Great Wall Motor began in 1984 as a plant that modified other makers' vehicles. Its badge is a beacon tower from the Great Wall of China, now signed GWM.
- Country
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China - Active
- Since 1984
- Website
- Official website ↗
A repair shop that took the Wall’s name
Great Wall Motor did not begin as a carmaker with big plans. It began by modifying other people’s vehicles. Its own timeline puts the founding of the Great Wall automobile plant in 1984, and the company’s 2003 annual report adds that this predecessor was mainly in the business of modifying automobiles.
The turning point came on 1 July 1990, when Wei Jianjun became general manager. Between 1991 and 1994 the plant started producing Great Wall light passenger and cargo vehicles, and production and sales doubled four years in a row. In the mid 1990s the company adopted the motto it still uses: “a little progress every day”.
The name needs little decoding. In Chinese the company is 长城 (Changcheng), the Great Wall itself, and it has kept that name through every reorganisation. Its home is Baoding, in Hebei province. In December 2003 it became the first privately owned Chinese carmaker to list H shares in Hong Kong.
Pickups first, then the world
The first Great Wall Deer pickup rolled off the line in the mid 1990s. In October 1997 the first Great Wall pickups were shipped to the Middle East, making the company one of the earliest Chinese carmakers to sell abroad. In 1998 Great Wall topped China’s pickup market for the first time.
Then came SUVs, and later whole new brands. Haval became an independent brand in 2013, WEY was announced as a luxury SUV brand in 2016, ORA arrived as an electric brand in 2018 and Tank went its own way in 2021. When Haval split off, it got a logo of its own, red with silver HAVAL lettering. The emblem on this page belongs to the company and its GWM-branded cars.
A beacon tower on the Wall
On 29 October 2007, the day its new passenger car plant was completed, Great Wall released a new logo worldwide. The company’s timeline records the launch but doesn’t describe it.
What Chinese motoring press do agree on is the shape at the heart of the badge: a beacon tower, or 烽火台, the kind of signal tower that once stood along the Great Wall. Before 2025 it appeared as a silver badge with a three-dimensional finish, and the company’s logo carried its name in Chinese characters.
In January 2025 that changed. The Chinese characters disappeared from the company’s logo and the English letters GWM took their place. The new version is flat: a white beacon tower on a bold red background.
GWM made it official at Auto Shanghai in April 2025, where president Mu Feng unveiled what the company calls the GWM Beacon emblem, with “GWM” inscribed on its base. According to GWM, it stands for the brand’s commitment to global expansion, with the Chinese and the global GWM working together. The three letters carry a double meaning too. They are short for Great Wall Motor, and GWM also reads them as “Go With More”, a call to keep pushing forward.
You may read elsewhere that the badge stands for power and growth, or that it dates back to 1990. Those claims come from logo websites, not from GWM, and the 1990 date doesn’t fit the company’s own record of a new logo in 2007.
From workhorse pickups to off-road boxes
Great Wall built its name on tough, practical vehicles, and that streak still runs through the line-up.
Landmark Great Walls, decade by decade
- 1996: Deer. The first Great Wall Deer pickup came off the line in the mid 1990s and became one of the best sellers in its market by 1997.
- 2002: Safe. According to Great Wall, this SUV opened up the economy SUV class in China and reached the national top three that year.
- 2005: Haval. Production of the Haval SUV began in March 2005 at a new plant. In 2006 Haval models went to Italy, a record for bulk exports of a Chinese brand to the EU.
- 2011: Haval H6. The first SUV from the new Tianjin plant, launched in August 2011.
- 2017: WEY VV7. The first model of the WEY brand, launched at the Shanghai motor show.
- 2020: Tank 300. Launched in December 2020 as an off-road SUV under the WEY brand, months before Tank became a brand of its own.
Great Wall is one of several Chinese carmakers that have taken their badges abroad. For another, see Geely. And if you’re curious how emblems like the beacon tower are drawn up, read how car logos are designed.
Frequently asked questions
What does the Great Wall logo show?
A beacon tower, the kind of signal tower found along the Great Wall of China. GWM calls the current version the GWM Beacon emblem, with “GWM” inscribed on its base.
What does GWM stand for?
Great Wall Motor. The company also reads the letters as “Go With More”, a slogan about constantly pushing forward.
When did Great Wall change its logo?
The company’s timeline records a new logo released worldwide on 29 October 2007. In January 2025 the Chinese characters were replaced by GWM and the beacon tower turned flat, white on red. The GWM Beacon emblem was then presented at Auto Shanghai in April 2025.
Are Haval, WEY, ORA and Tank part of Great Wall?
Yes. They are all brands of Great Wall Motor, alongside GWM pickups. Haval, for example, has had its own logo since it became an independent brand in 2013.
Great Wall, brick by brick
- Founded
- 1984
- Country
- China
- Headquarters
- Baoding, China
- Current emblem
- A beacon tower with GWM on its base, white on red in flat form, presented as the GWM Beacon emblem in 2025
- Known for
- Pickups and SUVs, and the Haval, WEY, ORA and Tank brands
- Website
- Official website ↗
