Hardcore off-road vehicles have set their sights on young people.
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Author | Zhou Zhiyu
Editor | Zhang Xiaoling
China’s hardcore off-road vehicles are experiencing a market boom.
The latest terminal sales data is the clearest annotation of this transformation: a market once dominated by traditional “legendary vehicles” such as the Prado and Land Cruiser has now been overtaken by domestic brands.
Data from the China Passenger Car Association shows that in September this year, in the TOP 10 sales of hardcore off-road models, the dominating brands have already become Tank, Beijing, BYD Fangchengbao, and Dongfeng Mengshi—independent Chinese brands.
This is a clear signal. With the intensive entry of new players like Dongfeng Mengshi M817, Jetour Traveler Series, and the new Tank 400, this once niche track is becoming extremely crowded.
As the categories become more refined, this track is expanding. In the first quarter of 2025, the penetration rate of hardcore off-road vehicles in the SUV market has climbed to 2.91%. Looking back at 2024, its cumulative terminal sales surged 110.1% year-on-year. The China Automobile Dealers Association’s Passenger Car Market Information Joint Committee predicts that the market share will exceed 3% for the whole of 2025, and by 2030, this figure could surpass 13%.
In order to tear a bigger gap in this activated incremental market and rush towards the mainstream track vision of a 13% market share by 2030, car companies are fundamentally shifting their strategic focus. Their targets have shifted from traditional off-road veterans to the new generation of consumers. A hardcore off-road battle around the new generation has already begun.
Recently, Great Wall Motor Chairman Wei Jianjun handed the first keys of the new Tank 400 to Menglei, an e-sports star from Chengdu AG Super Play Club, instead of an off-road veteran.
This move makes the “Gen Z off-road ambition” of hardcore off-road vehicles abundantly clear. The real intention of the new Tank 400 is: to use the unique form of hardcore off-road to grab young users that originally belonged to urban intelligent SUVs, thus completely blurring the boundaries between hardcore off-road and urban SUV.
Three lockers are the hardcore entry ticket, satisfying young people's 90% presence in the city, but who must have the spiritual totem of being able to go wild at any time.
The core selling points are evolving from the “three lockers” to mecha aesthetics and intelligent cabins. For example, the new Tank 400 is equipped with the industry's top Qualcomm 8295 chip and Coffee Pilot Ultra intelligent driving system, enabling full-scenario coverage of urban NOA and highway NOA.
The fundamental reason for the success of independent brands is that the “new trio” has solved the original sins of traditional off-road vehicles, bringing about off-road equity.
The pain points of “high fuel consumption and low comfort” have been addressed. Traditional off-road vehicles often have fuel consumption of 15–20L per 100km, and are hard to sit in, wobbly to drive. The new electric-driven technologies solve fuel consumption and comfort at the same time, making “city and wild” not just a marketing slogan but a technical daily reality.
In addition, the thresholds of high price and advanced technology have been further lowered. In the past, hardcore off-road vehicles were expensive, but now the new Tank 400 gasoline version is priced as low as 249,800 yuan, and Dongfeng Mengshi M817 also brings the price down to the 300,000 yuan range. Intelligence has greatly lowered the driving and operational threshold of off-road driving, making it a mainstream instead of an enthusiasts-only activity.
The technological revolution on the supply side happens to cater to changes on the demand side. Today’s market competition has far surpassed parameter comparisons and entered the era of emotional value.
Auto companies have their eye on young people's desire for refined camping and outdoor socializing, while the boxy design, with its tough and individualistic visual cues, has become social currency among young people.
In this trend, the V2L (Vehicle-to-Load) external discharge function is a typical highlight. It transforms new energy off-road vehicles from a means of transportation into a mobile campsite. The new Tank 400 offers external discharge power of 6kW and internal of 2.2kW. Data shows that as many as 87% of new energy off-road car owners have used the external discharge feature, far surpassing urban SUV owners, making this a core necessity.
According to the “2025 Off-road Lifestyle White Paper,” 64.8% of hardcore off-road vehicle owners go off-road no more than twice a month, but 100% want their vehicles to embody the off-road spirit and lifestyle. Buying a hardcore off-roader is a lifestyle choice.
However, for hardcore off-road brands, being suitable for both city and wilderness is merely an entry ticket; the real competition is in the second half.
With the rapid popularization of the “new trio,” simple price wars are less effective, and technology and hardware will tend to converge. The endgame of competition has shifted from single product capability to a battle of ecosystems and communities as brand moats. Off-road owners (especially Gen Z) have a strong sense of identity and social sharing. Self-built brand app communities turn these scattered flows into private domain traffic, precipitating into brand assets. Through points, activities, and other operations, users are converted into fans, and then UGC (user generated content) feeds back into brand marketing.
As the first half of this war around young people nears its end, the real challenge may just be beginning.
Risk Warning and DisclaimerThe market has risks, investment requires caution. This article does not constitute individual investment advice, nor does it consider individual users’ specific investment objectives, financial situation, or needs. Users should consider whether any opinions, views, or conclusions contained herein fit their particular circumstances. If acting accordingly, responsibility is borne by the user. ```