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GWM's new 3.0-litre turbo-diesel engine, coming to the Tank 500 and Cannon Alpha, has commenced testing in Australia ahead of its mid-year reveal.
GWM's new 3.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine has commenced testing in Australia, ahead of a world-first debut on local soil in the Tank 500 and Cannon Alpha expected mid-year.
After Drive spotted a pre-production, uncamouflaged Tank 500 diesel in Melbourne this week, GWM Australia subsequently confirmed it is the first – and currently only – example in the country.
Local evaluation testing commenced in late March 2026, a spokesperson said, with 10 engineers from China currently working "hand-in-glove" with GWM Australia's Project Engineering Manager, Rob Trubiani, to assess the new engine on Australian roads.
An Australian debut of the 3.0-litre turbo-diesel in the Tank 500 off-road SUV and Cannon Alpha ute is expected in the middle of 2026, as the first market in the world to see the new engine.
It will be sold alongside today's 2.0-litre turbo petrol-electric plug-in hybrid and, in the Tank 500, plug-less hybrid versions.
It is currently unclear whether the 3.0-litre diesel in the Cannon Alpha will replace or supplement the ute's existing 2.4-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel, shared with the smaller Cannon and Tank 300 models.
Power will increase for the 3.0-litre diesel compared with GWM's 2.4-litre turbo-diesel unit, which develops 135kW and 480Nm.
The higher-capacity engine is likely to match, if not exceed, the 150kW/500Nm 2.8-litre diesel in the Toyota HiLux and Prado, potentially reaching as high as 169kW and 600Nm, making them the most powerful four-cylinder diesels in their respective segments.
Isuzu's 3.0-litre '4JJ' four-cylinder turbo-diesel, fitted to the D-Max, MU-X and Mazda BT-50, only develops 140kW and 450Nm, figures that are set to be well beaten by GWM's similarly sized engine.
According to GWM Australia, local evaluation testing will include powertrain refinement across a range of conditions – such as higher-speed freeway driving – as well as assessment of its towing capabilities, transmission, noise, vibration and harshness (NVH), and more.
While there is currently no testing mule for the 3.0-litre Cannon Alpha in Australia, the data collected from the testing of the Tank 500 diesel will be transferred to its ute sibling, the spokesperson added.
The higher-capacity 3.0-litre turbo-diesel was confirmed by GWM 12 months ago, with the carmaker's vice president of international markets, James Yang, saying Australia needs "high torque, the big engine".
“In China or other markets we have 2.4-litre diesel. Especially in Thailand for the customer, the driving experience is OK, but I think in Australia we need high torque, the big engine," Yang told media.
The executive added GWM will continue offering diesel powertrains in markets such as Australia because the "fuel consumption is good, and also [in] some scenarios such as the towing capability is much better".
"So in the future I think the Australian market, [offering] the PHEV [plug-in hybrid] and the HEV [hybrid] plus diesel is a good choice for the customer," he said.
"And these three, also we have the EV, but I think for some scenarios the sales volume maybe can not be very high. These three types of powertrains, it's much better for this market, and also can balance the emissions."
More details on the 2026 GWM Tank 500 and 2026 GWM Cannon Alpha 3.0-litre turbo-diesel models will be shared closer to their global debut in Australia, expected in the middle of this year.
Jordan is a motoring journalist based in Melbourne with a lifelong passion for cars. He has been surrounded by classic Fords and Holdens, brand-new cars, and everything in between from birth, with his parents’ owning an automotive workshop in regional Victoria. Jordan started writing about cars in 2021, and joined the Drive team in 2024.
