GWM is proud to announce the arrival of its first vehicles featuring the brand’s new AT-1 philosophy, a strategic approach to vehicle development focused on delivering greater confidence, control and comfort, all centred around local Australian conditions.
AT-1 (pronounced “At One”) represents GWM’s commitment to creating harmony between driver, vehicle and the terrain. It reflects a belief that the best driving experience is achieved when every element works together seamlessly, resulting in a vehicle that feels intuitive, capable and aligned to the conditions in which it operates.
The introduction of AT-1 marks a significant step forward in GWM’s localisation strategy, embedding real-world ANZ insights into the way vehicles are engineered, refined and continuously improved.
A Strategic Philosophy for ANZ
AT-1 is not a standalone update or a fixed set of changes. It is a long-term development philosophy that guides how GWM engineers, test and refines vehicles specifically for Australia and New Zealand.
At its core, AT-1 focuses on optimising every aspect of the driving experience through continuous and incremental improvement. This includes ride and handling calibration, refinement of advanced driver assistance systems, enhancements to towing and overall vehicle driving performance. Each element is developed with a clear objective: to ensure GWM vehicles deliver confidence, capability and comfort in the diverse and often demanding conditions experienced across the ANZ region.
Engineered Through Real-World Experience
Central to AT-1 is the belief that the driving experience must be understood through real-world application. GWM’s engineering teams draw on extensive local testing knowledge across a wide range of environments, from urban commuting to regional and rural conditions, ensuring vehicles are tuned for the roads customers drive.
This philosophy is anchored by GWM’s local engineering leadership, headed by Rob Trubiani, whose decades of experience in the Australian market bring a deep understanding of the conditions, expectations and nuances unique to local drivers. Under his direction, a disciplined process of observation, feedback and refinement ensures every bump, surface change and driving scenario contributes to continuous improvement, resulting in vehicles that feel natural, predictable and confidence-inspiring in real-world use.
Continuous Refinement, Not One-Time Change
AT-1 embodies a culture of continuous evolution, linking back to GWM’s corporate mantra of “improving little by little, every day”. Rather than delivering a single update, it establishes an ongoing cycle of refinement, where vehicles are progressively enhanced based on real-world insights, customer feedback and usage.
The Haval H6 pioneers this philosophy, brought to life through a highly detailed and deliberate engineering process. Five distinct vehicle tunes were developed to align with each powertrain configuration, vehicle weight and drivetrain combination, spanning petrol, HEV 2WD, HEV AWD, PHEV 2WD and PHEV AWD variants. Petrol, HEV 2WD and PHEV 2WD are now available at local dealers, with remaining variants to follow shortly.
Achieving this level of optimisation required extensive calibration work, including approximately 24 front damper tunes and 40 rear damper tunes to establish an ideal balance of ride and handling across each variant. Steering calibration represents an even deeper layer of refinement, with thousands of individual data points adjusted over weeks of development to deliver a steering feel that is intuitive, natural and confidence-inspiring.
Rob Trubiani said: “The objective of the AT-1 philosophy is to create a more unified and intuitive driving experience, specifically tuned for Australian conditions. The result is a more cohesive and assured character, with improvements evident across everyday driving scenarios. From enhanced ride compliance on uneven surfaces to more precise and consistent system responses, every element has been refined to contribute to a more resolved and capable vehicle.”
Importantly, learnings generated through AT-1 extend beyond the ANZ region, contributing to GWM’s global engineering knowledge base and informing future product development across international markets. This is reflected in a significant cohort of GWM’s global R&D and engineering teams travelling from China to work directly with Mr. Trubiani on optimising the AT-1 localisation program.
“AT-1 reflects the investment GWM has made in our ANZ team and the support we receive from our Head Office. With Rob joining the GWM family, we are leading the way, adjusting vehicles on real roads and taking those insights back to China to shape the next generation of products. Our Chinese management is listening and engaged; they want us to push the envelope. We want GWM ANZ to be recognised not just as a support centre, but as a hub of engineering innovation that influences the brand globally,” said John Kett, GWM COO.
Built for Confidence, For Local Preference
AT-1 ultimately represents GWM’s commitment to understanding and meeting the expectations of local drivers. It reflects a culture grounded in curiosity, discipline and progress, with a clear focus on delivering vehicles that feel right in the environments they are driven.
With the arrival of the AT-1 enhanced vehicles, GWM reinforces its dedication to producing vehicles that are not only suited to today’s conditions but are continually evolving to meet the needs of tomorrow’s drivers.
Customer who are keen to learn more about GWM’s AT-1 program can visit www.gwmanz.com/au/gwm-at-1/