2021 Great Wall Black Bullet takes a shot at the Ford Ranger Raptor and Toyota HiLux Rugged X

If Great Wall Motors’ new Poer pick-up is still too mildly styled for your tastes, the Chinese brand might have a Ford Ranger Raptor-rivalling answer for you in the form of the Black Bullet.

Though just a concept for now, the Black Bullet Overlanding Concept to give it its full name, is based on the production version of the P Series ute, which has been christened ‘Poer’ for international markets, but is also known as the Great Wall Cannon in its native China.

Being a show car, the Black Bullet is fitted with over-the-top equipment such as a carbon-fibre-look bonnet bulge, two-tier tray- and suede-clad interior, but other gear could make it to the road-going flagship ute if Great Wall gives it the green light.

An integrated bull bar with built-in winch would be an appreciated addition to any off-roading vehicle, while the upgraded and lifted suspension, light bar, snorkel and chunky off-road tyres contribute to the Black Bullet’s go-anywhere attitude.

Stylistically, the Black Bullet scores orange accents along the bumper, wheels and tow hooks – vaguely reminiscent of the Nissan Navara N-Trek Warrior – and extended wheelarches for the tough-truck look.

The orange accenting continues inside with cabin detailing, airvents, seat belts and the steering wheel 12 o’clock marker finished in the contrasting colour.

Other details include unique seats with cream-coloured inserts, sunroof, drive-mode selector dial and large multimedia touchscreen.

Great Wall has not detailed what is under the bonnet of the Black Bullet, but the Cannon/Poer can be optioned with a 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine in petrol or diesel form.

The former outputs 147kW, but Australian vehicles are understood to be coming with the latter tuned to 120kW/400Nm.

Both engines are mated to an eight-speed ZF-sourced automatic transmission.

An emissions-free ute was also shown by Great Wall at the show, underpinned by a 150kW/300Nm electric motor and good for up to 405km of range on a single charge.

Great Wall has committed to bringing its new Cannon to Australia, with a launch earmarked for later this year or early in 2021, but the exact specification and pricing for its refreshed ute line-up is still unclear.

The latest Great Wall ute will likely compete in the budget end of the market though, against the likes of the South Korean SsangYong Musso and Chinese compatriot LDV T60 – the latter of which also has an electric and flagship pick-up version.

Keep in mind Great Wall has not decided whether it will bring its Black Bullet to production yet, but given the burgeoning adventure ute market dominated by the Ford Ranger Raptor and Toyota HiLux Rugged X, as well as the fresh competition from the new Isuzu D-Max X-Terrain and locally developed Nissan Navara N-Trek Warrior, an attention-grabbing halo variant of the Cannon makes sense.