The TANK 300 is the flagship off-road vehicle from the renowned Chinese automaker, Great Wall Motors. This powerful and rugged SUV features an impressive range of cutting-edge technology and advanced engineering, making it the perfect choice for adventurers looking to take on the toughest terrain.
One of the most distinctive features of the TANK 300 is its legendary off-road capability. With a ground clearance of nearly 240mm, superior chassis design, and excellent approach and departure angles, this SUV is built to tackle even the most challenging off-road conditions. And with its high-strength steel frame and durable exterior, it's also built to last, ensuring that you can enjoy your off-road adventures for years to come.
Although the 4WD system isn't as hardcore as the off-road version and lacks the locking function, the ATS All Terrain Control mode (7 driving modes) + Tank Cornering + Creep mode aren't absent, and the vehicle's passability is still quite a bit better than the average city SUV.
Vehicles are still non-load-bearing body, the use of front double-wishbone independent suspension, rear integral bridge non-independent suspension, four-wheel drive system is changed to intelligent four-wheel drive, which is the tank 300 city version and off-road version of the biggest difference.
The Tank 300 Haval ZF 8-speed manual transmission works well enough with the engine that it's hard to notice it's there when you're driving on a daily basis, and it's smooth enough to downshift aggressively when you need power.
The vehicle is fitted with ANC active noise reduction, while with double-layer acoustic glass NVH performance is also noteworthy.
The release of braking force is mainly concentrated in the second half of the brake, which is a little uncomfortable when you first come into contact with it, and you will always keep a certain braking distance from the car in front of you, but you will soon be able to master its characteristics.
The TANK 300 still provides good support when changing lanes at high speeds, and although it adopts an integral bridge type rear suspension, because of the characteristics of the damper arrangement, it can also react quickly when encountering bumpy roads, allowing the rear to maintain a certain degree of comfort.
Next we will go into the mountains, into the Chongqing Forest Off-Road Park, to experience the performance of the Tank 300 in the regular off-road terrain, honestly, this walk down the throat of the wild park is not really on the high degree of difficulty, the purpose is to experience the Tank 300 power, four-wheel-drive, gear ratios and the ability to collaborate with the transmission more delicate.
In terms of weight transfer, the passengers in the back row may feel it more deeply, and you can clearly perceive: "This car is so wide and stable"! Almost every time, it is a slow and gentle swing, and this process will not cause any "panic" among the passengers.
Starting to traverse, the Tank 300's advantage in gear ratio starts to come to the fore, with a first gear ratio of up to 5.0, and a torque amplification of 2.48 times after shifting into 4L gears, the combination of which can be quite surprising! You can get through quite a bit of terrain without stepping on the gas!
Previously mentioned, the rear shock absorber arrangement of the Tank 300 makes its rear suspension travel slightly weaker than that of the Haval H9, but it possesses a wide wheelbase feature, which in turn gives it a high degree of lateral stability, oversized crossover axles, and a very soft center of gravity transfer, steady!
Even if you don't have off-road driving experience, you'll be able to get on board with the Tank 300 in no time. The 2.OT model tries to behave as much as possible like a "NA off-roader", and with the ratio advantage, the traditional characteristics of the turbo have been somewhat weakened.
The Eaton tooth-embedded differential locks performed commendably, hooking in and removing quickly and with essentially no lag, and according to the 4L All-Terrain Mode, the system automatically hooks in the appropriate differential locks based on the scenario, which "helps newbies get started quicker."
The Tank 300 is equipped with the corresponding underbody guards, and even with the underbody guards installed, the ground clearance also has a good performance, with a height of 224mm in many potholes and "deep ruts" in the terrain can maintain a high adaptability.
The "hardtop shell" feature allows the Tank 300 to pass through some "screwy" terrain without "creaking" or other rattles inside the car, although such rattles are not uncommon for non-load-bearing hardtops.
Thanks to the "short and wide" nature of the Tank 300, its lateral stability is excellent, and even through some very sloping terrain, the driver in the car gets a good sense of stability and control, consistent with the calibration.
One of the best features of the time-share 4WD is the steel connection, which allows for a fully fixed and locked 50:50 front to rear transmission, a feature that will be more apparent when climbing hills, even if you don't unlock the locks or turn on the creep and don't turn on the 4L, and just rely on the 4H to come up steadily.
After a series of traverses and climbs, you will have a deeper understanding of the Tank 300's turbocharged engine, even when the gas is withdrawn, it does not appear to be too obvious, I can only say that the clever combination makes it too much like "NA"!
The maximum wading depth of the Tank 300 is 700mm. Even so, I don't recommend you to blindly play in the water. The air intake is fine, but the circuit system is also overwhelmed. Of course, if the water in front of you does not cover the wheels, you can still have fun.
Two consecutive big slopes symbolize the end of the crossing, COO creep system can play a big role in this environment, through the steering wheel paddles and gas pedal, you can easily control the speed of creep, hold the steering wheel, move away from the feet, with the help of the powerful creep system, climbing the big slopes is too easy for you!
Over the hill, the descent is even steeper! Hold the steering wheel firmly with both arms, and the hill descent intervention is very quick and powerful! It will give you some freedom while closely monitoring the sliding status of the wheels, and any slight tendency to slide will be "quickly controlled"!
The compact experience was over quickly, and although it didn't challenge any extreme difficulty, it was a real feeler for the Tank 300's underpinnings, and I was impressed by the solid four-wheel-drive system and the efficient and responsive assistance system.