Showcased at the Festival of Motoring in August, the new GAC M8 Master plug-in hybrid is now on sale in South Africa.
Built to move people in maximum comfort, this China-built MPV measures 5,212mm in length and stands out with dramatic front-end styling, where a “star diamond prism” grille is flanked by narrow LED headlamps and “Lion Fang” LED daytime running lights.
A large set of 18-inch alloy wheels are fitted as standard, as are power-folding side mirrors and dual electric sliding doors, allowing for effortless ingress and egress. An aluminium-look finish is applied to the vehicle’s side skirts and window trim. Customers can pick between two exterior colours: Elegant Black and Crystal White.
With a wheelbase of 3,070mm, the M8 Master PHEV has a spacious cabin tailored for long-distance driving comfort. Available in two colourways (Olympus Brown or Black and Red), the second row consists of two first-class seats equipped with four-way power adjustment, a 10-point air-pump massage function as well as heating and ventilation.
The third-row bench offers seating for three people and is upholstered in similarly luxurious Nappa leather. Adding to the luxury vibes are sectional panoramic sunroofs, an inductive electric tailgate, tri-zone climate control with plasma PM2.5 air purification, soundproof laminated glass, an eight-speaker Yamaha sound system, wireless charging and USB-C ports conveniently located across all rows. Up front there’s a 10.1-inch touchscreen infotainment system and a customisable 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster.
Standard safety features include seven airbags as well as a generous array of driver assistance features: adaptive cruise control, autonomous emergency braking, lane keep assist, traffic jam assist, traffic sign recognition, blind spot detection, automatic parking assist and rear cross-traffic braking. A tyre pressure monitoring system is also present, as is an integrated panoramic camera plus two front and four rear parking sensors.
Powering the M8 Master is a 2.0l four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine paired to an electric motor and a 25.57kWh battery pack. With a combined output of 274kW, GAC says this sophisticated powertrain offers spritely performance, with 0-100 km/h coming up in 8.8 seconds. Fuel consumption across the combined cycle comes in at 8.8l/100km. On a full charge, the battery promises an all-electric driving range of up to 106km.
Now available at GAC dealerships, the new M8 Master is priced at R1,499,900. This includes a five-year/150,000 km warranty, five-year/100,000 maintenance plan and an eight-year/150,000km warranty on EV battery components.
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