Haval H6: the Great Wall crossover that topped China's SUV chart for eight straight years

The H6 is a compact crossover SUV that Great Wall Motor has built under its Haval marque since 2011, when it debuted at that year's Shanghai Auto Show. Initially introduced as the Great Wall Haval H6 and positioned as the successor to the Great Wall Pegasus, the model was later folded into the standalone Haval brand. Buyers have had a choice of front-wheel-drive or all-wheel-drive layouts throughout its run.

Its commercial record is the heart of its story: the H6 sat at the top of China's SUV sales ranking for 103 consecutive months, roughly eight years, and in December 2016 it moved 80,495 units in a single month — a monthly Chinese-market benchmark that has yet to be beaten. By 2024, cumulative global volume had climbed beyond four million, making it the best-selling vehicle GWM has ever produced.

Three generations have followed since launch. The first, built from 2011 to 2020, rolled out of the Tianjin plant and was also assembled from knock-down kits in Bulgaria by Litex Motors and in Iran by Diar, offering Mitsubishi-derived petrol engines alongside a 2.0-litre diesel. The one-millionth example left the Tianjin line in November 2015, and the model took a five-star China-NCAP rating in April 2012.

The current third-generation car arrived in 2020 and has since expanded into electrified territory with H6 HEV and H6 PHEV versions, plus a 2024 facelift. The wider family spans the H6 Coupe, the H6S/H6 GT, the stretched H6L and the related M6, with sales reaching Southeast Asia, Australia, Mexico, South Africa and other export markets.