Chery News

The rapid and seemingly unstoppable expansion of Chinese carmakers is something to behold.But is it too far-fetched to think all cars will be Chinese within the next 20 years? Or is it naive not to see it as a strong possibility?For a long time I’ve thought the emergence of new Chinese cars in Australia and globally was the natural progression of the car industry. New brands morph from alternative fledgling brands to mature and established ones. We saw this with Japanese brands such as Toyota, Mazda, Mitsubishi and Nissan which gained popularity in the 1960s and ’70s before becoming established go-to brands in the 1980s and ’90s as they fought homegrown heroes Ford and Holden for space in Australia's driveways. And it stayed that way until the first decade of the 2000s ticked over.Holden and Ford’s ranges and sales shrank giving way to the Koreans who filled the gap with Hyundai and Kia which have climbed high into the top 10 thanks to an excellent range of SUVs and EVs.They’re now marching towards the only brands that stand in their way - Mitsubishi, Ford, Mazda and Toyota - which, by the way, have about three EVs between them.And given another five years Kia and Hyundai may have been able to topple Toyota from number one. But it might be too late for that. The presence of a large and fast-growing force is creating major uncertainty for the established brands in the Australian market - the rise and rise of Chinese brands. At the end of 2024 there were 12 Chinese brands operating in Australia and this year we’re expecting at least another seven to arrive. To put that in perspective we currently have a total of 50 car brands in Australia and nine are Japanese. By the end of 2025 the Chinese tally could easily be 20 brands or 30 per cent of Australia's brand make up.Several Chinese brands have been in Australia for years and have already done the hard yards. It took MG a couple of attempts to find a foothold but it was the seventh best-selling brand in 2024, while GWM came in at 10th. LDV is further down but still sold more than 16,000 vehicles here last year.The newer Chinese arrivals show huge promise with most of them offering affordable electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids when the established brands have only a handful among them, usually at higher prices.BYD, Zeekr, Leapmotor, Geely, Deepal, XPeng, Smart, JAC, Aion, Chery and Jaecoo will spend 2025 launching a multitude of new vehicles here. BYD will be one to watch having sold more cars here last year than Mercedes-Benz and it will likely enter the top 10 best sellers next year. Geely, which is the ‘Volkswagen of China’ in terms of its size and how many brands it owns, is another to watch.Chinese car manufacturers' speed of production, the development of new platforms and technology, the low cost of batteries, availability of electronics and the breakthroughs being made in charging systems, plus the sheer amount of money and Chinese government support behind them make competition almost impossible for many other brands.It’s almost certain that some established brands will bow out of Australia, unable to compete with Chinese brands. It’s also feasible that within the next decade more than half the Australian market could be made up of Chinese brands. And surely some Chinese brands won’t be able to cut it here and leave, too.Who could survive? Well, time has shown that even the mighty like Holden have fallen if they don’t make the cars people want to buy. The sheer brute force of Chinese brands being able to offer what people want quickly and at a low price, and at an always improving tech level could be too difficult for many other brands to fight off.In an extreme scenario this could lead to a 100 per cent Chinese brand market within 15 years. Sounds far fetched? Well they’re a third of the way there already.  

