Lepas News

What does it say about us humans that the most popular car colours globally are black, white, grey and silver? Where are all the properly colourful car colours at?Well, we found them.This started out seeming like an easy task, but ended up with me visiting the website of every car brand selling their wares in Australia and checking the colour options for their models.There brands offer vibrant colours, the rest will offer the usual white, black and silver. Most of these brands will also offer red and blue, while others offer more modern hues such as dark green and light brown, or even lilac. Yep, lilac appears to be trending.I’ve excluded the exotic car brands such as Porsche, BMW, Mercedes-Benz and so on, from this little project. All of them offer bespoke colours or will even match the colour of your car to that of your sofa, but it’ll cost you. Which is out of reach for most people.Here are the top 5 brands that aren’t afraid of loud or vibrant colours.Ford offers a surprisingly good range of vibrant colours thanks to models such as the Mustang, which comes in Orange Fury, Molten Magenta and Adriatic Blue; and the Ranger Raptor that gets Code Orange and Blue Lightning.The upcoming Bronco Basecamp SUV is expected to come in Flare Orange and other adventurous hues, too.Lepas is another of the many brands owned by Chinese auto giant Chery. It'll launch its first vehicle, the L6 EV, in October.What separates Lepas’ from Chery’s other sub-brands such as Omoda and Jaecoo is the bold colours of the models in its overseas ranges, which will follow the L6 over the coming 12 months.Right now, the  L6 offered in a very striking purple and orange.Mini knows exactly what it’s doing, and it’s doing premium quirkiness. Yes Renault and Peugeot can do quirky and premium, but Mini has really mastered the statement car thing, and of course a big part of that is colour.The Mini Cooper comes in 11 colours and while Sunny Side Yellow makes me want to own a car, which looks like a rubber duckie, the Ocean Wave Green is so sublime, I want a tin of it to paint my front door.GWM is currently doing a lot of the heavy lifting when it comes to outrageous colours and I’m completely here for it.The Ora 5 small electric SUV launched in July and arrived in colours that would make most car company executives very uncomfortable. Flamingo Pink? Yes please. Cute Cyan? Absolutely. Emerald Green? Don’t mind if I do.Jeep’s the undisputed champion of colour offerings… and of vehicles with removable doors. Just knowing the Jeep Gladiator Rubicon ute comes in bright purple, and the hue is called Reign, somehow makes me sleep better at night. There’s also Mojito, which is a luminous monster green, a bright orange named Joose and a Gold named Goldilocks.Ah, thank you Jeep for keeping it irreverent and colourful.  

Aussies holding out for Lepas' budget electric SUV will have to wait a little longer.The Lepas L4 small electric SUV will be the Chery sub-brand’s second model to go on sale in Australia. Lepas had previously said the L4 would launch Down Under in 2026, but it now won’t be available until 2027.The L4 SUV was slated for launch in December 2026, following the Lepas L6 mid-size electric SUV that will arrive in showrooms before the end the year, but now the L4 has been pushed well back into 2027.Lepas has now said it has a view to launching the L4 in the first half of 2027, which could mean a delay of anywhere between one to six months.The L4’s compact size at 4420mm long sees it shaping up as a rival to the BYD Atto 3 Evo ($41,990) and Hyundai Kona Electric ($46,000). It will use the same battery and electric motor set-up as in the L6, but it has an improved 450km range due to reduced weight.The brand itself was originally projected to launch in mid-2026, but Lepas pushed it back to the late second half of 2026. It comes as fellow Chery sub-brand Omoda Jaecoo needed to delay the arrival of its Omoda 4 and Omoda 7 electric SUVs to the first half of 2027.Lepas has big plans in Australia.The brand will introduce plug-in hybrid variants of its L6 and L4 models in March and June 2027, respectively. It is unclear if the L4 plug-in lauch will be delayed now, too.The L8 PHEV will then arrive towards the end of 2027 as a large mid-size SUV rival to the 2026 CarsGuide Car of the Year Overall Winner, the Hyundai Santa Fe and Kia Sorento. There will also be a full-size L9 SUV following after that in 2027. In 2028, there will be fully-electric variants of the L8 and L9, followed by a budget-focused L2 hatchback.  

