Chery Omoda 5 vs Cupra Formentor

What's the difference?

There’s little argument that Chery is focusing on value-for-money when it comes to its model range, and that’s absolutely the case with its new range opener - the Omoda 5 FX.

The spacious, flexible and neat cabin also get a tick. 

Purely looking at this car on paper, it is hard to beat for $27,000 drive-away. And if you stick exclusively to urban areas without hitting the open road, you might be happy with your purchase.

However, the overall drive experience, including the behaviour of the advanced driver assistance tech, is well off the pace of mainstream rivals from Hyundai, Kia, Mazda, VW and more. 

If that price is too good to look past, then be sure to do back-to-back test drives with other similarly priced rivals to compare.

The Cupra Formentor VZe Tribe Edition offers some great luxury features and is coupled with a plug-in hybrid powertrain that should entice those wanting something more efficient than the standard petrol grade. It's peak efficiency is only available with a fair amount of charging commitment, though, and the driving comfort isn’t always the best but its fun and looks hot. The price point also makes it appealing compared to its rivals.

The Omoda 5’s design is bold, certainly more so than its larger Tiggo 7 and Tiggo 8 stablemates.

At the front the narrow daytime running lights integrate into the busy-looking grille that is surrounded by vertical headlights.

Tall wheel arches, narrowing rear three-quarter windows, creases, a boot lip spoiler and a perky rear help it stand out, but when you look at it front on or rear on, it seems oddly proportioned. Like it’s on stilts or something. 

The cabin design is smart and restrained with a high-set centre console, piano black inserts, attractive three-spoke flat-bottom steering wheel with clear dials and minimal use of buttons.

Soft-touch materials adorn the top of the dash but the doors make do with hard plastics, which I have no issue with. The passenger side dash is upright but that doesn’t impact functionality. 

The Cupra Formentor sounds like a Transformers name and if it were one, it’d be a Decepticon, for sure. It’s way too sharply styled and sexy to be a good guy. 

The special-edition model sees it paired with black and copper 19-inch alloy wheels and every design aspect doubles down on its sports-car presence from the crisp pleating across the body, to the twin exhausts and shapely grille. And this sporty presence is what its rivals lack.

Head inside and you'll notice the biggest change from the standard VZe model are the sport bucket seats in the front and the blue leather upholstery that has been liberally applied across the cabin.

The dashboard features gorgeous copper accents and contrasting stitching while being headlined with large tech screens that immediately catch your eye.

The interior has a killer design but it's not one you'd call plush as the edges and surfaces are as sharp as they look.

The cabin offers enough space for a small SUV. It feels wide across the front seat and there’s plenty of headroom, too.

The driver’s seat is power adjustable and while the fabric and stitching look cool, there’s almost too much padding under your bottom.

There are clear controls on the comfy door armrest and on the lovely looking three-spoke synthetic leather, flat bottom steering wheel.

The console sits up high, presumably to give the cabin a sports car look, and the dash is neat and clean, largely due to a lack of physical buttons. There are two phone holders that dominate the lower part of the dash and they double as device chargers in higher grades, but not in the FX.

There is space under the console to fit a bag or other items but the USB-A and USB-C ports are on the passenger side so you have to reach over to connect a cord if required. Thankfully, the Apple CarPlay is wireless. It connected easily and did not require reconnection while I had the car.

Two smallish cupholders are found near the gear shifter, and a sizeable central bin will store a number or items. The doors can stow a tall and wide bottle as well as other flat items. 

Chery’s dual-screen set-up looks nice and not a world away from Kia’s integrated screens. The driver instrument display is not customisable in this grade and many of the items on the display are quite small. It would help if these were a little larger.

The multimedia side is simple to use with iPhone-like icons for functions like vehicle settings and more. There’s even a cute little bubble face on the side that you press to dictate commands. I asked the system to perform a few basic tasks like turning the air con off and on and it did it immediately without fault.

Air con controls are housed in the screen as well but it’s not as fiddly as some systems from other manufacturers. The only complaint is that it doesn’t appear to show the exact temperature, and the air flow could be stronger for a hot climate like Australia.

Taller passengers will probably need to duck their heads getting in and out of the Omoda 5’s rear seats, because of the low roofline. Once in the rear, there is a decent amount of knee and legroom, and headroom is good too despite the roofline.

Those rear seats are flat and not the most comfortable but fine for urban drives, and they feature ISOFIX points on the two outboard seats and three top tether points for child car seats.

In terms of amenities, there’s one USB-C port in the second row, lower air vents - something too many small SUVs go without - a centre fold-down armrest with two (shallow) cupholders and enough space for big bottles in the doors.

All petrol Omoda 5s have a cargo capacity of 360 litres, which increases to 1075L when you fold the 60/40 split rear seats down. This is more than the GWM Haval Jolion petrol’s capacity (337L).

