2022 GWM Cannon/Poer Ute on/off-road (inc. 0-100) review 

Hey guys - just a note that after we filmed this, the Cannon scored a 5 star safety rating. This applies to all new vehicles ordered and can be retrofitted free or charge (the part required for a 5 star rating) to owners of existing vehicles.

I've had a cannon x just over a year and it's now around 50000km being a work car. it tows around 2 tone almost everyday without any problem, it definitely is the best ute in that price range.

Bought one in June. Is working pretty hard towing trailers and light off road work. Basically was a purchase based on the low price not expecting much (could not secure a D-Max, no stock). Has been faultless and probably the most solid vehicle we've owned thus far. No rattles whatsoever after 30000km which contrast with the Ranger XLT it replaced. Fuel consumption average between 9 and 10. Towing a 2.5t trailer it is sitting between 13 and 14.

Correction, ground clearance is 23 cm not 19. Also, when using downhill descent assist, you set the desired speed and then press the button. The car will hold the speed the vehicle was traveling at when engaging the function. You know, it would be useful to read the manual sometimes. And yes, you can turn off the beep and adjust even how loud the indicators tick. It isn't a complex system really. Radio, settings, volume - plenty of options. Vehicle settings, plenty of options...

35000km on my GWM Cannon/P-series here in South Africa. Love it. The lane assist might feel weird the first couple of times you drive this thing but after a while I don't want to drive without it. On longer trips it really works well. Sit back and relax, the car will do all the driving for you. Off road this thing works great. Just engage cross country expert mode next time. Makes a huge difference. Only thing I don't like is the position of the feul pump underneath. It is exposed and can easily damage. I made a steel cover for it. When I go off-roading I remove the side steps. this gives me a little bit more ground clearance. Ordered some rock-sliders, cant wait. Fuel economy for me: 10.3l/100km (combined city driving) , 9.3l/100km on the highway, 14.4l/100km towing my offroad caravan.

We bought the X as our business shop Ute, had since August and absolutely love it. Highly recommend this vehicle, as it really is outstanding value for money 💰

Had our Cannon-X since December 2020 and love it. Completed 55,000Km driven round trip to Perth from Melbourne - round trip to Brisbane from Melbourne. Trips to the snow, 4X4 driving can’t fault it yet.

I'm super eager to see this space with what GW does for the next generations. I love that it's slightly bigger than a Japanese ute and smaller than an American ute. Best of both worlds.

I've had my Cannon X since April 2021 and haven't been able to fault it at all. Everything feels just as well put together as it did the day I got it. Definitely the best value 4x4 dual cab on the market and easily outclasses the new LDV in almost every aspect (except engine and suspension tune but you don't feel underpowered at all in the Cannon).

It’s one of 3 that can drive in AWD on sealed roads. Plus you can fix the ride quality with an aftermarket suspension upgrade and still be tens of thousands cheaper than most of the big players, but get all the tech. Hopefully it gives the big boys a kick in the bum on actually putting some effort in

Hey Paul, I have one that's at nearly 15k, no issues of course, and spent some time doing outback travel as well as some off roading. The one thing I would like to mention, that you probably don't know, is that it has a dedicated 4wd mode, which essentially provides the equivalent of centre diff lock for the bosch torque on demand system. Its funny that even the salesman don't know about it, so it was discovered for Australian owners via RU-vid and a Chinese video. When activated it also changes the calibration of the throttle and traction control. It's the usual, press traction control for 5 seconds thing. The name is very Chinese "off road expert mode"

Have had a Cannon-X since June 2021. I hate spending money on depreciating items and not feeling like I have received value for money, I absolutely love this vehicle, with this vehicle I feel like I won the jackpot. The more I drive it the happier I get with my purchase. Highly recommended. This truly is champange on a beer budget.

I’ve had my cannon L for 7 months now with 11000kms on it. Absolutely love the Ute. Looks awesome and drives excellent. Can’t fault it.

Hey Paul. I have owned the base model of the Cannon for 6 months now. Find it a great ute for the price even better after it got a epu update on the first service. Value for money and backing of the warranty and roadside assistance can not go wrong with this car I personally think.

Reviews on these these these things are awesome, I have put an order on one and very excited, drives really well, loaded with options, 20k cheaper than most other utes, and can't forget the 7 years UNLIMITED kms warranty, happy days

Nice looking Ute, very well equiped too. Thanks for test and your comments.

That index at the start is innovative. Subscribed. Your review was so professional. Very well done.

