GAC hasn’t always been the most exciting brand. Good cars, yes, but conservative styling and market positioning made them rather invisible to most buyers.
But not anymore. With the launch of the three “Ems”—the Empow, the Emkoo, and the Emzoom, GAC is making a statement. And given the huge number of questions I’ve gotten over the past week, it seems like people are finally paying attention. The Emzoom I’m driving now, a.k.a. the Yingsu or “Shadow Speed,” is the humblest of the three, but with the same hardware in the smallest package, it promises to be the sportiest of the series.
Is it, though? Let’s find out.
ALSO READ:
Look out, Alphard? The GAC M8 luxury minivan is coming to PH
Gallery: Can the GAC M8 challenge the Toyota Alphard in the local market?
Styling
While not as straight-out exotic as the Emkoo, the Emzoom is still an exotic looking thing. The front is dominated by a large vertical grille and sharktooth LED lights. A bold triangular cutaway on the grille helps slim it down, while orange stripes on the driver’s side make for a nice “Em-Power” badge. Triangular slots feed air to the front wheel well, while front winglets—exclusive to the R-Style kit—give the Emzoom an incredibly aggressive look, even if they have no real aerodynamic function.
Sharp triangular features dominate the flanks of the car. Frenched in black fender flares and sills slim the body and accentuate the fantastic 19-inch two-tone spider-spoke wheels. Those wheels are spaced further apart than on the old GS3, thanks to the Emzoom’s new GPMA platform. The bigger footprint really allows it to stretch out, with a sleeker profile and sharper styling.
A square-edged A-pillar blends the relatively long windshield into the greenhouse. Out back, a brazen orange cutaway panel helps hide the thickness of the C-pillar while providing visual motivation for the raised rear hip point, with its subtle tail-fin tail-lights. The heavily canted rear glass is sandwiched by a cool split-wing spoiler and a wing-like hatch lip. A nice evolution from the subtle lip on the GS3. Finally, a cartoonishly large—also aerodynamically non-functional—rear diffuser frames the twin rear tailpipes. Which, unlike the fake chrome ones on the old GS3, are completely functional, with an exhaust flapper valve prominently visible inside the right-hand pipe. Coolness.
Interior
The Emzoom’s interior feels like ‘Stealth’ meets ‘Adidas,’ with jet exhaust AC vents ringed in LED lighting framed by be-patterned blue leatherette. Along with the rubber bin-liners, blue-skinned seats, and center armrest, the material selection gives the cabin a wash-and-wear durability.
The dashboard features the expected twin-LED screen set-up with black stencil surrounds. The center screen is wide and legible, even in daylight. The Emzoom offers fewer physical controls than the Empow but more than the Emkoo. Thankfully, the AC controls are still physical. It has the best-split center console of the three, giving you rubberized phone pockets ahead and under the AC controls and two big cupholders beside the gun-sight shift knob. There’s an extra pocket between the shifter and the center box for another phone or your wallet, too. Unfortunately, the center stack is so wide and deep that it’s quite a reach to put anything inside the spacious lower shelf.
Ergonomics are fantastic, whether hunkered down for a sportier driving position or sat upright for more of that SUV feel. The power-adjustable driver’s seat and wide range of adjustments for the tilt-and-telescopic wheel ensure a perfect fit either way. Lumbar and lateral support are pretty good, even without adjustments, although the center console sometimes hits your right leg, whatever position you assume.
The rear bench is a lesson in clever compromise. The short seat squab is just the right height, and leaves lots of room for your knees. The rear backrests are tucked behind the C-pillars, which means they aren’t reclineable, but this maximizes cabin space for the passengers. A completely flat floor means decent foot space for a center passenger, but the fit is a bit narrow for three. There’s also only one rear AC vent on that center console. Thankfully, the cabin isn’t big enough to get truly hot in the back, but a motorized vent with better coverage would be nice.
Underneath an automatic tailgate, the GS3 only has 341 liters of cargo space, thanks, partially, to the tilted floor tray needed to form a flat loading bay with the rear bench folded. That said, you can lower the floor tray down to the spare for much more space. You also get the expected courtesy lights and power socket, but no tonneau cover, sadly.
ALSO READ:
The GAC E9 has a different take on 360-degree protection
GAC launches the Raize-fighting GS3 Emzoom with P998k starting price
Engine performance
There’s no engine cover, either, as GAC displays its 174hp turbocharged 1.5-liter engine in its full glory. Front and center is a unique air-water-air intercooler that feeds cold air to the engine, and all the plumbing and extra coolant and surge tanks that go with it. This system theoretically maintains consistent output, however hot the weather. There’s also a lot of cooling hardware plumbed into the seven-speed dual-clutch transmission, to keep it happy, however much of the 270Nm of the engine’s torque you use.
