Great Wall Steed

As a Land Rover owner (Defender 90 County) I would describe my driving experience as a masochistic pleasure. Great vehicle, bomb-proof, go anywhere and I love it, but not the most comfortable of rides, so the chance to test the new Great Wall Steed was like going on holiday. Great Wall are a Chinese company who have been making all sorts of vehicles for 30-years. OK I can see your minds working – can’t be any good, cheap and cheerful that sort of thing. But I would say put your prejudices aside as like so much made in China things have moved on considerably, as they are now competing in a world market that offers plenty of competition.

NICE JELLY MOULD

The Steed is what I call a crew cab or pick-up – four doors and two rows of seats with a 1,380 x 1,460 x 480 mm, plastic-lined cargo bed at the rear. Very much like the Mitsubishi, Toyota, Nissan etc and of the same, generic, jelly mould shape. They do two versions - the S standard and more upmarket SE, the main difference is the latter has a colour-matched top for the load bay and chromed running boards and door handles. However, both show a lot of features you might not expect for the money! This as we shall see is the main selling point as the S osts £13,998 (CVOTR) and the SE about 2K more, which is seriously cheap compared to its Japanese opposition.

So what do you get? The engine is a 2 litre turbo diesel; the body is galvanised steel, with a separate rust-proofed ladder-frame chassis, impact-resistant rear beam and reinforced cargo bed. All come with a comprehensive three-year/60,000- mile mechanical, three-year paint and six-year anti-perforation warranties. Also attractive a seven-point promise to all its customers that includes a commitment to collect vehicles for servicing, and the offer of fixed-price service plans. These guys are really going for it!

2, 4, HIGH AND LOW

Drive is selectable (by push button) 2 or 4-wheel, as standard it’s in 2-wheel and also offers a low range option. Inside you get leather seats, lots of cubbies and pockets for storage. Also power steering, remote central locking, a Thatcham- approved Category 1 alarm, electric front and rear windows, an Alpine CD/radio with USB/MP3 and Bluetooth connectivity, steering wheel mounted audio controls, air conditioning and heated seats. And there’s more – air bags, 16” alloy wheels, daytime running lights and on the SE a rear parking sensor, which I found very useful given the lack of vision out of the back. Also one of the lowest insurance ratings (from 7A) of any vehicle in this segment.

Suspension consists of coil springs up front with leaves at the rear, again the norm for this sort of vehicle. Maximum on-board payload is1,000kganditcantowupto 2,000 kg (braked’ trailer) or 750 kg un-braked. With a 70-litre fuel tank the Steed gives a quoted, combined 34 MPG.

DRIVE TIME

I’m no Jeremy Clarkson and I’m coming at the Steed from a hunter’s or keeper’s perspectives, with a view to driving ability, shooting from the vehicle, stowage and making use of that big cargo bay. First impressions were good though I found the Steed a bit on the low side, which was mainly down to the road tyres it came with. This rather precluded much off road testing and to be honest a week is not long enough to get a handle on the whole package.

Leg room is generous and it’s one of the few vehicles I have driven where I had to pull the seat forward. The rear door like most of its kind is smaller than the front with a commensurate reduction of passenger space in the rear. This is very much a compromise, which all manufacturers seem to have taken. The driving position is very car-like and the wing mirrors are big offering an excellent rear view and a joy to shoot off.
Driving took some getting used to as acceleration was quite slow and though stable I felt like I had to be on top of the truck at all times. A 380-mile run to Gloucester for the Mauser/Swarovski range day finally made me friends with the Steed; I think it was just a case of acclimatisation. One thing I thought poor was the turning circle and I found slow speed manoeuvring at mini roundabouts a close run thing.

THIRSTY?

Fuel consumption is always high on the list. Like most 4x4s it’s heavy round town, which you have to live with. The run to Gloucester and back used up 3?4-tank, running at an average of 65 MPH, which equated to 33 MPG, which compares well to the quoted 34 MPG. But anyway you look at it that 70-litre tank will cost around £100 to fill up… The gear box is 6-speed, which was a first time for me and it took some getting used to. The rev counter certainly helped as at times I was cruising in 5th without realising it!

I found the suspension a bit soft (what a friend of mine terms as school run springs) and what off road I did meant care over bad ground. The load bay is well big enough for any number of things and will take plenty of deer and all the sorts of kit a keeper will want to carry. The hard top has smoked windows, which restricts your rear and rear/side view considerably. There was no seal around the tail gate which showed a gap when it was closed. I was not sure if that was intentional and asked the PR people about this but they never came back to me. Nor for that matter did they on the fact that I could not get my iphone to connect/play with the USB jack in the radio. Also try as I might I could not find a clock anywhere…

REAL ATTRACTION

Let’s face it the generic 4x4 crew cab as typified by the Toyota Hi Lux or Mitsubishi L200 is probably most shooters dream. Sporty and good looking they apparently combine the best of both worlds in terms of passenger comfort and load carrying ability. How the Steed will compare to that reputation after a year or so remains to be seen, but the comprehensive three-year/60,000-mile mechanical, three-year paint and six-year anti-perforation/corrosion warranties are pretty impressive. Likewise the price, which is less than these two. However, one thing any new car will do is not make you money and second hand value must be a consideration too!

But the cost alone puts the Steed into many more peoples price brackets than before, so what was once unattainable is now a distinct possibility. The S version is available from £13,998 CVOTR (complete vehicle on the road) which is not that basic either. The SE will raise that by around two grand with its colour-matched top and running boards!

This all too brief test leaves me with a number of thoughts on the Steed and the generic 4x4 crew cab in general, which might be worth considering:

• A crew cab without a hard and secure top is really a 4-door car without a boot as nothing can be left in the back end
• Are you really going to get maximum use from the cargo bay? The revelation for me was that I probably would not, as I’m no deer manager or game keeper so might not fully utilise that facility
• Whatever model I bought I would also have to budget for off road or all-terrain tyres, which are going to add at least £600
• I found the hard top a bit flimsy and not all that secure
• I wondered what the vehicle would be like in a year or two’s time when the new had worn off?

ACTUAL MPG:
at 65 MPH (average) 33 MPG 3-year/60,000-mile mechanical, three-year paint and six-year anti-perforation/corrosion warranties

PRICE: S version £13,998 CVOTR