GWM Ora Funky Cat leaps into Australia with pricing and specs announced

GWM has opened up orders for its first fully electric offering in Australia. It’ll be an all-electric hatchback, the Ora Funky Cat, the first shipment of which is due to land in April this year.

Inspired by what looks to be the retro VW Beetle from the front, its design and styling are unlike any other EVs on offer in Australia.

The local model line-up of the Funky Cat comes in three variants:

• Ora Standard Range
• Ora Long Range 
• Ora GT (to come later down the track)

The base model comes with a 48 kWh battery pack which can offer up to 310 km of WLTP range. This battery can be charged from 10% to 80% in as little as 41 minutes.

There is also an extended-range version with a bigger 63 kWh battery which will get closer to 420 km in WLTP range.

Both batteries feed the powertrain with motors that can deliver up to 126 kW of power and 250Nm of torque.

The electric hatchback can also be driven in a “one-pedal” drive mode which makes driving an EV a whole lot easier.

After spotting the first Australian Ora Funky Cat test car back in August, and then a second Ora Funky Cat electric hatchback in November, it’s good to finally see local specifications.

Dimension-wise, the Ora Funky Cat is slightly smaller in length than Australia’s best-selling EV, the Tesla Model 3. It comes in at:

• 4,235 mm in length
• 1,825 mm in width
• 1,603 mm in height

The standard Funky Cat comes with many standard safety features and recently received EuroNCAP’s five-star safety rating. This points to a more than likely five-star ANCAP rating too for this electric hatchback.

The new Ora Funky Cat will come with a 7-year / unlimited km warranty, 5-years roadside assistance and 5-year Capped Price Servicing. The battery receives warranty coverage of 8 years.

It’s available in a choice of five exterior two-tone colours: 

• Hamilton White (Included) 
• Sun Black
• Glacier Blue
• Mars Red
• Aurora Green.

With the exception of Hamilton White, all exterior metallic paint colours are priced at $595.

Affordable EVs are all the rage and we need more of them. With most states and territories offering incentives on EV purchases under $50,000, demand for the Ora Funky Cat could be relatively high. 

We can’t wait to test drive one and see if the new Ora Funky Cat can deliver on what thousands of Australian drivers have been waiting for.

GWM has opened enquiries for the all-electric hatchback on its website. 

Features on the Ora Standard Range and Ora Long Range:

• 18-inch alloy wheels
• LED lights with Daytime Running Lamps (DRL)
• 10.25-inch full colour instrument cluster
• 10.25-inch multimedia touchscreen
• Apple CarPlay and Android Auto
• Wireless charging
• Leatherette seats
• 6-way electric driver’s seat
• 4-way electric passenger’s seat
• Automatic anti-glare rear-view mirror
• Heated, power-adjustable door mirrors
• 360 degree around-view camera
• Rear parking sensors
• 7 SRS Airbags
• Autonomous Emergency Braking with pedestrian, cyclist & crossing detection
• Intelligent Adaptive Cruise Control with Stop & Go
• Blind Spot Detection + Lane Change Assist
• Forward Collision Warning (FCW)
• Lane Departure Warning (LDW)
• Lane Keep Assist (LKA)
• Lane Centre Keeping (LCK)
• Emergency Lane Keep (ELK)
• Rear Cross Traffic Alert (RCTA)
• Rear Collision Warning (RCW)
• Traffic Sign Recognition (TSR)
• Camera-based driver drowsiness detection

Added features on the GT model:

• 18-inch GT alloy wheels
• GT exclusive bumpers and grille
• Electric handsfree tailgate
• Panoramic sunroof
• Red brake callipers
• 6-way electric driver’s seat with memory
• Heated steering wheel
• Automatic parking

Australian Pricing (Driveaway):

A review of the ORA Funky Cat on YouTube by the Fully Charged Show: