GWM Ora 5 vs Geely Starray Em-I

What's the difference?

While the Ora 5 still has a relatively divisive design that will turn off a chunk of those looking for a small electric SUV, the improvements made when compared to the hatch launched years ago make it worth a second look.

The interior is much more user-friendly, there are more features and a more sensible variant line-up, and the ride and handling localisation means you might actually want to drive it out of the city on occasion.

Regardless, the Ora 5 needs to be a lot more competitive than the Ora hatch was, because the market is so much busier with affordable rivals now. Fortunately, the value proposition is indeed much better than before, especially given the Ultra is only $3000 more than the Lux.

While it has a few quirks and flaws, there is a lot to like about the Starray. For starters, the value it offers at its price point is excellent and will really put pressure on its competition. The design may lack flair, but it does have a roomy cabin with a good multimedia system, so it’s family friendly and easy to live with.

Yes, it could do with some refinement of its on-road manners and driver assistance features, but for the value it offers and the frugal powertrain, it will no doubt find plenty of buyers who enjoy its substance and not just its memorable name.

Note: CarsGuide attended this event as a guest of the manufacturer, with meals and accomodation provided.

GWM is being pretty bold in calling the Ora 5’s design ‘timeless’ in its press materials.

The brand’s head designer says the Ora 5 isn’t shouting for attention, but I’m going to disagree. While I don’t think being attention-grabbing is a bad thing, the retro-leaning vibe the Ora hatch gave off a few years ago remains strong here on the 5 SUV.

We’re told much of it was inspired by nature - the wheels inspired by clovers, the lights by water drops, the body by smooth pebbles and the tail-lights by a sunrise - but it still looks a little alien from a couple of angles, mostly the rear.

The proportions are however better than the hatch, and from the side it gets away with looking a little like an attempt at a Porsche Cayenne.

The big thing you have to give GWM props for is including three properly vibrant colours (Cute Cyan, Flamingo Pink and Emerald Green) in the range, even though anything but Pepper White is a $595 option. Mystic Grey and matt Crystal Black complete the six options.

Inside, the Ora 5’s unique design feels distant, as the interior looks much like the vast majority of small Chinese SUVs. A focus on the large main touchscreen, a layout of phone holder, cupholders and the armrest in a minimalist central console, and the almost-lack of buttons are all hallmarks of the genre.

Only small touches like apparently Mini-inspired climate controls or the cat-shaped magnet (the Ora was called Funky Cat in China) holding the vanity mirror cover up really give it away as an Ora, aside from the exclamation mark logo on the steering wheel.

Geely is very proud of the Starray, of course, and the company gave a very detailed presentation on the thought behind the design - involving aerodynamics, Chinese ceramics and a video that appeared to show a Geely spaceship releasing the Starray into a barren landscape.

But to be perfectly honest, I wouldn’t know how to describe it to you. The Starrary is a very generic looking car to my eyes, at least. Of course it’s subjective, and there is a clear visual connection between the Starray and the EX5, which is nice. But it just doesn’t have any real visual impact that makes it stand out.

It’s the automotive equivalent of a blank expression. Maybe it’s because the brand is so new, but if you removed the badges, there’s nothing about the Starray that screams ‘I’m a Geely’, and it could be a car from any number of brands.

By comparison, there is a distinctive visual style to Geely’s rivals, namely BYD, both externally and internally, to give it character. Obviously the same is very much true for bigger brands like Hyundai, Kia and even Toyota.

Perhaps with more time Geely will make more of a design impact on our market, but for now it’s hard to say it really has any standout design elements.

The Ora 5 takes a noticeable step up over the previous Ora hatchback in terms of interior ergonomics, bringing it up to a decent standard.

The seats are more easily adjustable to find a decent driving position, the tech is a lot easier to navigate, and there are a couple of inclusions that put the Ora 5 a nose ahead of rivals.

As mentioned, the layout is fairly unimaginative in terms of design, but it does work practically in that there aren’t many elements of the interior to get in the way.

More buttons would of course be welcome, as using the touchscreen while on the move can be particularly fiddly. The upside is the software itself is more sensible in terms of menus, it just has small buttons. There is, mercifully, an always-on shortcut bar even while phone mirroring.

Android users will also be pleased to know there’s wireless Android Auto from launch in the Ora 5, rather than needing to wait for an update as some did when the Ora hatch launched.

USB-C ports and small storage slots are present front and rear, though single-zone climate means everyone needs to agree on one temperature (or be subjected to the driver’s decision).

There’s also only one vent in the rear, though the space itself is decently roomy, with the sunroof in the Ultra providing a nice amount of light. A central fold-down armrest would, however, be welcome.

Behind the rear seat is a 362L boot and underneath it lies an extremely welcome inclusion: a space-saver spare tyre.

GWM said it added the spare locally due to the heavy influence of the Australian market and the regular disappointment when only a repair kit is included.

The one area the designers do deserve a lot of credit for is the roomy cabin. Too often modern electric or hybrid SUVs compromise interior space in the name of aerodynamics, but the Starray has generous interior space.

The front seats are comfortable and roomy, but more impressive are the rear seats. They not only offer good kneeroom and head clearance, but the seats themselves are comfortable and supportive. 

As for cargo space, the boot has 428 litre of space, which is on par with BYD Sealion 6, but smaller than the 507 litres offered by the MG HS. Space can expand to 2065 litres with the second row dropped to load larger items.

Despite the modest boot capacity, the Starray doesn’t come with a full-size spare wheel, or even a spacesaver, and instead you have to make do with a tyre repair kit.

In terms of the multimedia system, there’s a huge 15.4-inch display that takes up a lot of space, and does look like someone just glued a big iPad to the dashboard. Then there’s the increasingly common 10.2-inch rectangular digital instrument display ahead of the steering wheel.

While this setup is highly functional, it does add to the generic design mentioned earlier. It also lacks any meaningful physical buttons, with the key audio and air-con functions all housed in the giant centre screen.

Standard on both Starray grades is Geely’s Connected Services, which includes a voice assistant, 4G connectivity, live traffic updates for the in-built sat-nav, over-the-air updates, as well as online streaming, remote vehicle functions and access to Geely’s own app store.

The over-the-air updates are important, because it will allow the company to change the car over time. For example, at launch it includes wireless Apple CarPlay, but Android Auto won’t be wireless until an over-the-air update early in 2026.

The Inspire features a premium sound system from Geely’s own Flyme brand, and it’s impressive. The 16-speaker, 1000W system is powerful and offers good clarity, so it’s worth the extra spend on the higher grade on its own.

As a mid-size SUV the Starray EM-i (which stands for E-Motive Intelligence) finds itself up against a wide variety of mid-size SUVs, including the popular Toyota RAV4, Kia Sportage and Hyundai Tucson hybrids, as well as the BYD Sealion 6, Chery Tiggo 7 and MG HS super hybrids.

To make sure the Starray stands out for more than just its name, Geely is hitting the market with a very sharp value proportion.

The Starray starts from just $37,490 (plus on-road costs), undercutting the BYD and MG, but not the Chery, which offers a drive-away price of $39,990. However, that’s for Geely's entry-level Complete variant, with the higher-grade Inspire starting at $39,990 plus on-road costs, to arguably make an even better value argument.

Standard equipment for the Complete includes 18-inch alloy wheels, LED headlights and tail-lights, keyless entry and ignition, power adjustable front seats with heating and an infotainment system run through a 15.4-inch display.

While the Inspire adds 19-inch alloys, a panoramic sunroof, power tailgate, ambient interior lighting and a 16-speaker, 1000-watt premium sound system to really ram home Geely’s value push.

The Ora 5 uses a fairly tried and true propulsion method for budget-friendly EVs, that being a single motor mounted at the front axle.

This one has 150kW and 260Nm, the same for both variants, and feels just lively enough to avoid being branded sluggish.

There is no mechanical difference between the Starray Complete and Inspire. Geely has developed a new naturally aspirated 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine that pairs with an electric motor for a combined output of 193kW.

Power is sent to the front wheels only, with no all-wheel drive option. 

There are three driving modes - Pure, Hybrid and Power - with the former able to lock the car into EV-only driving, while the latter is able to combine the electric and petrol engine for maximum performance.

Even so, Geely’s 0-100km/h claim is only a modest 8.0 seconds and has a limited top speed of 170km/h, which is fine for Australian conditions.

An hour and a half drive through Melbourne into the Yarra valley saw the Ora 5 use 16.1kWh/100km, according to the trip computer.

At that rate, the claimed 435km range from the Ora 5’s 58.3kWh battery feels a little optimistic, but we did plenty of driving out of the city’s EV-range-friendly confines.

DC fast-charging is maxed at 120kW, and should take about 30 minutes from 10 to 80 per cent.

The electric motor is powered by an 18.4kWh lithium-iron phosphate battery, which provides a claimed EV-only range of 83km, which is good for a PHEV but no longer class-leading, with some now pushing into triple digits.

Thanks to the hybrid assistance, fuel consumption is rated at just 2.4L/100km, on the combined cycle. It’s worth noting that both of those figures are to the WLTP test cycle, not the more generous Chinese testing protocol.

With a 51-litre fuel tank and the 83km EV mileage, Geely claims a total combined driving range of 943km. However, as always, we must point out that it is not really possible to achieve that 2.4L claim once the battery is depleted.

One handy feature of these plug-in hybrids with the bigger batteries is the vehicle-to-load or V2L functionality, which allows you to draw power from the battery to power small electrical devices, such as laptops or camping equipment.

First impressions on an unfortunately wet day from behind the Ora 5’s wheel are that it does feel much improved compared to the Ora hatch.

The biggest change under the skin appears to be the result of local tuning, undertaken by former Holden engineer Rob Trubiani.

The Ora 5 handles small bumps and rough roads better than the hatch did, while settling over bigger imperfections relatively quickly. 

Even with questionable tyres on wet roads, the Ora 5 remained steady under quick, sharp cornering and wouldn’t understeer as the hatch did.

While it’s not brimming with dynamic prowess, the Ora 5 now feels capable of taking on Australian roads without frustrating its driver.

The steering feel, response and feedback aren’t anything to write home about, but do at least result in accurate cornering, and there is the option of adjusting the steering weight.

The Ora 5’s power delivery feels about right for its class and, even though it won’t rocket past anyone during an overtake, it’s more than enough for the city driving it’ll regularly be doing.

The advanced driver assist safety systems (ADAS), too, are a lot better programmed than expected. In highway driving and along twisting semi-rural roads, the Ora 5’s ADAS systems were all left on without much unnecessary intervention.

The good news is Geely gave the Starray a different ride and handling tune to what it offers in the Chinese market. The bad news is it’s the European tune.

Australian and European roads couldn’t be more different, with ours offering more potholes, bumps, dips, cracks and other imperfections that require more compliance than what’s needed for Europe’s typically smoother, less wrinkled roadways.

It means the Starray feels too firm for our back roads, but equally lacks body control at times too, so it’s not the most enjoyable SUV to drive on a winding country road. Around town the ride can get busy at times, but overall it feels better at lower speeds.

Just as importantly, the powertrain does a nice job in both conditions. It offers reasonable performance for this type of SUV, feeling slightly off the mark and effortlessly swapping between the electric motor and petrol engine.

We drove in EV mode initially and noticed the battery drained significantly in a short period, raising doubts about its ability to go 83km. However, as we switched to hybrid mode, we’ll have to reserve judgement and give Geely the benefit of the doubt when it comes to EV range.

Long story short, if Geely is serious about winning over Australian buyers, investing in local ride and handling tuning would help elevate the Starrary from just another imported SUV to something more memorable.

Geely has tried to tick all the important boxes on the safety front. In terms of passive protection the Starray has seven airbags, crucially including a centre airbag between the front occupants, which is considered necessary to achieve a five-star ANCAP score in an SUV this size.

The Starray EM-i does not currently have an ANCAP rating, however the EX5, with which it shares a platform, carries a maximum five-star rating.

As for the increasingly important active safety, there’s a comprehensive list, including autonomous emergency braking (AEB), adaptive cruise control, rear cross-traffic alert, lane keeping assist and a host of other systems reduced to a series of complicated acronyms.

However, like so many new models, while it ticks the boxes, the real-world application of these technologies is still a work-in-progress.

In particular the 'Intelligent Cruise Control' is poorly calibrated and brakes heavily for any sort of bend in the road, which is awkward and bordering on dangerous. On the freeway the Starray repeatedly slowed dramatically on gentle curves, at times wiping off more than 20km/h, leaving us feeling exposed to a potential collision from behind.

The driver attention system is another that needs more work. It’s bordering on hyperactive, sometimes activating when all you do is glance across to the central screen for a second or two. That’s not only irritating but leads you to turn off the system, thereby rendering it redundant.

In its defence, Geely is hardly alone in this department safety authorities - for now - continue to ignore real-world usage, but it’s still something the brand must address.

GWM’s seven-year unlimited kilometre warranty is on the better side of average for mainstream brands, with the battery getting eight years, also unlimited.

But it’s the seven years of roadside and seven years capped-price servicing that make it a strong offering, especially when each service is just $195. That’s every 12 months or 15,000km.

As Geely and many other new brands are learning, it’s easy to launch a new model into Australia, but it’s a whole different story to deal with the aftersales care - servicing, warranty, etc.

“We want to ensure every day with Geely is a good day,” said Li Lei, CEO of Geely Australia.

To that end, Geely has partnered with some of Australia’s biggest dealer groups to quickly expand to 47 dealers in less than 12 months. At the same time it has built two Parts Distribution Centres in Australia and has 135 service venues, to ensure if anything does go wrong with an owner’s car it can be fixed and returned as soon as possible.

Geely is offering a seven-year/unlimited kilometre warranty for the Starray EM-i, along with an eight-year warranty of the battery pack. 

Servicing is annually or every 15,000km, whichever comes first, and with Geely’s Hybrid Assured Service Pricing you will pay $1932 over the first five years.

If you take up that offer and service with Geely, the company will also include seven years of roadside assistance too.