GAC Australia beats its own sales target, eyes BYD and Toyota with at least 10 new models

The section main of Chinese automaker GAC says the institution is looking to rival top-selling brands Toyota and BYD successful Australia, and claims wide lawsuit acceptance of Chinese brands has already helped it transcend its ain aboriginal income forecast.

Speaking to CarExpert arsenic it announced its Melbourne City FC A-League sponsorship, GAC Australia CEO Kevin Shu said the company’s income were up of people pursuing its authoritative motorboat present successful November 2025.

“We person sold astir 4000,” Mr Shu told CarExpert, adding that GAC was already “over target” and connected way to merchantability much than 4000 vehicles successful the 2nd fractional of 2026, though helium would not perpetrate to a figure.

“In the coming 2 years, we are 100 per cent successful contention with Toyota and BYD,” Mr Shu told CarExpert.

GAC arrived successful Australia with 3 models: the Emzoom hybrid hatch, the Aion V mid-size electrical SUV, and the M8 hybrid radical mover. A 4th model, the Aion UT electrical hatch, joined the section lineup successful March.

It remains 1 of a fistful of brands not included successful the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) monthly VFACTS income reports, though the institution is expected to beryllium included aboriginal this year.

Mr Shu told media including CarExpert astatine the brand’s Australian motorboat lawsuit successful Sydney past twelvemonth that the institution was targeting a top-10 marque ranking by 2030.

Australia's 10th-best selling car marque in 2025 was MG with 41,298 sales, and successful the archetypal six months of 2026 Tesla ranked 10th with 23,588.

GAC’s 4000-unit half-year income complaint would spot it astir 23rd among the 70-odd car brands contiguous successful Australia, with a akin tally to Land Rover's 8339 income based connected 2025 figures.

The company's section CEO told CarExpert astatine the Melbourne City FC announcement that helium expected GAC to beryllium among the 10 best-selling brands sooner than 2030, possibly adjacent by 2028.

The greater ambition comes arsenic China’s BYD rocketed up the Australian income charts to second wide successful May 2026, earlier repeating the feat and finishing just 243 vehicles down long-time marketplace person Toyota successful June.

Mr Shu said GAC is simply a semipermanent challenger to some BYD and Toyota, and that his assurance successful the brand’s quality to spell toe-to-toe with the marketplace leaders is based connected 3 factors.

“First of all, you tin spot Chinese brands grew precise well,” Mr Shu said.

“In June 2025, they made up 18.6 per cent of marketplace share. Last June, they enjoyed 39.6 per cent share. So Chinese brands are welcomed by customers.”

The 2nd gathering artifact is the accomplishment of much models to bolster GAC Australia's existent four-nameplate lineup.

“Our erstwhile readying was that successful the coming 5 years, we would instrumentality successful much than 10 models. But currently, we’ve confirmed successful the adjacent 2 oregon 3 years, we volition instrumentality much than 10 models for this market,” Mr Shu said.

While nary circumstantial caller models person been confirmed, GAC has said it volition import aggregate SUVs, having already shown the Range Rover-esque S7 and Tesla Model Y-rivalling Hyptec HT electrical SUV successful Australia.

The boxy Yue 7, a rival for the ample plug-in hybrid Denza B5 off-road SUV, is besides a campaigner for section release. Mr Shu indicated GAC Australia could besides connection battery-electric (EV), plug-in hybrid (PHEV) and extended-range electrical conveyance (EREV) powertrain present too.

“All of the models from the GAC are mass-production acceptable successful the adjacent six months," helium said. "For the SUV, we not lone [plan] for the airy SUV, tiny SUV, mean SUV, the larger SUV. For SUV, we person the PHEV, BEV, and EREV [powertrains].”

GAC has yet to determine the powertrain for different caller model, a yet-to-be-named ute to rival the top-selling Ford Ranger, which it says volition scope Australian showrooms successful 2027.

More broadly, Mr Shu expects EVs to proceed their emergence and go much fashionable than hybrids.

“I'm definite EV volition beryllium overmuch amended than HEV due to the fact that not lone the outgo redeeming but besides the driving experience, the technology, dependable control, automatic driving experience, and truthful on,” helium said.

“When you thrust an EV car, you ne'er backmost to ICE [internal combustion-engined] cars.”

Mr Shu said the 3rd origin that would assistance GAC go a top-selling marque successful Australia was its continued trader rollout, with a people of 60 sites crossed the state by the extremity of 2026.

“That's wherefore we motorboat our strategy successful Australia for Australia connected this strategy. We person the wide merchandise planning, a wide web planning. Of course, we supply precocious work for our customers side.

“GAC is the lone Chinese marque that tin bask each conception products, each motor [types]. This is our assurance to past this market, to person this semipermanent occurrence for this market.”

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