The History of Great Wall Motors

Since 1998, Great Wall has held the top spot in pickup truck sales in China. Along with pickups, the company also builds crossovers, minivans, SUVs, trucks, buses, and limousines. These vehicles are popular not only at home but well beyond Asia, including in Europe and other parts of the world. Yet Great Wall is far from resting on its results. Its subsidiaries are constantly looking for new technologies and solutions, and they study consumer demand closely. All this helped Great Wall become a recognized giant of the automotive industry in the Chinese and European markets by 2004, outpacing many of its powerful competitors in the process. The proof is the number of Great Wall vehicles built each year: more than 200,000, each of which quickly finds an owner. These achievements were also made possible because, starting in the 1990s, Great Wall actively built the latest Japanese technology into its vehicles. But it would be wrong to see the company as a blind follower of other people's inventions! Numerous international-standard quality certificates confirm that Great Wall builds vehicles that are not only modern but also safe and well made. Examples include a copyright certificate (2000) and a certificate from the United Kingdom Accreditation Service, among others. Today, the Chinese group's buses, specialized city vehicles, and rugged SUVs are the most popular worldwide (for example, the Great Wall Safe F1, and the Great Wall SUV G5 and Great Wall Hover in some markets). Interestingly, the name of this famous company means "Great Wall" in English, and that is no accident. It honors the best-known, largest, and sturdiest architectural landmark in China, the Great Wall of China. To live up to such a name, the company puts a lot of emphasis on big, powerful vehicles that can handle even the most hopeless roads. As the saying goes, "As you name the ship, so it will sail." And indeed, Great Wall's unqualified success looks as stable and solid as the legendary Wall itself. At present, the company has focused its efforts on building and promoting the already very popular Hover crossover and the SUV. Work continues on new pickups, buses, and specialized vehicles. All vehicles that roll off the Great Wall (GW for short) assembly line are fitted with excellent in-house engines. Many other automakers have also come to appreciate these engines and buy them in whole batches directly from the Chinese factory. Today GW operates 10 plants and branches and design bureaus, and it works closely with other automakers around the world.