The popular Haval Big Dog has an Anglicised name for some markets – the Haval Dargo.
The Haval Big Dog made waves in 2020 with its rugged and charming design. Recently, the vehicle was introduced to two South American markets – Chile and Peru, where it was sold as the Dargo. The reason for this is because ‘Big Dog’ is the literal translation of Dàgǒu, which is its name in China. So the name ‘Dargo’ is more like an Anglicised take on the name. In fairness, Dargo is actually a pretty nice car name especially compared to ‘Big Dog’. The Dargo name has also been attached to the motto “Dare to Go” to give its name a little more meaning and memorability.
You may have noticed that the South American Haval Dargo has a different look to the original ‘Big Dog’ that was shown in 2020. That’s because the version being sold there is the “Hunting Edition”, which has a different look.
The Haval Big Dog Hunting Edition has a more off-road-ready appearance with redesigned bumpers, a new grille that extends the black plastic bumpers all the way up to the hood, larger wheels, running boards, a new spoiler and wheel arch extensions with exposed bolts.
Besides the exterior treatment, this edition is exactly the same as the original. In China it can still be purchased with a 169hp 1.5L turbocharged 4 cylinder petrol or a 211hp 2.0L turbocharged 4 cylinder petrol. Only the 2.0L engine has an optional all-wheel drive system.
In South America, only the 2.0L turbo model with front wheel drive is being offered for now. In Peru, it costs US$28,990. It comes with 18″ alloy wheels, a 360-degree parking camera, 6 airbags, Autonomous Emergency Braking, a 10.25″ digital instrument cluster, and more. The Haval Chile website is down as of writing this, so I couldn’t check what the specifications of the car is there.
What do you think of the Haval Dargo? Would you prefer it to be called Big Dog in Malaysia? Or would you rather see a different Great Wall Motors product come to our shores first?
