GWM TANK 300 Tried And Tested Off-road!

The GWM TANK 300 has officially gone on sale at RM250,000! It is worth it? We sampled one at M4TREC recently to find out!

By now, you’re probably acquainted well enough with both GWM Malaysia and its very latest metal – the GWM TANK 300. In fact, the latter made its long-awaited official launch earlier this month with a slew of special, exclusive early bird perks that make it even more tempting.

At RM250,000, the GWM TANK 300 isn’t exactly a bargain proposition. However, having properly thrashed it through the rough and tumble, plus the deep muddy ruts of M4TREC in Semenyih, Selangor recently, we’re starting to have that belief challenged.

Simply put, the TANK 300 is a promising offer by GWM for those seeking a stylishly capable and luxurious 4x4 SUV that’s actually – read: realistically – obtainable over a comparable Japanese or European offering. Here’s what we learned from our full-day adventure in the rough with it…

According to GWM, the TANK 300's styling merges both 'modern retro' and rugged styling touches. Evidently, it is one handsome-looking thing in the flesh.

There’s Real Substance Behind Its Rugged Style

Evidently, the TANK 300’s ‘modern retro’ styling with an injection rugged toughness is a brilliant combination. This is indeed one of the most macho-looking Sino-badged metal on sale in our market currently, and we aren’t the only ones digging it.

Crucially, there’s equally high levels of substance behind which, and they come with little compromises. Take all the lights – both inside and out – for instance, which are all LED-powered, and their stylish execution tops things off well too.

The beefy bumpers and flared wheel arches aren't just for show, they feel solid to the touch too. Spare wheel mounted on the rear hatch further boosts this 4x4 SUV's rugged stance.,

All the typical off-road bits you’d expect are present too, like the beefy front and rear bumpers, the wide flared wheel arches they’re connected to, as well as the side-steps and roof rails primed. Impressive too is the quality of it all – they feel properly solid to the touch.

The only thing missing here are proper all-terrain (AT) tyres shod on each 18-inch two-tone alloy wheels. But, as we discovered i, this is no deal-breaker indeed. And before you ask, approach, departure and ramp break-over angles plus ground clearance are all sufficient too.

All the lights adopt LEDs, and look pretty stellar in the flesh in terms of execution.

The TANK 300 also boasts 'TANK' badging, signifying that it forms part of GWM's off-road-ready sub-brand.

Critically, the build of it all proved equally solid too. In fact, should you be in the mood to wade through water, then the TANK 300 gladly obliges, and it will do so through depths of up to 700 MM without any cabin leaks or powertrain starvation.

Yes, folks. This Sino-badged SUV isn’t a soft-roader at all – far from it. 

No oil-burner under the hood, but a 2.0-litre 4-cyl turbo petrol lump instead. Given the new age of subsidy-free diesel Malaysians live in now, this makes sense.

The Powertrain Proved Surprisingly Capable…

This was one front that took a little convincing, given the norm of torque-rich turbo-diesels in this space. With the latest subsidy-free diesel prices though, we reckon many avid off-road adventurers and enthusiasts might have second thoughts with oil-burners now.

To that end, you’ll be glad to note that the TANK 300’s 2.0-litre 4-cyl turbo petrol heart is no slouch. Sure, 217 HP may not sound like much, but the 380 NM of twist available from the low rev-ranges is impressive – and that’s exactly what you want when tackling terrains.

Notably, the engine bay was specially designed and arranged to allow the TANK 300 to wade through water crossings up to 700 MM deep without a snorkel.

While not as brisk as a typically comparable oil-burner, this mill still doesn’t require you to floor the accelerator pedal too often to gain the necessary grunt and traction when tackling obstacles and terrains. Also, unlike most turbo-diesels, this petrol mill certainly feels more refined.

The same can be said about the 8-speed automatic box said mill is paired with, which felt equally slick in the rough as it does with on-road driving duties. Seasoned off-roaders will be glad to note there’s both a proper manual override mode and paddle-shifters to make this effort easier too.

Robust ladder-frame chassis construction, 224 MM ground clearance, as well as the 33-degree approach, 34-degree departure and 23.1-degree ramp angles all result in an SUV that can tackle terrains too.

…As Was Its Driveline

The other half to the TANK 300’s mechanical all-terrain prowess stems from its properly sorted part-time 4x4 driveline. Key basics here encompasses the presence of both front and rear differentials, all offering the three main locking modes needed – 2H, 4H and 4L.

As if that wasn’t sufficient, GWM went on ahead and brimmed the TANK 300 with a host of electronic driver assists that help make off-grid exploration much easier. Amongst the key highlights here include Hill-Descent Control (HDC), plus no less than nine selectable drive modes too.

The TANK 300 also offers no less than NINE selectable drive modes covering a multitude of terrain types. Adding to which is the crisp-clear 360-degree surround-view camera with see-through chassis mode.

What’s even more impressive here though is the crisp-clear 360-degree surround-view vision granted by the 360-degree camera suite primed, and its novel see-through chassis view mode. This is not a mere gimmic, but a solid alternative to having a spotter on the outside too.

However, what really makes the TANK 300 stand out as an off-roader are two of its signature off-road assistances that we’re about to detail in the next point…

One nifty feature we tested out was Crawl Control. Think of it as 'cruise control' for off-roading, and it enabled us to climb steep inclines and obstacles with ease.

