Lepas News

Fresh from confirming Lepas (Q4 2026), iCaur (Q2 2027) and Freelander (est 2027) would be landing in Australia in the near future, Chery Auto has been forced to defend its position of rolling out yet more sub-brands.Chery's response? The one-size-fits-all approach historically used by legacy car-makers is outdated.Zhang Guibing, President of Chery International, addressed complaints of potential customer confusion by comparing his carmaker to the fashion industry that has also spun off niche brands tailored for different consumers."When you look ten years ago at Toyota or Volkswagen, with one model they could sell many units. But today it is very difficult for one model to have the same meaning," said Chery's president."Today the customer is different. Even if the clothes are very beautiful, when too many people buy them, customers say they don't like to buy ."We are trying to use sub-brands to appeal to different customer groups," claimed Guibing, shortly after Chery announced that both the Lepas and Freelander brands would be introduced to Australia, where more than 68 different carmakers already operate.When asked if any of the Chery brands risked cannibalising each other’s sales, Guibing accepted there might be some overlap with Chery, Omoda or Jaecoo buyers but it was limited at best, because of the way the sub-brands were positioned."I couldn't say completely that there is no conflict."The brands understand the customers, their habits, the language they use and really understand what think. In this way we use the sub-brands to cover different customers," the Chery boss claimed, suggesting that each offering was unique, while the alternative price structures also helped prevent any poaching of sales within the group.Last year in Australia, sales of Chinese-made cars reached unprecedented highs after more than 250,000 were sold for the first time, ahead of Thai-built cars and utes, but despite some rival brands making bold statements of sales growth, Chery's regional boss Lewis Lu said that wouldn't be the Chinese carmaker's approach Down Under."Volume is not the first consideration," claimed Lu."We need to find a way to look after our customers, for a long-term perspective to help us get the right reputation."

Chery's latest sub-brand bound for Australia has unwrapped its most affordable electric car yet following the unveil of the Lepas L4 EV at the Beijing motor show.Previewing a more affordable Chinese take on premium European all-electric small SUVs like the BMW iX1, Volvo EX30 and inbound Mercedes GLA, the new L4 EV will be joined by a plug-in hybrid version and sit below the larger Toyota RAV4-rivalling L6 and L8, when sales start this October.Closely related to the new-generation Chery Tiggo 5, which has already been unveiled for China, while the PHEV and combustion versions looks near identical, the new EV version comes with a more aerodynamic snout, fresh alloy wheels and minor tweaks to the interior.Measuring in at around 4415mm long, 1817mm wide and standing 1630mm tall, the L4 EV has a relatively large 2700mm wheelbase, which is around 70mm longer than the Chery E5, providing more space.The Lepas L4 is the first vehicle to be built on Chery's new LEX platform that is highly rigid and allows the firm to fit its latest advanced tech. The platform also benefits from input from the Chinese car giant's R&D hub, which is why it gets a sophisticated multi-link rear suspension.In the future, Chery says it wants to engineer its cars to both have a European-tuned suspension and, once that's achieved, it will go ahead and tailor the ride and handling for markets like Australia.Chery hopes the Lepas L4's more European look and higher-grade interiors will attract a more upmarket buyer, although when the brand arrives in the latter half of this year, we don't expect it to come with BMW or Benz-like pricing and for it to still undercut the X1 and GLA.From launch, we'll miss out on the base 80kW 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol, or a punchier 108kW 1.5 turbo petrol, and instead be offered the new all-electric version unveiled in Beijing.Driven by a single 150kW front e-motor that will draw power from a 67kWh battery, that will blend brisk performance and a range of around 450km.A second plug-in hybrid will be available from launch that produces 205kW and 350Nm of torque with an undisclosed battery but will come with up to 90km of EV range on the WLTP test cycle.Inside, the Lepas L4 like the rest of the range comes with an 8.0-inch instrument cluster and a larger 9.9-inch infotainment screen.Standard kit includes a 360-degree camera view, parking sensors, auto headlamps and half-leather seats.High-grade models offered in some markets add roof rails, keyless go, a premium sound system, six-way power adjustable heated and ventilated seats and adaptive cruise.While the strategy is to position the Lepas brand eventually as a real BMW or Benz rival, for now insiders suggest the new Euro-inspired models will command a five per cent price premium over Omoda and Jaecoo models to ensure it builds up enough volume to sustain the brand.It's thought Lepas Australia will release full details of the inbound Lepas L4 EV and the larger L6 and L8 closer to launch, including details of what trims and powertrains Australians will be offered.