Thanks Paul for another good review. Traded in my Commodore vf2 redline ute for a Cannon X last month. I have done just over 2000 km so far, no complaints. I did a bit of research before buying Cannon, GWM sold 146000+ Cannons in the first 2 years of production, every 2 utes sold in China, one was a Cannon, but there are 3 different versions of Cannon for sale in China, a passenger version with coil spring at the back, a commercial version with leaf spring and a cross country version with factory fitted snorkel air intake, bull bar, front wrench and heavy duty suspension. I am not worry about GWM' s longivity as they are a very large company in China, that's one of the reasons why I didn't get the Musso. But then if Holden can disappeared from Australia, anything can happen right? The brand image doesn't matter to me, I buy my work clothes from K- mart and Big W. My subcontractors drive Hilux and Rangers, wear Livis jeans. I have no problem buying things which are made in China, as long as they are fit for purpose and value for money. Just to let your readers know that the houses which I built here in Australia has numerous items made in China, from bathroom fittings and fixtures, electrical switches and cables, light fittings, door locks and handles, kitchen appliances, flooring materials, wardrobe and cupboards fittings, air conditioning. Those are the few items which I know of, some steel material and aluminium windows are also come from China. Not to mention that most of the building tools, nails and screws are made in China. So please don't bring politics into buying a vehicle. By the way, the warning chime volume can be adjusted on Cannon and if any Cannon owners are interested in accessories can check up the Chinese Taobao websites.

Best ute i ever drove and owned thanks for this review

One thing that these reviews are missing out on is Cross Country Expert Mode. It's a secret mode that's engaged by holding the traction control button for 5 seconds. Not mentioned in the manual at all but it disables all the sensors, turns traction control off, goes into proper 4H and turns this ute into an extremely capable off-roader. Haven't had the chance to use it on my Cannon X yet but other owners have reported that it is incredibly useful and I hope to see more coverage on it (especially since it seems like GWM themselves are forgetting to tell people about it).

Have had mine since January and have done 22000km’s and I love it! Was one of the first to buy an X and it’s a special car. For the price you just can’t go wrong 😊👍🏻

Great review. One very famous guy watching Paul, what a surprise!

Hi my nephew bought one of these about 2 months ago has never owned a four-wheel-drive before but being in a lot of them and he just loves it , I had and old great Wall the series 3 I just loved it the only reason why I sold it I lost a leg in a truck accident because it was a manual and I need an automatic now I believe GWM are going leaps and bounds ahead in a lot of their Vehicles

Good review however the reason you didn't move when you are on two wheels is you shouldn't be of road in normal mode you are meant to activate cross country mode by holding traction control button for a few seconds. No need for diff lock just user error 👍

A good unbiased review. It out does the Thailand utes in so many ways. The 7 year warranty is the icing on the cake.

I own one as a work ute.. it's been fantastic really underrated by brand snobs. People will come around in time I'm sure.

I bought my X back in April and am just approaching 10000kms. It's been solid as a rock so far reliability wise, I didn't buy it to do a ton of off-road driving, more so as a road trip machine which it does with ease. The ride is probably the biggest drawback, even more than the engine in my opinion. I'm a single guy so no worries as I'm always the driver, but if you have kids or a Mrs that doesn't love bumps on a long road trip as a passenger I imagine it could get a little uncomfortable if the roads are a bit average. Also in cruise in Eco mode it will flat refuse to drop gears to keep the speed up when driving up hill and just will progressively slow down. Only noticed it in Eco, in Regular mode it behaves normally. I know it's small but I'd love a software update to remove that Chinese text from the camera screen haha.

I drive a cannon for work and it’s got power I love it wouldn’t change anything

I have just done 16,000kms in 12 months and love it. Previously had 2x Colorados and 1x LDV and this is head and shoulders above both.

Great review Paul definitely worth considering 👍

Brilliant review- very engaging. No fuss- well done. Very watchable

Great review, definitely a great value option. Can't help but that exterior steals cues from its competitors but a lot of Ranger hints.

I bought a demo model with 10 000km on the clock. Absolutely LOVE the drive

Just got one a month ago. Love it no issues. Have done some light off roading and have enjoyed some beach driving in the north of New Zealand.

All I see is great reveiws. 👍

Great Ute to drive bought mine last year love it

One word. Fantastic.