Believe it or not, exactly two years have passed since the Chery Omoda 5 reestablished the Chinese challenger brand’s presence in the Australian new car market.It was already two years old by the time it hit our shores, so a design and packaging refresh is almost overdue.No surprise, then, that an updated version of the five-seat Omoda 5 small SUV has begun to appear in selected export markets.Changes are mostly cosmetic, including a glow-up for the previous broad, honeycomb-style grille to an equally bold ‘Matrix Grille’ treatment. At the same time the combination headlight pods on either side have been extended downwards and recessed more distinctly to form a more pronounced angular section defining the grille.The Omoda name also sits proudly at the top of the nose, under the leading edge of the bonnet in similar fashion to the current Omoda E5 pure-electric variant, while the slimline LED DRLs are unchanged. Redesigned 18-inch gloss black alloy wheels feature a five-way twin-spoke design.But the updates aren’t all cosmetic with the brand’s packaging boffins tweaking the boot space to increase volume (with rear seats upright) close to 20 per cent from 372 litres (360L quoted in Australia) to 442 litres.The interior is untouched with the sleek dual 10.25-inch screens in place across the dash and broad centre console including a ‘flying buttress’ design to provide a handy lower storage and connectivity space.Similarly, the (108kW /210Nm) 1.5-litre, four-cylinder, turbo-petrol engine driving the front wheels through a CVT auto is unchanged.    When contacted for an update on the revised Omoda 5’s arrival in the local market, Chery Australia told CarsGuide it "doesn't have any confirmed timing for this model as yet".

Chery's new Tiggo 4 Pro aces ANCAP test despite rivals recently falling short.

The cut-price Chery Tiggo 4 Pro small SUV has been hit with an urgent recall.The recall notice posted by the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts, said close to 2000 of the fast-selling SUVs were affected by an issue regarding its autonomous emergency braking tech.According to the notice a software issue is to blame.“Due to a software issue, the vehicle may not have the Autonomous Emergency Brake (AEB) sound alarm activated.”If the AEB sound doesn’t go off it could increase the risk of an accident causing injury or death to the vehicle occupants or other road users, according to the recall notice.Owners of affected vehicles are urged to contact their nearest Chery dealership to have the AEB software updated at no cost.The Tiggo 4 Pro was one of the top selling small SUVs in the country at the start of this year. More than a 1000 found a new home in January, outselling familiar favourites such as the Kia Seltos, Honda HR-V and Subaru Cross Trek.A big part of this sales bonanza is due to the Tiggo 4 Pro’s low, low starting price of $23,990 drive-away. This makes it one of the cheapest new cars on sale in Australia.The Tiggo 4 Pros without proper working AEB fall foul of Australian Design Rule 98/01.A similar design rule 98/00, which was recently updated has caused the end of sale of several vehicles in Australia.This rule change meant new vehicles had to have advanced auto emergency braking, this caused the end of the current Mitsubishi ASX, Pajero Sport and Eclipse Cross as well as several Suzuki models.

Chery's Jetour range of GWM-Tank-rivalling SUVs expands, but will it ever come to Australia?

