Early buyers of the GWM Tank 500 in Pakistan are reporting delivery delays months after booking the SUV following its January launch.
Customers posting in public groups say some January bookings remain undelivered, while vehicles have reportedly reached buyers who booked later, as well as dealers and investors. PakWheels has not independently verified these claims.
One customer said he booked on January 23 but was still waiting, even though later bookings were delivered. Another buyer claimed to have booked a PHEV even before official bookings began, but hasn’t received date delivery, despite units reportedly being available with dealers in Lahore.
The complaints have raised questions about whether deliveries are being made in the order of the bookings. some buyers also claim they have been asked to pay most of the vehicle’s remaining price before delivery.
In a public forum, a Tank 500 PHEV customer complained about having to pay Rs. 20.3 million, while they’ll also have to bear any additional tax imposed at the time of delivery.
The Tank 500 was launched at Rs. 20.5 million for the HEV and Rs. 22.5 million for the PHEV. The company initially indicated a three- to four-month delivery period. It later revised the timeline to six to eight months for the PHEV and seven to nine months for the HEV, citing strong demand.
However, the revised schedule reportedly applied to confirmed bookings from January 27 onwards. Buyers who booked earlier argue that the original timeline should still apply to them.
PakWheels reached out to Sazgar for a response. The company said the delay is part of a wider industry disruption, with production affected for the past 13 days because the previous auto policy expired on July 1 and the new policy is still awaited.
According to Sazgar, uncertainty over the applicable tariffs has halted production of HEV and PHEV models, while petrol-powered vehicles continue to be assembled. As a result, Tank 500 orders scheduled for delivery on July 26 are expected to be delayed by the same number of days the industry remains shut.
The timing has added another concern, as Pakistan’s new auto policy is expected to be announced next month. Any revision in taxes or duties on hybrid and plug-in hybrid vehicles could increase the final invoiced price of pending Tank 500 bookings. This means buyers may face a higher price despite placing their orders months earlier, particularly if deliveries remain delayed.
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