It's a great & a luxury ute for this price, you can't find these features even in a Ranger for 70K I own it and I like this ute with its safety features.

great review guys! it's funny that you say light off road and you actually try to get the vehicle stuck, that's the meaning! you get a lot of cool cars that we don'h have in Europe :(

Hey Paul just a note on the 360° camera, it has a 3D capability similar to the new Land Rover Defender, you have to touch the top view area to access it

I got the Cannon-L in the same colour. Very happy indeed. You're spot on with what you have said, except the lane assist display also interferes with going through the menu in the -L just as much as the -X. Needs to be patched for sure. I do spot these cars almost immediately, even before I bought the car 2 months ago.

looks very good and very good price bracket it looks very nice in blue I'm not even kidding around this

Test drive one here in Zambia and it was really good..it felt like a work horse and would last 👌🏽

Hi Paul, we just got into a minor incident with our gate and our loading bin was hit. It held out really really well and it is only a minor dent and a tiny scratch. Build quality is also amazing and is a great car even for a little bit of a light off-reading tracks!

Hey man, I'm in NZ. I bought the L model in Feb 2021. Great fun .. I've done heaps of mods, and HEAPS of off roading (lots of it on my channel)

Just got over 6000 km on mine.....no major complaints it's pretty solid and a pleasure to drive, what is just a bit painful is the constant DPF cleaning that seems to happen pretty often!!!

For the price, this thing is insanely fully loaded with high end tech. Sadly the only let down for most will be its badge.

I see plenty of these on the road here in Durban South Africa, value proposition of note this and its growing on me. I think this is appealing to the new type of bakkie buyers in the market that don't want a workhorse but something more refined and has plenty features and tech.

Good review 👍👍👍

Great review, was hoping to see the P-Series in a moose test

They put alot more effort into these utes compared to Nissan.

Fantastic Ute and head turner.

My friend has one and loves it

would be great if there was a video of underbody and protection on these utes, to see if they can actually sustain any bumps to the underbody. Any Utes or off-road vehicles for that matter.

the usb port for dashcam is really helpful.

Hi Paul, you should mention the latest ancap 5 stars rating which some of the top brands doesn't have.

wow impressed!!!!

Hi Paul, you' re great explainig... greetings from Turkey :)

Hey Paul thanks for another great review. It seems pleasant enough with great features for essentially a price that's less than the base Ranger/Hi-Lux/D-max with a couple of add-ons. I wonder if that lag on take off is more of a throttle calibration issue that could be resolved with a $250 throttle controller. Otherwise I suppose like the Korean cars of old the Chinese will eventually catch up to be on par or ahead of the mainstream Japanese and European.

They do look good! Saw a few black one on the road here in Sydney

I see a lot of people saying Triton is better ute because it is trusted brand. But how many of you know that Triton (compare to traditional brand) is also cheap for a reason? Triton is much smaller ute, the interior is not much bigger than small car...if any bigger at all. I used to had 2013 dual cab Triton (company supplied car) and recently been upgraded to 2021 model. The new model is not any bigger than the previous model. They have less room than even previous model Hilux. Some of my colleague even declined new Triton when their 10 plus years old Hilux with 300K kms is due for replacement. It simply doesn't have enough head and shoulders room for them. We ended up giving them second hand 2WD BT50 for the same price. Also Triton with shorter wheels base has poor departure angle as well especially when fitted with tow bar. Although this is not a big deal around town.

Hi Paul. Yes Loving the cannon X. 6 months and 10k no issues. With 40 years in the motor industry took the gamble on this brand. Even my wife loves driving it. Little glitches with apple carplay just need to a reset and all sorted. I was nodding my head along with you with the software frustration with the dash. The very strange thing which I have now sorted is a rear interior dome light since there is not fitted from factory. GWM will certainly have a growing number of fans for the future. Really enjoying your reviews. Regards Darryn

Amazing review. Very helpful. Looking forward to buy this car in Pakistan or Dubai.

much better buy than even an Amarock!

Hi mate, love your testing but a towing section would be great for this type of vehicle. Thanks 😊

I like the GWM Cannon in blue.

nice interior!

Another wicked review thank you! And look at you go saving the world and on the news in Albert park haha was it just junkies?

Looks like the 194mm ground clearance being quoted is the "laden" clearance. Otherwise, it seems very similar to other competitors at "232mm unladen / 194mm laden".

In South Africa this is the 4th most baught Ute/bakkie right now, so it does not compete with Mitsubishi and LdVs, it competes with the Hilux,Rangers and Isuzus, Toyota and Ranger guys have already traded in for this ute. Fact it offers better technology than the well known brands, some things about it you did not talk about like the "Cross Country Expert mode"

Well done to the Chinese for shaking up the market. What is odd tho is the absence of mud flaps. The tail gate dampening and the bin lining are commandeble. If the Chinese can do it, wonder why the rest have never bothered...