Price used to be the biggest hurdle to electric car adoption, but not anymore.Research conducted by the Electric Vehicle Council in 2022 suggested half of new car buyers were considering switching to electric, but the number one concern was the upfront cost.One of the best value offerings at the time was the Tesla Model 3, which started from a whopping $64,300. Consumers were expected to pay $15,000 to $20,000 more for an EV compared to an equivalent petrol model.A lot has changed.The electric car market has expanded significantly and costs, both from existing players and those new-to-market, have come down significantly.The upgraded Tesla Model 3, which now features more driving range and features, starts from $54,900, and you can hop into a fully electric car from as low as $29,990 (for the BYD Dolphin Essential).Not only have costs come down, but the amount of choice has exploded. The just-launched Leapmotor C10 is a mid-size family SUV, which starts from $45,888 before on-roads (or just $47,500 as part of an initial drive-away offer). It’s a price-tag equivalent to a mid-spec Toyota RAV4 — Australia’s most in-demand hybrid SUV — and soon it will have to compete with not only the Xpeng G6 but the Geely EX5.We may have expected electric car price parity to arrive with some fanfare, but it has almost arrived with barely a whimper.Top-selling models, including the Tesla Model Y, still seem to be a price-step above combustion options. There’s a vibrant price-war amongst the increasing number of Chinese automakers available and in an increasing number of segments, but it seems like electric cars have lost their lustre a bit amongst new car buyers.As a result, the latest data from the industry has those considering purchasing an EV dropping significantly.It’s not all over for electric cars as some doom and gloom headlines proclaim, often citing softening (but still growing) sales in Australia. There are also much more dire figures out of Europe causing some of the biggest manufacturers to issue embarrassing about-faces on once-bold all-electric commitments, as customers reject new products in droves.So why is this happening? Do Australian new car buyers even want an EV anymore, and are we set to follow in the footsteps of other places that have seen an EV sales slow-down?The issue has several factors, all of them economic rather than ideological, despite what the comments section would have you believe.Consumer confidence in the new car market has declined significantly with high interest rates. The January 2025 sales data from the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) showed a continued decline in EV sales following a soft second half of 2024, but also a rapid increase in registrations at the lowest end of the market. Significant winners so far this year include the Kia Picanto, Chery Tiggo 4, MG3, and outgoing Mitsubishi ASX, all budget petrol-powered offerings, and a far cry from the usual mid- or high-spec SUVs which have dominated sales charts for some time.Another significant factor is the removal of EV incentives from most states.The amount of competition in the Australian market has had a knock-on effect of slaughtering the resale value of existing EVs. Imagine having bought a pre-upgrade Model 3 in 2022, only to have its value halve in three years because the new one is not only better, but it’s nearly $10,000 more affordable, too.Then there’s the consideration of why buy a two- or three-year-old, relatively high kilometre Tesla, when you could have a brand-new BYD Seal with a box-fresh warranty from $46,990. Buyers have begun to question whether now is the right time for a purely electric vehicle, when they could simply wait for prices to stabilise, buying or holding on to a combustion car in the meantime.Fuel prices are hovering around $2 a litre and Australia’s New Vehicle Efficiency Standards (NVES) will begin to have a significant impact on the model mix available. Hybrids appear to be the biggest beneficiaries. Sales are up a whopping 76 per cent year-on-year, driven by the return of the supply of popular Toyota models after a long period of parts shortages, and an explosion of new options available from Hyundai, Kia, GWM, Honda, and Nissan.This slowdown in EV consideration is a natural part of the process and what has to happen to bring the technology to the mainstream as automakers scramble to have the best, most affordable vehicles available.It’s the most keen early-adopters of electric vehicles who will feel the brunt of this. Their vehicles have been hit by the biggest declines in value, and they’ve had to put up with an immature charging network and even some additional expenses, like higher insurance costs.Still, the Australian market continues to evolve. While consumers seem to have turned more to hybrids, EV sales still grew in Australia, up 4.7 per cent over the course of 2024. They accounted for 91,292 units or 7.4 per cent the market and more options particularly at the same price of popular hybrids should continue to convert buyers.Australia has plenty of growth in the EV sector to go. Australia has the highest uptake of household solar in the world, which would, in turn, mean that Australian households with the ability to charge in their garage will have some of the lowest per-km cost to recharge their electric vehicles.The biggest factor in the long-run though will be the NVES. Finally catapulting Australia into the world of 21st century emissions policy, this policy will really start to bite in the second half of the decade. Almost every mainstream automaker who has spoken to CarsGuide on the topic has earmarked serious changes to their line-up, with a high percentage of pure electric vehicles necessary for them to avoid hefty fines from the government.It’s also worth noting that at 7.4 per cent adoption, while Australia has been a little slow on the uptake, it’s hardly hit the saturation point which many European jurisdictions and some Chinese cities have reached, which is a big source of their respective market slow-downs.What’s the take-away? While price-parity EVs have quietly arrived in Australia with minimal fanfare, the path for growth here seems more sustainable than the great swings and misses we’ve seen overseas.Periods of explosive growth and unsustainable subsidies are behind us, and a slowly-but-surely set of policies in place here seems to be adding incrementally to Australia’s electric fleets rather than moving from huge sales to gutting losses for automakers, and in the long term, this should add confidence for EV buyers rather than doubt.

