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Another Chinese SUV sub-brand targets Land Rover Defender, Jeep Wrangler and GWM Tank 300: Chery's Jetour Zhongheng plans to take on the plush off-road establishment - should Range Rover be worried?

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2025 Chery Jetour Zhongheng
Chris Thompson
Journalist
17 Jan 2025
2 min read

Chery has a new sub-brand on the way to take on rivals such as the GWM Tank 700 and premium off-roaders from the likes of Land Rover.

Or, rather, it's a sub-sub-brand, as Chery’s existing Jetour sub-brand is set to spawn another badge called ‘Jetour Zhongheng’.

According to CarNewsChina, the brand will target premium off-roaders like the GWM Tank 700 and products from Land Rover, while using hybrid and electrified powertrains to do so.

The brand will hold a conference later in January to divulge more details about the launch, but whether Australia will see any of these products is yet to be seen.

So far, it seems like Chery isn’t planning to bring the Jetour sub-brand Down Under, instead focusing on luxe Jaecoo models.

2025 Chery Jetour Zhongheng
2025 Chery Jetour Zhongheng

“Jetour is not in the plans at this stage. They’re cool looking cars, but they’re not an international export at this point,” Chery’s local boss Lucas Harris told CarsGuide in 2024.

“There’s gotta be a business case,” he said. “It’s not a cheap exercise to redevelop from left-hand drive to right-hand drive.”

The Jetour Traveller — powered by a 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine — would have been a cut-price rival to the Land Rover Defender if it had been available here, though the new Jetour Zhongheng offshoot would have likely seen a similar vehicle available with a hybrid drivetrain.

Chris Thompson
Journalist
Racing video games, car-spotting on road trips, and helping wash the family VL Calais Turbo as a kid were all early indicators that an interest in cars would stay present in Chris’ life, but loading up his 1990 VW Golf GTI Mk2 and moving from hometown Brisbane to work in automotive publishing in Melbourne ensured cars would be a constant. With a few years as MOTOR Magazine’s first digital journalist under his belt, followed by a stint as a staff journalist for Wheels Magazine, Chris’ career already speaks to a passion for anything with four wheels, especially the 1989 Mazda MX-5 he currently owns. From spending entire weeks dissecting the dynamic abilities of sports cars to weighing up the practical options for car buyers from all walks of life, Chris’ love for writing and talking about cars means if you’ve got a motoring question, he can give you an answer.
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