As a multi-functional, practical and durable automobile category, pickup trucks have not been widely recognized and developed in the domestic market. However, with the gradual liberalization of pickup truck policies in recent years and the increase in consumers' demand for personalized and diversified travel, the pickup truck market has begun to show some new changes and opportunities. Among them, the most eye-catching is the competition and contrast between the domestic pickup truck brand Great Wall Cannon and the joint venture pickup truck brand Ford Ranger.
As a leader in the domestic pickup truck market, since its launch in 2019, Great Wall Cannon has won the favor of many consumers and has become a dark horse in the domestic pickup truck market with its fashionable design, rich configuration options, strong power performance and relatively close to the people. According to the official data of Great Wall Motors, as of October 2023, the cumulative sales of Great Wall guns have reached 1760,000 units, accounting for nearly 60% of the domestic pickup truck market, far exceeding other competing products.
The Ford Ranger is a mid-size pickup truck model with a good reputation and sales in the global market, and is known as the "Little Raptor". The model was imported into China in 2018, but sales were not satisfactory due to high prices and taxes. In November 2023, the Ford Ranger was officially localized, and the pre-sale price was announced at the Chengdu Motor Show, which was 1458-25.980,000 yuan, of which the starting price of the gasoline version is only 14580,000 yuan, which is 15 yuan higher than the starting price of the Great Wall gun880,000 yuan is even lower. This pricing has undoubtedly brought a strong shock wave to the domestic pickup market, and it has also made the Great Wall Cannon face unprecedented challenges.
The comparison between the Ford Ranger and the Great Wall Cannon is not only a contest between Chinese and foreign pickup brands, but also a game between product power and market power. From the perspective of product power, both models have their own advantages and disadvantages, but overall the Ford Ranger has the upper hand. The Ford Ranger has a more mature and reliable platform and powertrain, better off-road performance and handling, richer and smarter configurations and functions, and a more international and hard-core design style. The Great Wall Cannon has certain advantages in exterior design, interior texture, space comfort, comprehensive fuel consumption, etc., but it is still slightly inferior to the Ford Ranger in terms of core pickup attributes.
From the perspective of market power, the Great Wall Cannon has more obvious advantages. With its earlier time on the market, strong brand influence, wider sales network, higher user reputation and loyalty, as well as more stable delivery capabilities, the Great Wall Cannon has established a relatively solid position and advantages in the domestic pickup truck market, while the Ford Ranger needs to open the market from scratch and faces greater uncertainty and challenges.
To sum up, the localization and low-price strategy of Ford Ranger has undoubtedly brought a new vitality and competition to the domestic pickup truck market, and also brought certain pressure and impact to the Great Wall Cannon. However, judging from the current situation, the two models will not form a direct substitution and snatching relationship, but will attract different consumer groups and demand scenarios, and jointly expand and promote the development and diversification of the domestic pickup market. In the future, with the official launch and delivery of the two models, we will see more comparisons and evaluations, and we also expect the two models to show better performance and potential in the domestic pickup truck market.