Jaecoo 7 premium SUV to launch brand in UK

Chinese automotive giant Chery has revealed more details of the first model to go on sale in the UK under its Jaecoo brand, the Jaecoo 7.

Jaecoo is being launched by China’s largest vehicle exporter just months after its sister brand Omoda arrived in the UK. The two have been on an aggressive launch programme with a 60-strong network of Omoda-Jaecoo dealers already established.

Jaecoo is being presented as the more premium of the two new brands, with Omoda’s vehicles pitched firmly at younger buyers.

Both will also be heavily targeting fleet sales – the company’s fleet department has been rapidly expanding in personnel and fleet is predicted to account for around 6,000 Jaecoo 7 sales in the first year, mainly of the plug-in hybrid model.

Speaking at a media event in London, Omoda Jaecoo product manager Ollie Lowe revealed that the Jaecoo 7 will be available with petrol or Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) powertrains, prices starting at £29,435 and £35,065 respectively.

The entry-level petrol model and the PHEV are both front-wheel drive, while also available will be a four-wheel drive petrol version starting at £32,850. All versions also come with a seven-year/100,000-mile warranty.

Petrol models employ a 1.6-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine of (147hp and 275Nm of torque, with WLTP-rated fuel economy of 37.7mpg. The PHEV powertrain adds an 18.3 kW battery that boosts engine power to 204hp and 310Nm of torque and provides an all-electric range of 56 miles.

Jaecoo adds that with its 60-litre fuel tank, the Jaecoo 7 PHEV has a range of up to 745 miles and an official combined fuel economy figure of 403 mpg, or 47 mpg with the battery in a high depletion scenario.

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CO2 emissions are rated at 23g/km and despite the recent lug-in hybrid tax changes announced by the Government, the PHEV is expected to attract strong fleet interest.

Jaecoo 7 owners are expected to want to go off-road with their vehicle and the car has a 600mm wading depth, while the four-wheel drive version includes seven driving modes, including Sand, Mud, Snow and Off-Road settings?.

Approach and departure angles are rated at 21 and 29 degrees respectively, with a maximum breakover angle of 200 mm. Four-wheel-drive versions also have a Bosch-developed Integrated Power Brake (IPB) system which simulates a differential lock.

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As is typical with the latest Chinese models entering the UK the Jaecoo 7 boasts a long standard specification, the cabin dominated by a vertical-format 14.8-inch central high-resolution touchscreen alongside a 10.25-inch LCD instrument panel and a head-up display (HUD).

Multi-colour interior lighting options, 50W wireless mobile phone charging, an eight-speaker Sony audio system and a panoramic roof are all standard on the model, as are a full suite of ADAS driver aids.

The Jaecoo 7 will not appear as a full battery-electric version but a host of additional models planned for both Jaecoo and Omoda in the next few years will include a Jaecoo BEV. Order books for the Jaecoo 7 are now open with first deliveries expected in January 2025.

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