaned as well! Well, at least the bumper and light fit real well here, which also took Proton decades to learn.
The M4 has a great outlook, where the side profile looks a bit like the Pininfarina-penned Hyundai Matrix, though the interior space is not as spacious, and boot capacity is small. The interior is neat and simple as well, except for the extra big button for the windows. The speedometer is digital, and it lights up beautifully. Hope this will last the lifetime of the car, as digital panel could have segment failure overtime. Each digit is made up by 7 segment, and if anyone were burnt, you will get an incomplete digit. The AMT gear stalk feel lousy though. Wonder what an AMT is? It is the automated manual transmission. It is a manual box in reality, with an automated clutch activated by an actuator/robotic arm. If you could remember the Proton Savvy AMT? The Citroen C2/C3 Sensodrive, or even the those Citroen using the EGS gearbox? Similar concept. AMT are known to produce impressive fuel economy, and also known to a lot of failure due to badly adjusted actuator or hung mechanism on the actuator. The Getrag 6-speed AMT gearbox in the M4 is not for anyone, especially for older people that has weak coordination of handbrake and the gas pedal. This is because without the hill-hold/hill-assist function, the car will roll back when you release the brake pedal. One must use the handbrake to hold the car, press the gas pedal lightly while releasing the brake. AMT is also known for slow gearshift, which causes the jerkiness during this process, and overtime, the actuator will produce the shifting noise. Any moving component is doom to failure, thus AMT being a manual transmission, get this additional component to maintain, which is costly. The actuator also draw higher electrical current, thus the need of bigger battery for a small car. Proper equipment needed to adjust the position of the actuator if it has been unscrew for any service purpose. Most manufacturers that had tried this type of gearbox had abandoned it in choice for a normal torque converter auto box or dual clutch unit.
Even after much unknown factor of the car...for it be quality or reliability or after sales service, most in the trend for an urban SUV, would still want to give this a try, as the price from RM47k to RM60k really make the Greatwall M4 irresistible. Always remember...pay peanut...get monkey. However for the next 3 years, the owner is cover by warranty, thereafter tender loving care to the car is needed to prevent it from breaking apart, for example...don't put the button to hard...don't park the car under the sun, etc. By the way, the M4 has already attracted quite some numbers of order, but delivery date is still unknown...might be due to poor product planning or management. The AMT could be available in 2rd quarter of 2015 only. The Green Oranges' showroom in Glenmarie is close on Sunday, which is a sign that the people running the show is not customer focus...Most other showrooms would want to open on Sunday as this is the only day where most will be free! Wonder what is wrong, as leaderships from the company are veteran from the industry! Anyway...again...the price is so good...thus to some...as long as the car run well without breaking down...who care about lousy fitting or button quality!
If you really want one, suggest to wait for the test drive!
Oh, by the way, with so many complaint of the ESP malfunction in the M4 owner's group, one could know the ESP has not been tuned well. ESP light ON means it is off by the owner (if a switch is available) or a malfunction detected, thus will not function. If you want more info on the AMT, click here.
Update: Talk about inconsistency on the M4, the recent unit with ESP has finally been fitted with the ESP On/Off switch, which should always be the default standard. Slowly and gradually, Go Auto is getting their cars right with the specifications. Even the tactile feel of some switches has improved. Hill Start Control is also a standard in the AMT model now, bravo!
Beside the Standard, Comfort and Premium variants, soon the Elite variant will join force with different enhance headlight, grille and wheels, which shall command for additional premium price. For the cheapest B-Segment crossover, maybe one should hop over to look at some other B-Segment sedans such as the Nissan Almera, Honda City, Toyota Vios or even the latest Kia Rio. The M4 till today, only excel in the look and price.
To give peace of mind for all future owners, the car now comes with 7-year unlimited mileage warranty, which is the longest in the industry. Looks like an attractive package now. It has even been tested by ASEAN NCAP now, earning a 3-star safety rating.