It has a manual tailgate, a high loading area and some under-floor storage, but there is more than enough space for some luggage or a large amount of groceries in the boot. 

It has a temporary spare wheel which is essential in Australia if you’re driving beyond urban areas.

The only negative is the flimsy parcel shelf. It struggles to stay in the groves that are designed to hold it. I had to re-fit it every time I opened the boot.

For something that leans more towards a sports car than SUV in its styling, the cabin is still fairly practical when it comes to space and access.

Front occupants enjoy the best of each, though, and it's easy enough for a taller driver to get into a comfortable position.

The rear row offers excellent headroom but the legroom may be cramped for a tall passenger. It's best to think of the car as a four-seater as the middle armrest won't go down when there is a car seat installed.

In terms of seat comfort, fatigue will set in early on a long trip for front rowers as they are decidedly hard under the butt but the padding is a lot better in the rear row.

Overall, storage options and amenities are great throughout the car with the tri-zone climate control, heated front seats and steering wheel functions giving a premium cabin experience.

The glove box is extra large and can easily fit a small handbag and a manual while the middle console is on the small side. There are four cupholders and drink bottle holders (4/4) but the front cupholders need to be spaced out more to accommodate two cups properly. A few loose coffee lids were had!

In the rear you also get two map pockets and the boot has 345L of capacity available which is on the tiny side for a medium SUV! However, the wide boot aperture tricks you into thinking it’s bigger and the powered tailgate is always a handy feature.

Technology looks great but the multimedia system is finicky to use and one that takes a while to get used to. At first it's difficult to recognise what you have to touch to access the different menus available but the screen is responsive and the graphics are clear.

The built-in satellite navigation is easy to use, and the Tribe Edition also has wired/wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, four USB-C ports, a wireless charging pad and a 12-volt socket.

There are usually three variants available for the Formentor; the base V petrol model, the mid-spec VZe plug-in hybrid and the range-topping VZx petrol.

The Tribe Edition pairs the plug-in hybrid powertrain with some of the features you get in the VZx, making it technically sit right below the top model, despite being $2200 more expensive at $67,990 MSRP.

Yet still it offers great value compared to its luxury rivals, the Lexus NX350h Luxury Hybrid which sits at $71,600 MSRP and the Peugeot 3008 GT Sport Plug-in hybrid which starts at $82,915 MSRP, without feeling like the poor cousin.

For a $3K price hike over the standard VZe model, you enjoy heated front seats, sport bucket front seats, 'Petrol Blue' leather upholstery throughout the cabin, black and copper 19-inch alloy wheels, a black headliner, a 360-degree view camera and a powered drivers seat with memory and lumbar function.

Other standard equipment includes keyless entry and start, powered tailgate, heated steering wheel, dusk-sensing LED headlights, rain-sensing wipers, auto-start/stop function and a tyre repair kit and inflator.

Technology looks top-tier with the 12-inch touchscreen multimedia system with built-in satellite navigation, 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster, tri-zone climate control, wired and wireless Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, four USB-C ports, Bluetooth, AM/FM radio, digital radio and a nine-speaker Harman Kardon sound system.

There are two petrol engine choices for the Omoda 5. The FX, BX and EX use a 1.5-litre four-cylinder turbocharged unit delivering power and torque outputs of 108kW and 210Nm, respectively. 

These grades are front-wheel drive and the powertrain features a continuously variable transmission (CVT). 

Those outputs are inline with the GWM Haval Jolion petrol but offer more punch than the MG ZST.

The Omoda 5 GT grades use a more powerful 137kW/275Nm 1.6-litre turbo, but they also come with a higher price tag.

The VZe Tribe Edition is a plug-in hybrid that has an electric motor that produces up to 85kW/330Nm. This is paired with a 1.4L four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine. Together, they produce outputs of up to 180kW and 400Nm.

However, once the lithium-ion battery is depleted, those figures drop to 110kW/250Nm and you notice the difference on the open road. 

The Tribe has a smooth six-speed automatic transmission and can do a 0-100km/h sprint in 7.0-seconds. Not crazy fast but still fun.

Chery says the official combined cycle (urban/extra-urban) fuel use figure for the Omoda 5 1.5L is 6.9 litres per 100km and the CO2 emissions are rated at 164g/km from the Euro 6-compliant engine.

After a week of urban, freeway and outer suburban driving we recorded a figure of 10.3L/100km which is well off the official figure.

It has a 51-litre fuel tank and runs on 91 RON petrol. Based on our calculations you can expect a theoretical range of about 765km.

Like all plug-in hybrids, you get the best efficiency if you recharge the Tribe often. If you want to get close to the official combined (urban/extra-urban) fuel cycle figure of 1.9L/100km you need to charge it every single time you use it.