Awesome review as always Paul. Mahindra Pik up is another cheap ute you haven't reviewed yet to complete that market segment...and MG 3s are really popular too and yet to be reviewed. LDV van review was interesting too I thought - a bit different from your normal reviews 😁 Keep the reviews coming bud👌👍

Hard to ignore at the great price

18:34 why’d the little driving lights go off when you stopped moving? Great video as always mate and it looks like a nice ute👍🏻

In southafrica there is a 4 month waiting period but I’m prepared to wait for mine

I have an X Cannon the only real problem is the lack of power from the engine it swap between 7 and 8 gear on the how and less you use sport mode. We get 10.1 lt . We will flash the engine later

Great bakkie and even greater review Paul. Would love to own one in the near future. But GWM must introduce another spec with a second turbo. That would be epic.

All the way from Kenya and I gotta say that range topping models are designed to suck you dry of your hard earned money because I didn't see much difference between this range topping X and the L model reviewed last year. Great review as always

Test drive one and took it overnight. Amazingly surprised wow what a Ute. First tried the LDV Ute and it should not be sold in a similar market. The GWM kills it. Seriously considering buying the GWM

looking forward to GWM Tank 300, 500 come to Aus

Waiting to get mine this year here in Namibia (south africa region)

I've heard there is a huge GWM cannon off road clubs and community in China which constantly doing desert crossing and tibet road trip(4000m+) high altitute. So surely its reliability can't be too bad. Thinking of buying one of these as my second UTE

Hi Paul just wondering if you would chose the cannon over a triton or BT50? keen to know your thoughts.

Hey Paul, I might be wrong but I heard 194mm clearance is laden and 232mm unladen. Hope it helps. Like your work mate and can’t wait for you to review new ranger raptor v6 as I already have put a deposit on it

Hey Paul, there was no mention of the paddle gear arms on the wheel. How did they feel/reach/perform etc ?

If only the major brands were equiped as well . Seriously, drum breaks on any car in this era is ridiculous.

I've had my cannon x for just over a year now and have put 50000kms on the clock, been 4wd and beach driving did all with ease. I'm getting 8.3L per 100 on 33inch tires and a 3.5 lift with some bar work, 80% highway driving. There is also a cross country mode which is true 4H (press hold traction control button for 3-5 seconds) Only things that annoy me about the Ute is the lag, can be fixed with a throttle controller and also the lane assist is annoying when trying to get onto the screen while driving. Also dislike how there is no rear cab light. Another issue is the Ute can surge sometimes between 104kmh to 110kmh which is kinda annoying I also feel like the cannon feels a lot more like a car on the road then a dual cab Ute Overall I'm happy with the Ute and for the money it's pretty impressive

We've been discussing the driving experience of new vehicles, particularly their reliability as they surpass the 100,000 km mark. Could you create a video exploring this topic? It would be incredibly helpful to see firsthand how reliable these vehicles are over extended mileage. Looking forward to your insights!

Brilliant review as always Paul. Where is the off road portion of your review filmed ? I’d love to check it out !

GWM is starting its sales now in Brazil and I intend to buy a HAVAL, so I ask if the vehicles are good and resistant.

Really enjoy your reviews, a gripe is the fuel economy that without fail is after idling etc. There is a thing called reset for economy and various other things, how about doing a reset then take it for a normal drive so you get figures for cruise or around town. Just saying it ain't rocket science.

Can you review the 4x2 base model please?

Hey Mate, thanks so much for this video! I'm looking at buying a new 4x4 and I'm at a stalemate between this and the ldv d90 4x4 suv. Any chance you guys can review that one? I've seen some good videos from India but would love one from you guys with the same comparisons to the Cannon x

Big question is how well will the manufacturer support you when things do go wrong. I've heard horror stories from friends of ours who had mechanical breakdowns with their Hyundai and Toyota vehicles and were pretty much kicked to the kerb, sadly. They had to get the ACCC involved to get anything done. How hard will it be to get major warranty work from a Chinese manufacturer?

I just brought one today

Sounds like a good car.

Hi car expert, heard the GWM tank 300 and tank 500 coming to Australia by the end of the year, please have a talk about it, keen to know, thanks.

That looks 10x more modern than my 2020 triton 10K cheaper too

There is a GWM cannon P series , I think it comes with a 6spd manual diesel gearbox? But I'm not sure if oz or nz will get?

Hey @CarExpert team, can you please make a full-detail video for the Mahindra Scorpio ute. I would really appreciate it. Thanks