When you pay peanut, you get monkey, thus don't set your expectation high if you were buying it. For the dirt cheap Perodua Axia's price, hard plastics are fully loaded in the car. Big room of improvement is needed to improve the build quality. A short walkaround reveal most control buttons are flimsy, and you could try the door lock button here, be gentle not to damage their "show car" though. Proton took decades to get the glove box right, so don't expect a China made M4 could have a perfect fit for this as well. Rubber seal on the windscreen is not being seated well, further adding a big gap for the plactic cover between the wiper and engine compartment. After a rain of car wash, most probably the engine compartment will be cleaned as well! Well, at least the bumper and light fit real well here, which also took Proton decades to learn.
The M4 has a great outlook, where the side profile looks a bit like the Pininfarina-penned Hyundai Matrix, though the interior space is not as spacious, and boot capacity is small. The interior is neat and simple as well, except for the extra big button for the windows. The speedometer is digital, and it lights up beautifully. Hope this will last the lifetime of the car, as digital panel could have segment failure overtime. Each digit is made up by 7 segment, and if anyone were burnt, you will get an incomplete digit. The AMT gear stalk feel lousy though. Wonder what an AMT is? It is the automated manual transmission. It is a manual box in reality, with an automated clutch activated by an actuator/robotic arm. If you could remember the Proton Savvy AMT? The Citroen C2/C3 Sensodrive, or even the those Citroen using the EGS gearbox? Similar concept. AMT are known to produce impressive fuel economy, and also known to a lot of failure due to badly adjusted actuator or hung mechanism on the actuator. The Getrag 6-speed AMT gearbox in the M4 is not for anyone, especially for older people that has weak coordination of handbrake and the gas pedal. This is because without the hill-hold/hill-assist function, the car will roll back when you release the brake pedal. One must use the handbrake to hold the car, press the gas pedal lightly while releasing the brake. AMT is also known for slow gearshift, which causes the jerkiness during this process, and overtime, the actuator will produce the shifting noise. Any moving component is doom to failure, thus AMT being a manual transmission, get this additional component to maintain, which is costly. The actuator also draw higher electrical current, thus the need of bigger battery for a small car. Proper equipment needed to adjust the position of the actuator if it has been unscrew for any service purpose. Most manufacturers that had tried this type of gearbox had abandoned it in choice for a normal torque converter auto box or dual clutch unit.
Even after much unknown factor of the car...for it be quality or reliability or after sales service, most in the trend for an urban SUV, would still want to give this a try, as the price from RM47k to RM60k really make the Greatwall M4 irresistible. Always remember...pay peanut...get monkey. However for the next 3 years, the owner is cover by warranty, thereafter tender loving care to the car is needed to prevent it from breaking apart, for example...don't put the button to hard...don't park the car under the sun, etc. By the way, the M4 has already attracted quite some numbers of order, but delivery date is still unknown...might be due to poor product planning or management. The AMT could be available in 2rd quarter of 2015 only. The Green Oranges' showroom in Glenmarie is close on Sunday, which is a sign that the people running the show is not customer focus...Most other showrooms would want to open on Sunday as this is the only day where most will be free! Wonder what is wrong, as leaderships from the company are veteran from the industry! Anyway...again...the price is so good...thus to some...as long as the car run well without breaking down...who care about lousy fitting or button quality!
If you really want one, suggest to wait for the test drive!
Oh, by the way, with so many complaint of the ESP malfunction in the M4 owner's group, one could know the ESP has not been tuned well. ESP light ON means it is off by the owner (if a switch is available) or a malfunction detected, thus will not function. If you want more info on the AMT, click here.
Update: Talk about inconsistency on the M4, the recent unit with ESP has finally been fitted with the ESP On/Off switch, which should always be the default standard. Slowly and gradually, Go Auto is getting their cars right with the specifications. Even the tactile feel of some switches has improved. Hill Start Control is also a standard in the AMT model now, bravo!
Beside the Standard, Comfort and Premium variants, soon the Elite variant will join force with different enhance headlight, grille and wheels, which shall command for additional premium price. For the cheapest B-Segment crossover, maybe one should hop over to look at some other B-Segment sedans such as the Nissan Almera, Honda City, Toyota Vios or even the latest Kia Rio. The M4 till today, only excel in the look and price.
To give peace of mind for all future owners, the car now comes with 7-year unlimited mileage warranty, which is the longest in the industry. Looks like an attractive package now. It has even been tested by ASEAN NCAP now, earning a 3-star safety rating.
