The Chinese automobile that has FLOPPED in Britain: Terribly named Ora Funky Cat axed attributable to dismal gross sales
It’s undeniable, Chinese brands are rapidly taking over the UK car market.
Last month, they accounted for one in seven new motors sold, and the most popular model of all was the Chinese Jaecoo 7.
But not every Chinese car is thriving in Britain. In fact, one has just been pulled from showrooms after four years of disappointing sales.
Great Wall Motors’ Ora brand has axed the availability of its only UK car, the 03 electric supermini – a plush rival to the Mini Electric.
It debuted in showrooms in late 2022 under its former nameplate, ‘Funky Cat’. However, the awful moniker was quickly dropped a year later over concerns it was impacting demand.
But it appears the damage had already been done, with drivers steering clear of the small EV due to its questionable badge and a relatively steep asking price.
Last year, GWM’s UK importer, International Motors, delivered just 542 examples to customers. That compares to around 9,000 MG4 EVs registered in 2025.
Bosses say it is being phased out as part of plans to overhaul its European strategy.
*Is Funky Cat the worst car name ever? Scroll to the bottom for 10 other howlers
The Ora 03 – formerly the Ora Funky Cat – has been dumped from UK showrooms due to poor sales over the last four years
When the Funky Cat launched in Britain in 2022, it was pitched as a premium rival to the Fiat 500 Electric and Renault Zoe.
As standard, it came with features including wireless phone charging, facial recognition, electric front seats, app integration and an ‘intelligent voice assistant’.
Range topping models offered comfort features like heated, cooled and massage front seats, a heated steering-wheel, panoramic sunroof, power-opening boot and automatic parking assistance.
As such, it wasn’t cheap.
The Ora Funky Cat debuted in showrooms in late 2022. However, the awful moniker was quickly dropped a year later over concerns it was impacting demand
GWM has shifted just over 2,700 examples of the car in four years. In 2025, delivered hit a mere 542 units
When the name was changed to 03, the small EV cost between £25,000 to £33,000 depending on battery and trim level.
It was available with the choice of a 48kWh or 63kWh battery. The smaller battery’s official – though never achievable – 193 miles between charges was disappointing, though the bigger pack offered a more reasonable 260 miles of range.
But sales still tanked.
In the last couple of months of its debut year in 2022, GWM dealers sold 68 in total.
Funky Cat registrations hit 911 units a year later, then when the name was changed to 03 it enjoyed its most fruitful period with 1,162 sales in the 2024 calendar.
With just 542 sold in 2025 and a mere 26 delivered in the first three months of this year, it amassed a lacklustre 2,707 registrations across its four-year spell.
International Motors has confirmed that there is available new stock across its UK dealer network, though no more Ora 03s are due to arrive from its Chinese factory.
The decision also means Ora no longer has a single model in its line up, despite having a relatively large UK dealer network.
Last summer, it boasted some 46 sites nationwide, made up of showrooms, aftersales locations and test drive centres.
International Motors will continue to import GWM’s Poer 300 pick-up truck and the Haval Jolion Pro hybrid crossover.
However, sales of these have been equally slow.
Autocar estimates that it has sold around just 80 examples of both between January and March.
But the Haval and Poer brands will remain available in Britain for the time being. And GWM – which has a broad stable of brands in China – is currently considering which of its marques it wants to launch in Europe next as part of its new strategy.
The decision to axe the Ora 03 means the brand no longer has a single model in its line up, despite having a relatively large UK dealer network made up of around 46 sites
The problem with the Ora Funky Cat/03 wasn’t just its name – it was expensive, not just by Chinese car standards but also compared to well-established European rivals
Bosses have said its European operations will now focus on hybrids and combustion-engine models after its previous electric-only attempt stuttered.
It believes following a similar route taken by the Chery Group – which includes the brands Chery, Jaecoo, Lepas and Omoda – of offering long-range hybrids and cheap petrol models will help it double its overseas sales to one million vehicles by the end of the decade.
‘Europe still has great potential for Chinese brands,’ said Parker Shi, president of GWM International in February.
Andrew Dyson, GWM’s head of design, claims the company will now look to launch new saloons, estates and pick-up truck for Europe to ‘appeal to (European) markets where there isn’t the full infrastructure for (EV) charging’.
In January, GWM unveiled a new architecture for global vehicles, with more than 50 electric, hybrid and combustion-engine models planned.
The automaker is recruiting new dealers in Europe and focusing on bolstering resale values, an issue that is important to European buyers, Shi said.
GWM also plans to set up a European factory to make 300,000 cars a year by 2030, requiring close to a hundredfold growth in sales.
Registration figures show that almost one in ten new models sold in Britain last year were produced by Chinese brands – that’s almost 200,000 Chinese vehicles hitting our roads. This is up from 98,000 registrations in 2024.
And despite Ora’s difficulties breaking into the EV segment, it’s clear this is where Chinese brands are aiming to have the most influence.
In 2025, around one in eight new electric vehicles (EVs) entering the road had a Chinese company’s badge on its bonnet, up from one in 12 the year previous, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).
Over a dozen different Chinese brands are now on sale in the UK and more are due to arrive in 2026 as the region looks to disrupt the new car market.
