{"id":100202,"date":"2025-10-25T09:25:21","date_gmt":"2025-10-25T09:25:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/100202\/"},"modified":"2025-10-25T09:25:21","modified_gmt":"2025-10-25T09:25:21","slug":"new-zealands-new-car-brands-for-2026-but-wait-theres-more","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/100202\/","title":{"rendered":"New Zealand’s new car brands for 2026: but wait, there’s more!"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you\u2019re not satisfied with the sheer volume of new vehicle brands<\/a> that have been introduced into New Zealand so far, we have good news: there are more coming. A lot more.<\/p>\n

Dongfeng<\/p>\n

The most recent announcement is Dongfeng<\/a>, another new enterprise for NZ by Armstrong\u2019s Distribution (Leapmotor<\/a>, Smart<\/a> and several Stellantis brands). Dongfeng is one of China’s “big four” state-owned carmakers and will be represented here with three models.<\/p>\n

\"Dongfeng
\nBox compact-SUV is the Dongfeng off the rank for NZ.<\/p>\n

The Box compact-SUV will be first, set for launch in November, followed by the Vigo medium-SUV and 007 sports sedan. They\u2019re all pure-electric.<\/p>\n


\n Read More
\n <\/p>\n

The company has confirmed the first three retail stores will be located in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch, with additional stores to be added throughout the country.<\/p>\n


\n
\n Advertisement <\/p>\n


\n Advertise with NZME.<\/a> \n <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

XPeng<\/p>\n

XPeng<\/a> has also stated its intention to have a Kiwi presence before the end of this year. It\u2019s another relatively new maker, founded in 2014, with a stated intention to blend \u201cadvanced technology with AI-powered innovation, making intelligent driving experiences accessible to a broad range of customers”. The company is also known for its work with robotics and flying cars.<\/p>\n

\"XPeng
\nXPeng has already garnered praise in Europe.<\/p>\n

XPeng\u2019s first model will be the G6 EV-SUV, a rival in size and style for the Tesla Model Y. The first showroom will be in Auckland, but the brand promises a quick rollout to other key cities in 2026, including Wellington, Christchurch, Tauranga and Hamilton.\u00a0<\/p>\n

IM<\/p>\n

We\u2019re also about to see a new branch of a familiar brand. MG NZ has announced the impending launch of its luxury division, called IM (for \u201cIntelligence in Motion\u201d). The first model is the IM6.<\/p>\n

\"\"
IM is MG’s luxury brand. IM6 is its first model for NZ.<\/p>\n

Pricing is already announced: $66,900 for the 75kWh RWD Premium, $77,900 for the 100kWh RWD Platinum, and $89,900 for the flagship AWD Performance with the same 100kWh battery.<\/p>\n

The IM6 SUV<\/a> will be available for customers to test-drive from November. It\u2019s another one strong on AI technology; used for functions such as Proactive Vision Supplement System (PVSS), Rainy Night Mode, and One Touch AI Chauffeur, utilising 360-degree cameras to assist or perform tasks for the driver, including providing real-time views of blind spots, identifying potential traffic risks, and aiding with parking.<\/p>\n


\n
\n Advertisement <\/p>\n


\n Advertise with NZME.<\/a> \n <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

GAC<\/p>\n

Confirmed for a Kiwi launch in December is GAC (Guangzhou Automobile Group)<\/a>. It\u2019s the fifth-largest automobile company in China and the fourth-largest manufacturer of PHEVs in China.<\/p>\n

\"GAC
\nMedium-sized Aion V will be the core model for GAC in NZ.<\/p>\n

It markets multiple brands in China, but will sell its vehicles in NZ under a single \u201cGAC\u201d badge. The local launch will be led by the Aion V, a mid-size electric SUV with up to 510km WLTP range.<\/p>\n

The GAC GS3 Emzoom is compact petrol-powered SUV. It\u2019s powered by a turbocharged 1.5-litre four-cylinder engine. The M8 people mover is a luxurious seven-seater powered by a 2.0-litre turbo petrol plug-in hybrid powertrain, with a 25.57kWh battery providing just over 100km of electric-only range.<\/p>\n

Denza<\/p>\n

Denza Australia and NZ has announced the impending arrival of Denza-branded premium vehicles from BYD, starting with the plug-in hybrid B5 and B8<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Denza
\nB8 is the larger of two Denza SUVs on the way.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn a world-first, Denza is set to electrify the Australian and NZ market with a curated range of premium vehicles from BYD\u2019s\u00a0three acclaimed sub-brands\u00a0– reimagined under the Denza name.\u201d<\/p>\n

What are those three brands? Denza is already a separate model line from BYD in China, but there\u2019s also Fangchengbao (where the B5 and B8 hail from) and Yangwang, including the U8 super-luxury 4×4 (the one that swims) and U9 supercar.<\/p>\n

How it will all work in NZ is unclear. The announcements were made by \u201cDenza Australia and NZ\u201d, but BYD is distributed here by a separate company, Ateco Automotive (as BYD Auto NZ).<\/p>\n

The companies offered us this comment: \u201cAt this stage, BYD Auto NZ and BYD Australia & New Zealand Pty Limited have no comments about Denza in NZ. All information regarding launch and timings will be communicated through official channels at a later time.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"If you\u2019re not satisfied with the sheer volume of new vehicle brands that have been introduced into New…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":100203,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[45585,6190,18296,11357,138,73273,45583,18930,18929,9883,73272,111,43,139,69,25367,45584,18928],"class_list":["post-100202","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-business","tag-45585","tag-bev","tag-box","tag-budget","tag-business","tag-denza","tag-dongfeng","tag-ev","tag-g6","tag-gac","tag-mg-im","tag-new-zealand","tag-news","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-phev","tag-vigo","tag-xpeng"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100202","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=100202"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100202\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/100203"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=100202"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=100202"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=100202"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}