2021 GWM Ute Cannon X review: First drive

What's happened to the GWM Ute?

Great Wall Motors has promised to fast-track upgrades for the Ute Cannon over its lifecycle, declaring an updated version is already in production with changes based on feedback since its launch this year.

This comes off the back of the company's new Fast Iterative Development Approach (FIDA) program, which it says will dramatically shrink the development time of a model facelift.

Utes produced from July will feature new upgrades. They will also be applied to customer cars at dealers.

It is a way to underscore GWM's desire to get ahead in the highly competitive Australian pick-up ute segment before two new variants arrive – a 2WD and manual version – that will help the brand chase down 18,000 sales this year. It also stresses the company's ability to action changes under a more streamlined management structure.

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How does FIDA work?

GWM executive general manager Steve Maciver says the process starts with "your feedback and ongoing customer review".

"We're going to [get] feedback there and make more improvements, give you another opportunity to drive the car," he explains.

"But we're not going to wait 12 to 24 months to allow that to happen. We're going to continually bring that to market."

This means a car might undergo three optimisations before the facelift version is launched. In this instance, for the Ute Cannon, the turnaround time is just five months.

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You might ask why someone would want to buy something that needs to be upgraded so soon, but GWM believes customers won't see it that way.

"This comes down to how it's communicated to them," Maciver says. "The updates we've talked about are all software updates that can be retrospectively fitted to anyone's car."

"So, you're not going to be disadvantaged. If anything, you can be confident that your car is going to be updated more than what you get with another OEM."

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What are the changes?

The Cannon Ute will receive a simple software flash claimed to sharpen throttle response and reduce turbocharger lag – something that we have previously criticised as a driveability flaw in our 2021 ute mega test.

GWM claims the updated software has improved tip-in, gearshift mapping in first and second gear and low-speed responsiveness.

In the hands of GWM's own test team, the Ute reached 100km/h from rest in a claimed 11.66sec instead of 11.84sec.

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It's a startling improvement of two tenths, even if overall the new time is, somewhat confusingly, slower than the 11.38sec 0-100km/h time we have achieved independently with a Cannon-L.

The software flash on new cars will be accompanied by minor suspension tweaks and the inclusion of Android Auto.

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How does it drive?

The flashed Cannon powertrain was predictable on part-throttle over the lumpy off-road course at the Werribee 4x4 Proving Grounds. And when left to its own devices in automatic mode, it didn't dither between gears.

On such a short drive, we could not verify if the suspension tweaks have had any significant effect, since they are claimed to work best when the Ute is laden with 500kg.

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But its leaf-sprung live rear axle dealt well under compression caused by serious axle articulation, offering good directional stability and predictability through this part of the course.

While the ZF eight-speed is a smooth shifter, the transmission mapping can get confused when changing speeds on freeways in higher gears. At the same time, the ride is uncomfortably firm over high-frequency disturbances when unladen which is a common downside to heavy-duty leaf spring suspension.

Overall, the updates are incremental and are not going to transform the Ute Cannon into a category leader among key rivals like the Mitsubishi Triton, Ford Ranger and Nissan Navara. But it's a small refinement of an admirable budget option.

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It's worth remembering the Ute is set to undergo two more updates before a facelifted version arrives, and this sort of ongoing development helps it stand out next to budget utes like SsangYong Musso. Let's wait and see what comes of it.

Specifications