Crawl Control & Tank Turn Assist Aren’t Mere Gimmicks!

Apart from the basics, what really puts the TANK 300 into another level are Crawl Control and Tank Turn Assist. The latter is perhaps the most impressive bit of the two as it’s a feature that lets you tackle tight turns in the rough easily.

Seasoned off-roaders know this well, most – if not all 4x4-equipped SUVs – have terrible turning circles. This is the price you pay for the clearance height and angles required to tackle the rough. Tank Turn assist mitigates this by locking the inner rear wheel to tighten up turn radiuses.

All it takes is a press of a button and turning the wheel to a full lock to activate. We tried this feature properly across mud, gravel and soft soil at M4TREC and it worked fairly brilliantly. One just needs to live with a slight squeal emitted by the locked inner real wheel when operated.

Another brilliant feature we tried out was the Tank Turn Assist, and this granted the TANK 300 to tighten its turn radiuses off-road by locking the inner rear wheel. It does emit quite the squeal when operated though.

The other bit that equally impressed was the aptly-named Crawl Control. Think of this as ‘cruise control’ for the rough, which lets you pre-set the amount of torque and power you’d want to sustain. This proved nifty when we tried out on some of the steep hillclimbs M4TREC has on its premises.

Certainly, this is one feature many newbie and amateur off-roaders alike will appreciate, and we reckon even some seasoned off-roaders too as it simplifies the efforts when tackling certain terrains and situations.

Simply put, both these features brilliantly puts the GWM TANK 300 into its prime in the rough.

Road- and comfort-biased Michelin Primacy SUV tyres proved much more capable than expected during our tests, albeit with slight deflation - a typical off-road hack.

Tyres Are Its Only Real Limitations Off-Road

Despite the fact that we tackled the much of the terrains and obstacles present at M4TREC with ease behind the wheel of the TANK 300, there were some where this Sino-badged off-roader did struggle a little. One of which was the course’s dreaded ‘Deep Moguls’ stretch.

Here’s where the TANK 300’s real limitation becomes evident, by which we mean its standard-equipped Michelin Primacy SUV HT (Highway Terrain) tyres. These are in fact road- and comfort-biased tyres that’s built with moderate terrain-crossing abilities, not full-fledged AT types.

You could swap these out for chunkier AT tyres with the knobbly grove patterns, which we reckon will undoubtedly make light of all the obstacles and terrains we charted across. However, these come at greater cost to fit, and even greater compromises to on-road comforts, more so given the next fact…

On board, the TANK 300 is far from spartan. Despite its rugged outlooks, this adventurer feels just as comfy and plush as a similarly-priced luxury sedan on board!

It’s Properly Plush, Comfy & Hi-Tech!

With the TANK 300, GWM Malaysia positions it more as an adventure lifestyle product than serious off-road adventure, though the latter capabilities is actually the bonus here. Much of the former is evident when you soak up just how much plush luxuries and high-levels of tech laced in it.

Key comfort-driven bits primed include plush faux leather upholstery, heated and ventilated front seats with power adjustment function, automatic climate control with dedicated rear vents, as well as conveniences like keyless entry and ignition, all primed as standard here.

Adding to the comfort levels on board in the dual-zone automatic climate control suite, and it features dedicated rear vents too.

Other notable luxuries include a sunroof, premium 9-speaker Infinity audio suite, plus a 64-colour cabin ambient lighting.

Elsewhere you’ll find key luxe tech like rich and interactive 12.3-inch dual-digital full-colour displays, novel 64-colour cabin ambient lighting suite, as well as a sunroof all accounted for too. But all these pale in contrast to the high degree of semi-autonomous driving abilities primed.

In other words, this is yet another car that feels almost it can drive itself at times thanks to its Level 2-rated Active Driver Assist (ADAS) package primed. This is indeed nifty, especially when you’re on your on-road return trips after a full day’s adventure off the grid.

Keeping the TANK 300 easier and civil for daily life is the fact that it's brimmed with Level 2-rated ADAS features that grant high-levels of semi-autonomous driving abilities.

However, how the TANK 300 fares on road for the daily is a question left unanswered due to our test-drive session’s time constraints. However, given all the equipment laced for life on the pavement, we’re certain these will impress once we take one for a proper road test.

Up to this point though, we’ll be brief and note that GWM Malaysia’s positioning of the TANK 300 as an avid adventurer is well and truly substantiated. However, you need not necessarily take our word on this as you can have a go in one yourself to know.

You can sample the GWM TANK 300 through the rough as we did at M4TREC! See details below.

Is It Worth It? You Be The Judge!

Yes, for a limited time only, GWM Malaysia is letting you sample the TANK 300 through the rough as how we did at M4TREC on both July 20 and 21 (Saturday and Sunday) from 9AM to 6PM. All you need to secure your test-drive slot is by registering online via this link: GWM TANK 300 EXPERIENCE.

Perhaps from which, you could ascertain first-hand on whether this Sino-badged left-field fighter’s quarter-million Ringgit price tag is either justified or not. For now though, the TANK 300 has indeed set a benchmark on what an ‘obtainable’ yet luxurious and capable 4x4 SUV ought to be like… 

GWM TANK 300

SPECIFICATIONS