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As GAC prepares for an Australia launch soon, the brand has revealed it wants to be a top-ten selling brand inside three years.
The newest Chinese brand to enter the Australian new car market, GAC, will officially launch here later this month.
With an introduction so late in the year, the brand has set itself a modest target of selling just 1000 vehicles in 2025, but by 2028, expects to sell 33,000 units.
In a presentation to Drive, GAC’s Deputy Managing Director, Cheney Liang, revealed plans to crack Australia’s top ten.
“Initially, we seek to sell 1000 units this year, but by 2028, our ambition is to be within the top 10 and sell 33,000 units per year.” He explained.
GAC’s Australian line-up will comprise three models: a small petrol SUV called the Emzoom, a medium electric SUV called the Aion V, and a plug-in hybrid people mover that will sell here as the M8 PHEV.
From there, the brand will expand its model range with as many as five new models over the next two years.
“We're not going to achieve that [with] just the three model lines we are launching. We said... And that's why we will be expanding these over the coming year.”
While Liang didn’t offer any insight into specific models, GAC’s presence in right-hand drive markets, including Thailand, Singapore, South Africa and by 2026, the UK.
One potential model already built in right-hand drive for those markets is the Emkoo, a petrol and hybrid medium SUV that would line up against cars like the Hyundai Tuscon, Toyota RAV4, and Nissan X-Trail.
Also already approved for right-hand drive production for the UK, the Aion UT, a small electric hatch that would join the likes of the BYD Dolphin, MG 4, and GWM Ora in Australia’s small car class.
GAC’s 33,000 unit sales ambition may not be enough to secure it a top-ten spot by 2028, however.
Based on 2024 full-year sales figures, Australia’s tenth-best-selling brand, GWM, recorded 42,782 sales, ninth-placed Nissan recorded 45,284 sales, and eighth-placed Isuzu finished the year with 48,172 sales.
To the end of October 2025, the standings have changed, but even the number-10-ranked Isuzu has already sold 35,114 vehicles with two months of the year to go, ninth-place MG has 36,176 sales to its name, and BYD, in the number eight slot, has tallied 41,882 sales so far.
Without a massive shift in sales volumes for the market overall, GAC would need to lift its sales projection from around 33,000 vehicles per year to closer to 45,000 or more to secure a top-ten finish.
Based on year-to-date figures, Australia’s top-ten selling brands include Toyota, Ford, Mazda, Kia, Mitsubishi, Hyundai, MG, Isuzu, Nissan, and GWM, with only Isuzu offering a smaller product range than GAC will initially launch with.
Kez Casey migrated from behind spare parts counters to writing about cars over ten years ago. Raised by a family of automotive workers, Kez grew up in workshops and panel shops before making the switch to reviews and road tests for The Motor Report, Drive and CarAdvice.
