Wanderlust Episode One - Road Tripping in The Haval H6 C

The R355 has many distinctions. Most notably that it is essentially the longest uninterrupted dirt road in the country. But just as notable is the Tankwa Padstal that lives on it, thrives in fact. A charming farm stall that serves you the most delicious meals you could possibly ask for just as long as it comes on a toasty roosterkoek.

But that's in the rear-view mirror now - of a Chinese SUV after having spent 500km navigating tarmac and dirt, with the bulk of the gravel travel still to be done between here and Dutoitskloof Pass. How did we get here?

Meet the Haval H6 C

When the cherry red Haval arrived I was sceptical. It certainly looked the part, a European looking crossover with fairly premium appointments and a spirited drivetrain complimented with an airy cabin and the sort of tech we've come to expect from more established (less Chinese?) marques.

Ours was the flagship Luxury derivative model at R399,900 and so came with absolutely all the boxes ticked including a sexy sliding panoramic roof, climate control, 19-inch alloys, Xenon head lamps plus the full raft of safety gear including blind spot monitors. Iceberg? Barely the tip. And so on.

More interesting however was what lay under that red bonnet, a blown 2-litre making 140kW and 310Nm - like something out of a hot hatchback circa 2006. Not a complaint mind you, performance is performance, and when you couple this fact with those massive wheels from earlier you get to understanding that the H6 C - where the C stands for coupe mind you - is meant to live in the city. It is two-wheel drive but boasts a fair amount of ground clearance so the thing to do, if you ask me in any case, was to take it on a gravel adventure. That meant Cape Town to Citrusdal via the Tankwa and back, taking in Worcester and Stellenbosch in the process. Road trip.

This is SUV country

I'm going to jump ahead, so warning - spoiler alert! It's good, this Haval. At almost everything.

I mean that of course in the context of the South African road trip. It was up to the task of swallowing the weekend's luggage, excellent at syncing its multimedia interface to my phone and more than competent at keeping the 38 degrees of Karoo Celsius out of the light cabin.

The road was twisty like spaghetti, equal parts tar and gravel and suffered all sorts of elevation - and the H6 C took it all in its stride including the climbs often resembling Pikes Peak. The handling is well composed, acceleration predictably good thanks to that aforementioned powertrain and the Getrag DCT auto box perfectly competent. I ignored the flappy paddles, a nice inclusion but I’m just not about that lifestyle when road tripping.

The H6 C even managed to turn heads anywhere I pointed it between Sutherland and Cape Town's CBD, always a good sign for a soft roader that is meant to also impress in the city.

Okay, let’s wrap this up

We managed to crush close to 800km on our weekend adventure, totally in comfort and with no niggle or hassle to report.

I spent most of the drive forgetting the fact that it was a Chinese product beneath me - something we typically associate with blatant copying and poor build quality. Regarding the prior - this design feels fresh, inspired rather than borrowed. As for the build quality and refinement, the only gremlin if it was even that, was a mild 'thunk' on the helm when you applied an armful of turn. I've experienced this on a previous H6 C model so can state with some conviction that it is a trait of the car - but in no way hampered or hindered progress.

The only other criticism I have is its high fuel consumption despite me spending the entire trip in Eco mode (there is also a normal and sport notch on the dial naturally) returning well over 11l/100km. Full disclosure, I was no slouch with that loud pedal, so I guess it's somewhat relative.

And that was that – a successful jaunt in the Haval H6 C. But I know what you’re thinking, “C’mon Calvin, would you actually buy one?” Tricky this, in fact a better question would be “Would I recommend one?” since I am the adventurous sort and would happily put myself and it to the test as a long-term ownership prospect - call me curious.

It is less likely I’d insist someone else subject themselves to Chinese car ownership – but feel the need to remind myself and others that at some point this was precisely how we felt about Korean cars. Which are now brilliant, and sometimes even class-leading. Then there’s the fact that in 2003 I did in fact own a 1998 Hyundai Accent and no, I did not die. At R399,900 (entry level variants can be had for as cheaply as R329,900) it represents a lot of car and compares favourably against the stalwarts in this segment so if you’re brave and love a good bargain then by all means, the H6 C was a very good companion for at least 800km.

Haval G6C Luxury Auto Spec:

Rival Pricing

This is the bit where we compare the prices of its rivals so that you don’t have to. Keep in mind, none of these are quite up to the spec levels of the Haval H6 C.

And now a word from my co-pilot

"There was a time when you wouldn't risk taking a Chinese SUV into some of the most remote parts of the country - far from a tow truck, far from a garage, far from anything really. Those times are truly behind us. At least for Haval. The H6 C feels more like an old Korean and/or Japanese car than it does a Chinese vehicle and that was enough to make me feel confident in its road trip abilities. It was a comfortable drive with a lot of the mileage chomped up on gravel roads and definitely a vehicle I'd happily take to the end of the earth (or the Karoo) again. The only issue, aside from the high fuel consumption, is that the belt line is rather high so short people like myself struggle to see out the windows." - Kelly Lodewyks (Professional Road Tripper)