This combination, locked into Sport+ mode for a little more power and more aggressive throttle mapping, allowed us to record 0-100kph in just 8sec. Faster than our tested numbers for the Coolray, and not too far off GAC’s 7.5sec claim. Impressive for a motor with only 500km on the odometer. On the debit side, without the Empow’s dedicated launch mode, takeoffs aren’t as predictable. And low-speed shifts and acceleration can be rather jerky in this mode.
You can toggle between Eco, Comfort, Sport and Sport+ modes by flicking the unusual shift lever downward, but the system only switches between Sport and one other mode. You have to go into the menu to change the default selections, which is tedious, but the range of customization for each mode is impressive. My go-to mode was Eco Mode paired with Sport steering and stability control, which works fine 99% of the time. For the other 1%, flicking into Sport for the odd overtake was sufficient.
In Eco Mode, we recorded 6-8km/L in traffic and 16-18 km/L on the highway. But the weather was bad during the whole test, and considering the previous GS3 gave similar economy with a much less powerful 1.3-liter turbo, I guess that counts as a win.
Ride and handling
An even bigger win is the handling. While we thought the old GS3 was a rather decent drive, it lacked the firepower and ferocity of more exciting competitors. But now it has both. Low profile 235/45R19 Michelin Pilot Sport 4 tires give incredible grip for a crossover, and the steering is much more direct than before. This allows you to carry a fair bit more speed into turns than you would be comfortable with otherwise.
But it’s not all about the tires. Body roll is well controlled, and the shorter wheelbase and body make it feel keener to rotate than the Empow. Locked into Sport or Sport+ mode, it holds onto lower gears, and the flapper valve on the exhaust gives you that snap-crackle-pop soundtrack that urges you to push on a little more. Suffice to say, this is a fair bit more entertaining than Geely’s Coolray on a winding road, and even without all-wheel-drive, feels supremely confident in slippery conditions, with only the occasional skittering shifting into second gear betraying any lack on the Emzoom’s part.
But once you tire of such shenanigans and start driving more sedately, you begin to wish the Emzoom’s excitement envelope was a little wider. It still feels capable on the highway, but the lack of paddle shifters means a bit of a wait for downshifts when overtaking. Even in Sport mode. And those mighty Michelins can feel mighty thumpy over ruts and bumps. The Emzoom itself tends to ride more stiffly than the Empow, thanks to the extra ride height, but great NVH and supportive seat cushions minimize the discomfort.
Adaptive cruise and lane departure control are a set-and-forget affair, a single button activates both at near any speed. An onboard display shows the distance to the car in front, and distinguishes between pedestrians, motorcycles, cars and trucks. As with many Chinese self-driving systems, steering corrections can be a bit clumsy, but these aids are a great help on long highway drives. While the system doesn’t always register orange barriers or unpainted walls, on clearly marked multi-lanes, it’s fantastic.
Around town, the Emzoom's compact size make it quite easy to maneuver, but the high sills and small rear glass make spotting curbs and walls an issue while parking. A 360-degree camera comes in handy here, with side cameras mounted to give you a good view of inside curbs when negotiating drive throughs and tight corners.
Extra features
Beyond the generous driver aids, the Emzoom features a lot of nifty toys. You get keyless entry with hideaway door handles, push-button start, cool mood lighting, a panoramic sunroof, an automatic tailgate, automatic lights and wipers, multiple charging options, including 12V, USB-A, USB-C and wireless charging—rather slow, but it works through phone cases, and smartphone integration. The system dumps Baidu Carlife in favor of Apple Carplay and Carbit Link. Carbit Link allows wired or wireless integration and screen mirroring for Android. Sound and video while screen mirroring are exceptional, and the system has good, deep bass and crisp sound. Not the most audiophile level ever, but at this price range, it is pretty good.
Verdict
And that price: At P1.198 million, the top-of-the-line Emzoom R-Style costs exactly what the Coolray Sport cost three years ago, undercutting the current one by nearly 100k. And all you are really sacrificing are the missing paddle shifters. Otherwise, the R-Style is a fully loaded, stylish, and exceptionally good sports crossover for the price. And did we mention it was fast? Yes, this may just be the new performance champion of the segment, Chinese or otherwise. But beyond that, the new GS3 represents a big step forward for the brand, and a strong shot across the bows in the fight for Chinese brand dominance with Geely.
SPECS: 2024 GAC GS3 Emzoom R-Style
Price: P1,198,000
Engine: 1.5-liter turbopetrol
Power: 174hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque: 270Nm @ 1,400-4,500rpm
Transmission: 7-speed wet dual-clutch
Drive layout: FWD
Seating: 5
Score: 9/10
All photos above were taken using a Samsung Galaxy S23.
