GWM Malaysia has announced plans to introducing six different SUV models in the country within the next two years. Among those, the Ora 5 has been heavily rumoured to be making its way over to our shores soon – so we took the opportunity to check it out in more detail at the 2026 Beijing motor show.
Now taking the form of a B-segment crossover, the all-new GWM Ora 5 shares a lot of its design with its younger sibling, the Ora Good Cat. But despite similar looks, the Ora 5 is actually a significantly different car underneath – not least thanks to the GWM One platform that underpins it.
GWM One is the Chinese marque’s new platform that’s designed to cater to its multi-pathway propulsion goals, supporting everything from pure electric drive and hybrids, to even fuel-cell systems. The platform is the reason why the GWM Ora 5 can be offered in either electric, hybrid, or combustion engine variants, giving customers the flexibility to choose what fits their lifestyle.
For Malaysia, we’ll likely be getting the HEV version first, powered by a new electrified powertrain the company calls Hi2. You’d expect the ‘2’ in the name to refer to two-wheel drive, much like the ‘4’ for all-wheel drive in GWM’s Hi4 powertrains, but the company says that it instead represents how it’s able to deliver both efficiency and power.
To that end, it features a 1.5-litre turbocharged engine, paired to a two-speed dedicated hybrid transmission (DHT) and a small 1.03 kWh lithium-ion battery for a combined output of 226 hp (166 kW) and 476 Nm of torque. A century sprint will take 7.7 seconds, according to GWM.
It shares similar roots to the Hi4 system, as such it’s also built around a series-parallel setup with six different operating modes for better efficiency in various driving situations. Additionally, GWM says it has also found efficiencies throughout the entire drive line, including a lower friction bearing in the wheel hubs, and a new decoupling system for the P3 motor, which has resulted in a 0.93 L/100km reduction in fuel consumption during highway driving.
Altogether, the new Hi2 hybrid system has reduced overall fuel consumption by 13%, while electric drive responsiveness has improved by 33%. The Ora 5 HEV is rated for a fuel consumption figure of 5L/100 km (WLTC), with a combined range exceeding 1,000 km in a single tank of fuel.
In fact, GWM has even set a new Guinness World Record for the “lowest fuel consumption by a production hybrid SUV across China’s municipalities”, recording an average fuel consumption figure of just 3.74 L/100 km across its 3,004 km journey.
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Compared to the Ora Good Cat, the all-new GWM Ora 5 measures some 236 mm longer with a 70 mm elongated wheelbase, although its width has only increased by 8 mm. As it’s now a crossover model rather than a hatchback, the Ora 5 has also seen a 70 mm increase in overall height, and it also has a 175 mm ground clearance.
For styling, the biggest changes here to the Ora Good Cat is found on the inside, as the Ora 5 has now adopted a new dual-screen setup on its dashboard running on the marque’s latest Coffee OS system, first seen here in Malaysia on the Wey G9 MPV. The bigger dimensions do translate to more interior room, particularly for the rear passengers, while boot space is rated at 377 litres.
In China, the Ora 5 can also be optioned with a Lidar sensor on the roof, which enables a more advanced set of driver assistance systems, including NOA (Navigate on Autopilot), as well as a unique autonomous parking system with up to 3 km of path memory, allowing it to navigate through a car park and park the car all by itself.
For Malaysia, we’ll most likely be getting a more standard set of ADAS features, including adaptive cruise control with intelligent cornering and lane centring assist, autonomous emergency braking, traffic sign recognition, lane change assist, blind-spot detection, and cross-traffic braking.
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