The Chery Tiggo 7 Pro SUV is now Australia's cheapest mid-sized SUV as the Chinese brand transitions from a three- to a two-variant line-up, cutting the entry price by $7000. Priced at just $29,990, drive-away, a new SE variant will replace the previous Urban ($36,990) entry grade, while an additional SE+ variant will now top the range at $33,990, drive-away, down $12,000 from the previous top-spec Ultimate AWD ($45,990). The former mid-spec Elite ($41,990) is gone altogether.The updated line-up makes it $2010 less than the KGM Ssangyong Korando, which previously held the title of Australia's cheapest mid-size SUV at $32,000, drive-away.It is also now about $4000 cheaper than key rivals such as the MG HS and Haval H6, which start at $33,990 and $33,900 (both drive-away), respectively.The Toyota RAV4 and the Mitsubishi Outlander are at least $10,000 more, with either model starting at $39,760 and $37,760, both at before on-road costs.Unlike its aforementioned rivals, however, the Tiggo 7 Pro remains without a hybrid or plug-in hybrid offering.Despite the substantial price cut, the SE will maintain important features such as the dual-screen 12.3-inch multimedia and digital driver’s display with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity.An eight-speaker Sony speaker system, 18-inch alloy wheels, a full-sized spare wheel and 16 drive-assist safety systems will remain as well.The SE+ adds a panoramic sunroof, a surround-view camera, a cabin air-filtration system, a power tailgate and heated front seats.As before, power will be sourced from a 1.6-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine that outputs 137kW/275Nm to the front wheels through a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission.Claimed fuel economy is unchanged at 7.0-litres/100km, which is considerably higher than than the entry RAV4 GX hybrid at a claimed 4.8-litres/100km, but 0.5-litres less than the entry-level, petrol-powered Outlander ES.The Tiggo 7 Pro comes with a five-star ANCAP safety rating, a seven-year unlimited km warranty, seven years of capped price servicing and up to seven years of roadside assistance.It is available to order from dealerships right now.

Chery’s new rugged four-wheel drive brand is taking off.

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.“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.

Despite a backwards step in 2024, Chinese cars are on-track to bounce back in 2025 as a flood of new brands enter the market.While brands like BYD, MG, GWM and Chery have already established themselves, a new wave is on the way to challenge Japan as Australia’s biggest car importer.By the end of 2024 there were 12 Chinese brands officially in the Australian market and at least two more have announced plans for entry into our market in 2025 with more expected to follow. Japan, by contrast, only has nine brands in our local market but still comfortably leads the overall production with nearly 379,000 vehicles from Japan sold here in 2024.That compares to 272,139 from Thailand and 176,159 from China. Those figures don’t account for a brand’s national base but rather simply where they are built, so it includes certain Tesla, Volvo and other models from different brands.But while Japan and Thailand still lead the way as the most popular countries for new-car production, China appears on-course to overtake them in the not-too-distant future at the current rate.With the likes of Zeekr, Leapmotor, Deepal, XPeng, Geely, Smart, JAC, GAC/Aion, Jaecoo and more set to grow in 2025, plus expanded product lines from BYD, MG, GWM and Chery, the approximate 96,000 sales difference between China and Thailand could shrink dramatically this year.The industry is well aware of the rapid growth of the Chinese car industry in Australia, with Toyota Australia’s Head of Sales, Marketing and Franchise Operations, Sean Hanley, commenting this week: “The Australian new-car market has always been one of the most competitive in the world, and 2025 will be no different. We expect to see more new brands and models, which means more choice and even stronger competition, which, in the end, is great for the consumer.“By all reports, there could be a dozen new Chinese car companies arriving in Australia by the end of next year. In the past five years, they have taken more than 13 percentage points of market share from established brands.”Hanley was quick to point out that while these new brands have taken significant market share, Toyota remains the clear leader.However, that growth must come from somewhere and that will force brands across the market to react to this new array of rivals. This is likely to result in increased competition for Australian buyers at a time when cost-of-living pressures are expected to cool the market after record sales in 2024.