Chery’s Lepas brand is preparing a car that is unlike anything else.Chery Chief Operating Officer Lucas Harris said the incoming L2 “is on a different planet” to the current crop of small electric cars.Harris said the L2, which is due in Australia in 2028, is totally different to the BYD Atto 1 and Geely EX2 that are currently lighting up the sales charts.“This L2 is absolutely nothing like those cars, not even a little bit. Not even a distant relative,” said Harris.“It’s a hatchback, not a small SUV. It's not like a little micro BEV, it's more Corolla size.It is really handsome, very sporty. It is on a different planet to those other cars.”Details are scarce, with Harris saying it could be available as a hybrid or electric car.“At the moment it's a little bit being decided, and we will probably make a firm decision closer to the time."Just given how much the market changes at the moment, and who knows what events will happen over the next 12 months and how it might change the powertrain interests of consumers,” he said.Being a small hatchback, it could borrow tech from some of Chery's arsenal of smaller EVs such as the Jaecoo J5 EV or Chery E5.That means it could use a single electric motor to make 155kW and 288Nm and a circa 60kWh battery to deliver a driving range of more than 400km.A lot can change in two years, especially at brands that move as fast at Chery, so the ned product might be completely different.Harris said the design is about 99 per cent locked in, even though it hasn’t been revealed yet.Harris said it has a real sports-luxury look to it, which makes it unlike anything else in that segment.Harris would bring it here in a heartbeat if he could, but it’ll have to wait.“The most exciting for me, and I guess it's more of a personal taste and preference, is L2. I think the design really speaks to me, it has a real sports design look about it.“I think hatchback is super interesting. I don’t think there are a lot of compelling options in the market at the moment, particularly for BEV. So if I could click my fingers and launch the next one tomorrow it would be the L2 every day of the week.”Before the L2 arrives, Lepas will launch the L6 electric and plug-in hybrid mid-size SUV, L4 electric compact SUV, L8 and L9 plug-in hybrid large SUVs.

Lepas is hardly a household name, but that is all about to change.The Chinese brand is the latest Chery sub-brand to arrive in Australia, joining Chery, Omodoa, Jaecoo and followed by Freelander, iCaur and Jetour.Lepas is going to fish where the fish are.It will soon be offering Australian customers electric and plug-in hybrid options in all the most popular SUV segments where 65 per cent of all new cars are sold.Both electric and plug-in hybrid passenger car sales are skyrocketing, showing it is giving Aussies more of what they want.The company will launch the Lepas L6 mid-size electric SUV this October, but then it will get very busy for the brand.The L4 compact electric SUV will follow in December, with plug-in hybrid versions of the L6 and L4 landing in March and June, respectively.Then the slightly larger L8 plug-in hybrid SUV will arrive towards the end of 2027, as well as the big L9 plug-in hybrid SUV.Lepas isn’t slowing down in 2028, with electric versions of the L8 and L9 due to arrive and a hybrid and electric version of the L2 small hatchback.At its heart the L6 uses a 65kWh Lithium-Ferro-Phosphate (LFP) battery that delivers a climate electric driving range of up to 440km.The brand hasn’t confirmed maximum charging rate, but Lepas claims it can refill the battery from 30 to 80 per cent in about 22 minutes, which puts its DC charging max speed at 80kW.A single electric motor makes 160kW and 275Nm, which drives the front wheels.Lepas won’t conduct local suspension or handling tunes, instead it is relying on the European tune for Australia. This will likely mean a more engaging, but firmer and bumpier ride.It is packed with kit, including:8.88-inch LCD digital driver display13.2-inch LCD infotainment touchscreen Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto “Hello LEPAS” intelligent voice command Eight-speaker Sony premium sound system 50W wireless smartphone charging Heated and ventilated front seats Synthetic leather upholstery Panoramic sunroof with slide and tilt function and powered sunshadeColour selectable ambient lightingPowered tailgatePuddle lightsLepas SUVs will be packed with safety, and the company made a point of stating it had worked hard on its driver aids for them to work only when needed rather than sounding the alarm all the time.The L4 shares the same underpinnings as the L6, but with a smaller body.It is 4420mm long, 1817mm wide, 1629mm tall and has a wheelbase of 2700mm, which puts it firmly in the BYD Atto 3, Hyundai Kona Electric category.It will use the same battery and single electric motor set-up as the bigger L6, but range is boosted to 450km due to the reduced weight of the L4.