Chery sub-brand has officially confirmed the arrival of its electrified Lepas L6 mid-size in the United Kingdom, but an Australian launch for the brand has just been pushed back. Lepas was originally scheduled to launch in Australia in the middle of this year, but we will now not see it until the end of this year.Projections for Lepas are now stated as being in the late second half of 2026.All Lepas models remain under consideration in Australia, but it is expected the L8 and the L6 will be the first models to launch, followed by the L4 compact SUV later down the track. The brand’s first car Down Under could be the L8, which is a larger mid-size SUV than the L6, and was the first model put on sale from Lepas in the UK. There is potential Lepas will follow the same route in Australia, with the L8 launching first this year, followed by the L6 in 2027. Hybrid versions of the L8 and the L6 pose a new threat to the soon-arriving revamped Toyota RAV4, along with hybrid variants of the Hyundai Tucson and the Kia Sorento. The L6 will launch in the UK towards the end of this year and will be offered in plug-in hybrid and fully-electric variants. There are limited other details available on Lepas’ latest overseas-bound model, but we know the PHEV version of the L6 will share the same set-up as the Jaecoo J7. The J7 is powered by a 1.5-litre turbo-petrol engine and electric motor, producing 152kW, along with a small 18.3kWh battery with an electric-only driving range of 90km, but these figures may differ on the L6. Lepas has revealed the total driving range of the PHEV L6 sits at the equivalent of more than 1100km.The power and torque stats for the EV variant of the L6 have not been released yet, but it has been confirmed it will have a 67kWh battery, which offers a driving range of more than 430km. DC fast charging from 30-80 per cent takes 20 minutes, but beyond this, more information on the L6 will be confirmed closer to its late 2026 launch. 

Brand loyalty is being increasingly eroded according to exclusive data in Gumtree Group’s The Next Gear: Australia in Motion report.In a survey of prospective buyers looking at hybrid and plug-in hybrid cars, just three per cent had an exact model in mind and only nine per cent had a preference on brand.The data shows 38 per cent of respondents said they were open to a variety of car options or were undecided, while 25 per cent knew the type of car they wanted, but had no preference on the brand. The data was generated from a survey of nearly 4400 people who visited Gumtree, CarsGuide and Autotrader in 2025.The erosion of brand loyalty has been in part brought on by the significant influx of new players entering the Australian market, with aggressive price-points.This trend has continued into 2026. Already this year, BYD’s luxury sub-brand Denza launched with its B5 and B8 SUVs, while several other brands, including Chery’s sub-brand Lepas are not too far away. These new players will add to the already-diverse list of manufacturers with cars on sale Down Under, with some of those shaking up the established pack. The likes of BYD and Chery, with extensive electric and hybrid options, have made huge strides in the Aussie market at the expense of brands such as Mitsubishi and Subaru.The latest sales data also revealed Chinese manufacturers overtook Japanese manufacturers Down Under for the first time in February 2026.It is a similar story when looking at the best-selling brands, with both Toyota and Mazda experiencing sizeable drops in sales month-to-month, while BYD, GWM and Chery all saw big increases. There are signs now that Chinese brands are beginning to snatch more sales from each other in Australia, with LDV and MG losing out to rivals.The same goes for established brand GWM, which for the first time was overtaken by BYD in the sales charts for Australia last month.Hybrid choices continue to grow in popularity, but petrol sales remain dominant for now. As brands continue to favour hybrid over petrol in their line-ups thanks in no small part to Australia's new vehicle efficiency standards (NVES), the electrified shift with accelerate. Many brands like Toyota have shifted entire product portfolios to hybrid-only, while others are expected to follow suit before long as regulations bite toward the end of the decade.

2025 was the year of the new car brand in Australia, though things don't appear to be slowing down anytime soon.

No need for a local tuning program, at least not like GWM, according to Chery.

Yet another Chery sub-brand will hit our shores in 2026 - here's why the boss says it's not for regular SUV people.

China’s new car brand onslaught continues.New brand Lepas has been confirmed to arrive in Australia in 2026.Lepas is part of Chery’s sprawling sub-brand portfolio, and promises to be more edgy than Chery’s existing brands, which include Chery, Jaecoo and Omoda.Chery Australia boss Lucas Harris said, “Australian SUV buyers have had practicality covered for years. What they’ve been missing is personality. Lepas delivers both.”Lepas was launched in China at the Shanghai motor show in May this year.Lepas displayed its first vehicle, the L8, which is earmarked for Australia in 2026.It is built on the same platform as several of Chery’s other SUVs, including the Chery Tiggo 8, Jaecoo J7 and Omoda 7.The L8 is a mid-size five-seat SUV, which measures 4688mm long, 1860mm and 1695mm tall with a 2800mm wheelbase.Lepas also has two smaller SUVs, the L4 and L6, which are the twins of the Chery Tiggo 4 and Tiggo 7.The L8 will have the same mechanical set-up as many of the other Chery vehicles, but will feature different styling and interior fit-out to help it stand out from its stablemates.Chery Australia hasn’t confirmed details yet, but it is in line for petrol and plug-in hybrid power. Full electric power is a strong possibility down the line, too.Chery’s plug-in hybrid set-up uses a 1.5-litre turbo-petrol four-cylinder engine paired with an electric motor to make a combined 255kW/525Nm. A circa-18kWh Lithium Ferro Phosphate (LFP) battery delivers a driving range of up to 93km on the more lenient NEDC test cycle.Chery will reveal full details of Lepas closer to the brand’s official launch in 2026.