Following this procedure over 347km of a mix of open and city driving, saw the real-world usage pop out at 2.3L/100km, which is outstanding.

However, the second half of the week saw 336km travelled and no recharge and the real-world usage stepped up considerably to 6.0L.

With its 40L fuel tank, you have a theoretical driving range of up to 2105km but expect less in real-world conditions. Worth noting Cupra recommends a minimum 95 RON unleaded petrol for this model.

The Tribe has a lithium-ion battery with a usable 10.9kWh capacity and the claimed pure EV range is up to 58km, as well as, a claimed 14.1kWh energy consumption figure.

Over my week with it, the consumption hovered around 22.8kWh/100km when cruising on the highway going 100km/h.

The Omoda 5 has two personalities depending how and where you’re driving. If you only drive in urban areas and rarely exceed 60km/h, it’s more than fine as a daily driver.

It’s when you’re on the open road or a freeway that its flaws are revealed.

The 1.5-litre engine is responsive enough, although there is some hesitation when accelerating under full throttle, and it’s slower to pick up pace when you’re already on the move at 60 or 80km/h. 

The throttle is quite sensitive, however, and can be a little jolty when taking off. And light tyre chirp is also possible when accelerating hard.

Chery’s CVT is fine and doesn’t have the drone of other CVTs, but the manual mode toggles on the side of the shifter are in a confusing spot. When I first got in the car, I mistook this for the button that allows the shift between drive and reverse that many other cars have. I only made that mistake once, though.

The engine is rowdy when accelerating hard but not unpleasant, and Chery could do more to keep noise out of the cabin. Wind noise is particularly noticeable. 

The Omoda 5’s ride can be jittery, particularly on uneven or pockmarked roads. The tyres seem to soak up road reflectors and smaller bumps but the suspension tune is on the firmer side which means it’s crashy over bigger bumps.

It also leans a lot when cornering, feeling top heavy in bends. This is not the sort of dynamically capable crossover you can have fun with on a twisty road, like the sadly departed Ford Puma, or the Mazda CX-30 or VW T-Roc.

Some general impressions - the brakes are a little slow to respond but you learn to adjust. The steering feels artificial and twitchy and you’re constantly fighting with the lane keeping aid. More on that in the ‘Safety’ section below. 

On sunny days a distracting reflection of the top of the dash appears on the inside of the windscreen. It’s not great. But another general impression is that the proximity key works a treat. Which is not often the case. 

The VZe Tribe Edition is happiest in the city and when you have a full battery. This is when it feels the most responsive with its power delivery. In the city, it’s quick and sure-footed. 

However, once that battery hits empty and you’re on the open road, the power is there but it stops feeling as fun.

The firm steering keeps it nimble and the driver's cockpit makes you feel well connected with what the car is doing but the ride comfort is like the design, not what you'd call plush.

The suspension is firm and you feel every bump in the road. Road and wind noise are also pretty high and in general, you feel a bit weary at the end of longer trips.

The visibility is good despite having narrow windows but a car seat or passenger in the back seat compromises the rear view vision. 

The Formentor shines in a tight car park with its 10.7m turning circle and compact proportions. The 360-degree view camera system is also most welcome but the quality of the feed is reflective of the grade level.

The Formentor has a maximum five-star ANCAP safety rating from testing done in 2021 and now features 10 airbags including side chest bags for the rear row and a front centre airbag as standard.

Other standard equipment includes blind-spot monitoring, driver monitoring, tyre-pressure monitoring, LED DRLs, front and rear fog lights, forward collision warning, rear cross-traffic alert, lane departure alert, lane keeping aid, side exit assist, adaptive cruise control, park assist, front and rear parking sensors and a 360-degree view camera system.

The Formentor has AEB with car, pedestrian and cyclist detection and is operational from 5.0-250km/h. The Formentor also has two ISOFIX child seat mounts and three top tethers but the rear seat is only wide enough for two child seats.

Chery has a solid aftersales offer that includes a seven-year/unlimited kilometre warranty, seven years of roadside assist as long as you service with a Chery dealer, and seven years of capped-price servicing.

The service schedule is every 10,000km or 12 months, whichever comes first. That’s off the pace of some rivals that don’t make you return to the dealership until 15,000km.

But the cost of the first five services is $280 a pop before increasing to $391 and then $295. That is well priced for the segment.

The Formentor has a five-year/unlimited km warranty but it’s becoming more common to see longer warranty periods being offered now.

You can pre-purchase a three- or five-year servicing program. The three-year program costs a flat $990, averaging $330 per service. The five-year option averages costs $1990, averaging $398 per service which is reasonable for the class.

Servicing intervals are good at every 12-months or 15,000km, whichever occurs first.