Buyers are about to get their first look at the next wave of EVs coming to Australia. The 2026 Everything Electric Sydney event will showcase many of the latest EVs headed Down Under, and will have a record number of new examples on show.Many affordable Chinese plug-in hybrid and fully-electric cars will be available to look at, as well as some of the most anticipated new cars on their way to Australia. There will be plenty of new models put on show for the first time by Chery. Chery’s European-styled sub-brand Lepas will have two of its new models about to hit Aussie showrooms on display. The Lepas L6 electric mid-size SUV will be the brand’s first car put on sale in Australia, due in October 2026. Lepas will also show off its smaller L4 electric SUV that is expected to arrive Down Under in 2027. Chery’s adventure-focused sub-brand iCaur will introduce its V25 rugged SUV for the first time.The V25 is scheduled to arrive in early 2027 with a range-extender hybrid set-up to rival the plug-in hybrid Denza B5. Chery and Omoda Jaecoo will debut new models at the show as well, with more details to be revealed closer to the event. Zeekr will unveil its hugely-anticipated 7GT electric wagon publicly for the first time. The 7GT takes aim at Europe’s elite luxury models the Audi S5, BMW 3 Series and Mercedes-Benz C-Class. Earmarked for a late 2026 or early 2027 arrival, the 7GT will be the popular Chinese brand’s fourth model on sale Down Under. Geely will continue its new model surge in Australia, with the introduction of two SUVs to its line-up. The brand has not revealed any more specific details about what the models are. They will join the mid-sized fully-electric EX5 and plug-in hybrid Starray EM-i that have both experienced a positive sales return so far. Geely is on the up in Australia, with its methodical approach to introducing models seeing it claim solid sales results.GWM is another brand to have a strong presence at Everything Electric. The brand’s new-generation Haval H7 mid-size SUV will be on show, scheduled to launch Down Under later in 2026. It is expected to be available in both five- and seven-seater configurations, giving it a wider family appeal. GWM will also have a more affordable PHEV ute on display. The GWM Cannon PHEV is pitched as a cheaper and smaller sibling to the Cannon Alpha PHEV, and could undercut the confidently-selling BYD Shark 6. The Cannon PHEV is expected to officially launch in Australia in October 2026. MG’s U9 electric ute will be on display for the first time in New South Wales at the show. The U9 is one of few electric utes targeting the Australian market, along with the low-volume Toyota HiLux BEV. MG’s luxury sub-brand IM will put its LS9 large SUV on display. The LS9 is a six-seater SUV that provides competition for the popular Zeekr 9X. It could launch in Australia in later 2026 or early 2027. Hyundai will present its Staria Load Electric van for the first time in Australia. The Staria Load EV will join diesel- and hybrid-powered variants of the car already on sale. It will battle in an increasingly competitive electric van segment against the Kia PV5 and affordable Chinese rivals, including the LDV eDeliver 7. Forthing will show off an electric people mover that will launch in 2027. Forthing currently only sells its Taikon 5 mid-size SUV in Australia, available as a range-extender hybrid or fully-electric. Cadillac’s new Lyriq V performance SUV will be on show. It is the brand’s first of its V-Series, boasting as the fastest Cadillac ever. It will join the standard Optiq, Vistiq and Lyriq SUVs Down Under in early 2027. Cadillac Lyriq-VChery and Omoda Jaecoo new models Forthing electric people moverTwo Geely SUVsGWM Haval H7 and Cannon PHEVHyundai Staria Load ElectriciCaur V25IM LS9Lepas L6 and L4MG U9 EVZeekr 7GT

A new affordable electric SUV is one step closer to Aussie buyers.Lepas has announced initial details for the L6 mid-size SUV that will land in showrooms in October 2026.The L6 will be Lepas’ first model put on sale, joining Chery, Jaecoo and Omoda under the Chery Group umbrella.These details come after a delayed Australian arrival for Lepas, with the brand originally supposed to launch in mid-2026.The L6 will be officially revealed at the Everything Electric event in Sydney on the 18th of September.It will rival other affordable mid-sizers, including the smaller BYD Atto 3 Evo and the strong-selling Geely EX5 that both start from $41,990, before on-road costs.The Lepas brand targets lifestyle-focused buyers, boasting a more Euro-influenced design, differing from Chery, Jaecoo and Omoda.The L6 rides on Lepas’ new LEX platform that can support electric and plug-in hybrid variants, with the L6 PHEV expected to land in Australia in 2027.The electric L6 will be powered by a single front-mounted electric motor, producing 160kW and 275Nm.The L6 will only launch in Australia in front-wheel drive, and there are no confirmed plans for an all-wheel drive variant to arrive in the future.It will be equipped with a 65kWh lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) battery, offering 440km of driving range, according to WLTP standards.It is capable of DC charging from 30 to 80 per cent in 22 minutes.The cabin’s interior features a 13.2-inch central touchscreen and an 8.88-inch digital driver display, along with an eight-speaker Sony sound system.It comes as standard with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, as well as a 50W wireless phone charger.Seats are wrapped in a synthetic leather, with the front ones heated and ventilated.There is a panoramic sunroof, with a slide and title function and a powered sunshade to compliment 19-inch alloy wheels.Lepas will reveal official pricing closer to the car’s launch.Buyers can expect it to be competitive with the $41,990 price tag of the Atto 3 and the EX5.The similarly-sized Jaecoo J7 PHEV starts from $43,990 (drive-away), so the L6 is likely to be more expensive, but still slip under the $50,000 mark.

