Haval Big Dog is the puppy sent to bark at Jeep

There are many ways a manufacturer can go about naming a car, they can either go unoriginal i.e. One, or they can play it save and name it after a location like Kona, Tucson and Sedona. Or they can do it like Haval who literally named their rugged new SUV Haval Big Dog. We’re not joking, it’s a direct translation of the Chinese name.

If you think that the name Big Dog is amusing, Haval further amps up the humour with the variant names for the SUV. The base spec Big Dog is known as the Husky variant, one step up and you’ll be the owner of the Labrador variant.

Another step up to the second-highest variant is the Border Collie while the range-topping variant is called the Malinois. Yes, it’s a car all about dogs.

The Big Dog is Haval’s first entry into the rugged looking Jeep-like SUV market. But don’t be fooled by its looks, the SUV is not a very large car as it measures 4,620 x 1,980 x 1,780 mm in length, width and height while the wheelbase measures in at 2,738 mm.

In context, the Honda CR-V in Malaysia measures 4,623 x 1,855 x 1,679 mm and has a wheelbase measuring at 2,660 mm.

This makes the Big Dog strangely shorter than the CR-V but wider and taller by a margin. With its much longer wheelbase, we suspect the Big Dog also offers more cabin space to mimic the Hummer-like feel.

For now, the Big Dog only comes offered with a 1.5-litre turbocharged engine that produces 171 PS and 285 Nm. The engine is mated to a 7-speed DCT and power is sent to its front wheels.

Yes, despite its looks, the Big Dog is currently only available in front-wheel-drive format. Word is that a 2.0-litre turbocharged 4WD will come later.

The photos you see on this page is our live coverage of the 2020 Guangzhou Auto Show. Stay tuned for more!