What’s this new car all about then?
GAC is a new Chinese brand that's hedging its bets on powertrain choice in New Zealand, with a trio of models that offer combustion, plug-in hybrid and pure-electric technology.
The Emzoom is an SUV-like hatchback that serves as the entry point for GAC here, which naturally means it's also the one with the ICE engine (the M8 MPV is the PHEV, the Aion V medium-SUV the BEV).
It's a budget model, although it doesn't necessarily look it. Even without our car's excellent matte-finish Lilac exterior colour, the Emzoom is all sci-fi style with sharp angles and confident lines. GAC has decided on a design theme and committed fully, outside and in. It's not for everybody, but it's unusual for a Chinese brand to opt for the polarising approach; we approve.
The engine is a 125kW/270Nm 1.5-litre paired with a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission, driving the front wheels.
The safety suite includes front/side/curtain airbags, adaptive cruise, blind spot view (but strangely, no blind-spot warning) and lane-keep warning/assist. There's no driver monitoring system... which some may view as a positive.
The Emzoom is compact-size at just 4.4m in length. But it goes big on equipment, with LED lights, automatic parking tech, 360-degree camera, automatic unlocking/locking, 14.6-inch infotainment screen with wireless Android and Apple phone projection (not a given in Chinese cars), wireless phone charger, panoramic glass roof, ambient lighting, power adjustable/ventilated (but not heated, weird) driver's seat and power tailgate.
Fully loaded is one thing, but the cabin also gives an impression of decent quality. Most surfaces around the top half of the cabin are soft-touch, there are some interesting graphics mixed in and around all those crazy angles and the fit/finish seems solid.
There are a few shortcuts (manual passenger seat, no blind-spot warning to go with the camera display, door cards go from soft-touch up front to hard plastic in the back), but it's a pretty good equipment list all the same for an inexpensive car.
How much is it?
The full retail price for the GAC Emzoom is $31,990. GAC NZ is also offering a $1000 discount until the end of June.
What’s it like to drive?
The steering and handling are suprisingly perky for what's essentially a city car. There's an underlying confidence to the dynamic package that means you need not fear enthusiastic driving or road trips.
That's not to say the Emzoom is especially sporty, nor does it claim to be. The engine is relatively powerful for the class, but also relatively noisy. Wind and road noise at higher speeds are also an issue.
The biggest issue is the dual-clutch transmission. From a standstill, it slips so much you sometimes wonder if you've actually put it in gear; on the move at low speed, it slurs like a continuously variable transmission.
Oddly for an urban car, the transmission is much better at open-road speeds, shifting smoothly (if not quickly) and getting on with business in an unobtrusive way.
The same is true of the ride, which is very firm in town, but starts to soak up uneven surfaces more adeptly at open-road speeds.
What’s the pick of the range?
There's just the one model at the moment. It's called simply "Emzoom" in most marketing, but you might also see it referrred to as the Emzoom Luxury (in the company's Kiwi brochure, for example), or even the GS3 Emzoom.
What other cars should I consider?
Compact SUV-like hatchbacks with petrol engines: it's a bit of a sub-segment among Chinese brands in NZ.
The most obvious rivals for the Emzoom are the Omoda C5 from Chery ($29,990-$34,990, including a $2k discount until the end of April) or BAIC X55 ($34,990-$35,990, also including $2-3k discount until the end of April depending on model): larger than the GAC but in the same conceptual space.
The Chery Tiggo 4 is smaller and a more traditional SUV shape, but it's just $24,990-$29,990 (less a $1k "free fuel" discount at the point of purchase until the end of April), and there's also a hybrid option ($29,990-$34,990 including a $3k discount until the end of April).
Since we're stretching things a little in terms of powertrain preference, the MG4 Urban BEV is also worth a look: similar size, good 400km-plus range and massive cabin. At $38,990 it's pushing the price point up, but consider the reduced running costs.
There's a lot to think about here. Although you might have to think about quite a bit of it before the end of this month (or next for the GAC).
