What a Pity! These 5 Domestic Pickups Almost Made It to Market

When we see overseas pickup modifications or designs, we always sigh, why haven't domestic pickup companies officially launched these cars? Actually, domestic car companies also have a deep understanding of pickup modifications, but constrained by various regulations, many very interesting models cannot be mass-produced, which is indeed a pity. However, I believe that with the progress and iteration of regulations, these types of vehicles will eventually gain recognition from the management and be legally allowed on the road. So today let's take a look at what very interesting but not mass-produced pickup products there are domestically.

3 Types of 6-Wheel Pickups:

BJ80 6x6 Pickup Version, Wuling Hongguang MINI EV 6-Wheel Pickup, Great Wall Cannon CYBERP!CKUP Chaojing Co-Creation Edition

In the past when domestic pickups were not blooming everywhere, when we saw high-definition large pictures of those overseas high-performance cars, Mercedes-Benz 6x6 often appeared. This pickup almost became the ultimate dream model for many people, little did we know that multiple 6x6 pickup products had also appeared in our country.

The earliest one is the BJ80 6x6 pickup from Beijing Automotive Group at that time. At the 2018 Beijing Auto Show, BAIC launched this tall and mighty pickup built on the BJ80. It added a rear axle on the original car basis, and the rear part was changed to an open cargo box style, becoming a 6-wheel pickup. The power part adopts a plug-in hybrid system. The last axle is driven by a motor, but there is also a drive shaft from the middle axle to the last axle. Moreover, all wheels of this car used portal axles to increase ground clearance. The rear two axles use a helical spring multi-link structure. The car attracted many people's attention at the auto show scene at that time, but based on the market situation at the time, it was destined to be just for display purposes and cannot be mass-produced.

At the 2020 Chengdu Auto Show, another 6x6 pickup product appeared, and this car was even less likely to be mass-produced than the previously introduced BJ80 6x6. It is the Wuling Hongguang MINI EV Special Edition. This is because Wuling Hongguang MINI EV was sold extremely hotly that year, it is an absolute internet-famous product. So Wuling took advantage of the heat and jointly launched this 6-wheel heavily modified pickup with a modifier, used for promotion and attraction at the auto show.

This small 6-wheel pickup added a cargo box design on the original car basis, and to carry this cargo box, an axle was added directly to the rear, forming the form of a 6-wheel pickup. From the chassis form, this car still retains the original drive form, "middle axle" motor drive. With such a small volume and load capacity, it is absolutely impossible to mass-produce.

The most hopeful mass production one is the Great Wall Cannon 6x6 model CYBERP!CKUP co-created with Chaojing launched by Great Wall Cannon at the 2023 Shanghai Auto Show. This car is said to come from the first Chinese 6X6 super off-road platform built by Great Wall, which will break the situation of foreign enterprises dominating 6x6. This car is equipped with a 3.0T V6+9HAT hybrid system, outputting 260kW/500N・m, pure electric range 110km (CLTC), comprehensive fuel consumption 8.5L/100km. In terms of off-road configuration, standard equipment includes 5 electronic differential locks, all-terrain adaptive system can realize 8 road conditions, and equipped with 33-inch Cooper AT3 tires. Because it is a hybrid model, considering battery safety, the battery group is 750mm off the ground to prevent collision, and the vehicle can also achieve 3.3kW external discharge to meet camping power consumption.

Whether looking from the publicity direction, or from the so transparent release of specific vehicle parameters, Great Wall obviously intended to mass-produce it; but to this day there is no specific mass production news, which is bound to make people regret.

Great Wall Cannon Hypercar Pickup

As the leader of domestic pickups, Great Wall Pickup is absolutely all-around in "showcasing creativity". Previously we introduced 6-wheel pickups, and at the 2021 Guangzhou Auto Show, a Great Wall Cannon Hypercar Pickup was also launched. So Great Wall Pickup has not only products in the "off-road performance direction", but also works in the "track performance direction".

This Hypercar Pickup also had a naming activity at that time, expected to be listed in the "Bullet" series. The car has an ultra-wide widebody kit, and the body height is reduced, presenting a low-slung style overall. This modification style has relatively faithful fans in Thailand, and its appearance in China is the top pickup modification. The engine hood middle part rises, with air intake holes. The front bar, wheel arches, side skirts, and rear are equipped with widebody kits, making the horizontal visual of the whole car look very wide. Front and rear wheels also adopted the multi-spoke style commonly used in performance cars, matched with 285/40R22 tires, and the front wheels have a slight outward angle, improving the cornering stability of the whole vehicle.

The rear cargo box of the vehicle has a sports roll cage, and there is also a spoiler commonly used in performance cars on the top and above the tailgate, plus a huge diffuser in the middle of the rear bar, giving the whole car better aerodynamic structure and also more aesthetically pleasing. The bottom of the cargo box has a huge dual-side dual-out exhaust, looking full of performance. If this car can be mass-produced, it will definitely be a very personalized product in the performance car field, and will definitely expand influence, bringing pickups into the market of track performance cars.

Jiangxi Isuzu Fulfiller (D-MAX Modified Crawler Vehicle)

In addition to domestic brands, joint-venture pickups have also launched some interesting products in China. D-MAX has always been a favorite of many off-road players. Even if the manufacturer does not launch modified cars, there are also many experts in the civilian sector modifying D-MAX that look very good. But the manufacturer still wants to build a brand image in terms of off-road, so D-MAX modified cars can often be seen at auto shows.

At the 2020 Chengdu Auto Show, Jiangxi Isuzu displayed a D-MAX track vehicle, named Fulfiller. The upper part of the whole vehicle basically has no big change, the shape still retains the factory design. A luggage rack was added to the roof, a gantry was added to the rear, and there is a snorkel on the right, very much off-road style. The place that makes it more "wild" is mainly the lower part.

The tire part was directly changed to tracks, increasing the contact area with the road surface, making the vehicle less prone to getting stuck. The track wheels are directly connected on the factory flange, with a huge gear shape driving the tracks to roll. The fixing device of the tracks is connected to the suspension. Such a design should have greater usage value in mud and snow, and the visual impact is also comparable to 6-wheel pickups. If this pickup can really be mass-produced, then this car should be often seen galloping in the winter of the northern grasslands.

Summary:

It is not that domestic enterprises do not have innovation and creativity awareness, from the above models, it can be seen that pickups still have huge potential in modification, and modifications in all directions can extend imaginative schemes. But due to restrictions in various aspects, it led to these cars not being able to go from the showroom to mass production, which is also a very regrettable thing. Do you think these pickups are interesting? Welcome to discuss with us in the comments section.