Chinese carmakers like BYD, Chery and Geely must now play by new rules in export markets like Australia. The Chinese government is cracking down on alleged anti-competitive behaviour from its automakers overseas, according to reports. The European Union has imposed extensive tariffs on Chinese electric cars imported and sold in the region over the past few years.The EU made this move to stop suspected Chinese government subsidies from heavily undercutting local carmakers in showrooms.Export markets have become crucial for Chinese carmakers, with an oversaturated local market squeezing out profits. Chinese brands have relied on low prices to establish global market share, which has left some domestic automakers scrambling to survive.These rules are designed to ensure Chinese brands won't be pushed out of export markets by tariffs and other penalties from domestic governments.It could also make new markets like the United States more open to Chinese brands.The Chinese government wants to prevent price wars for its brands in overseas markets that harm its reputation. Carmakers must price cars based on production costs and market dynamics, not aggressive price cuts to drive out established competitorsThey should avoid steep or frequent price fluctuations, like heavy discounts that destabilise foreign marketsThey must avoid activities that trigger trade disputes or damage the image of Chinese brands They must not force overseas dealers to set a certain price for cars, instead creating clear price gradients for different model grades. They must follow host-nation regulations and implement anti-corruption safeguardsAll marketing and advertising must be truthful, with no misleading claims on vehicle specifications or performanceCarmakers must follow local information protection and privacy laws These new rules set out clear obligations for Chinese carmakers in their export markets, including Australia. It is unclear if the rules will have a material impact in Australia in the short term.Australia does not have a domestic car industry to protect, so it doesn't need to impose the same heavy tariffs as Europe. This is one reason there are now so many new automakers drawn to Australia.The new rules could potentially see prices of Chinese cars increase, with many models on sale some of the cheapest on the market currently, and extremely competitive with established brands.However recently Chery, one of the most aggressively priced Chinese brands in Australia, dismissed the idea that its pricing was based on outside support, with local boss Lucas Harris saying its current price structure is "sustainable" and that the brand wasn't engaging in activities like dumping cars into our market."I'd love to see some actual evidence" he said, "I'd love a subsidy, it would really help us out."

Brightly coloured SUVs for people who don’t like SUVs. That’s the sales pitch for the fourth (but by no means final) new brand from Chery Motors - Lepas.Due to open its first showrooms in October and start customer deliveries in November, Lepas will join Chery, Omoda and Jaecoo in the Chinese giant’s expanding Australian line-up.But why is Chery adding yet another brand? And how will Lepas, which will begin with the L6 electric SUV, fit in?We spoke with Chery Australia Chief Operating Officer Lucas Harris during a ride-along in the L6 to understand why another brand is necessary.“ So Jaecoo is that urban, off-road, stylish urban off-road vehicle, Omoda is a much more futuristic/technology/fashion orientated customer, ”Harris explained."Lepas is going to be much more bold and distinctive and so the way that we've tried to summarise that is that we want to create a brand that has SUVs for non-SUV people, and so it's bold and distinctive and individualistic. That's the idea rather than off-road or futuristic if that makes sense?”According to Harris, bolder colours, such as the purple our pre-production L6 was finished in, will actually play a major role in defining Lepas.“Colour is going to play a big part in that and making it stand out,” he said.“I think the other thing that's really important and very different about Lepas specifically is that it's a new energy only brand. So we'll only have battery electric and plug-in hybrid.” The L6 EV will be the first model to arrive in Australia, followed shortly after by the smaller L4 and then the larger L8 and L9 SUVs by early 2027, with a smaller, yet-to-revealed L2 the final confirmed model for the local range.Both the L6 and L4 will be available with fully-electric and plug-in hybrid powertrains, which is also under consideration for the other models.Pricing hasn’t been revealed, but Harris indicated the L6, which is similar in size to the Jaecoo J5, will start at below $50,000. That is another key difference between Chery’s multi-brand approach and the legacy brands, with Omoda, Jaecoo and Lepas likely to overlap on price across the range.Harris explained why this strategy works for Chery as a group.“ So I think one of the differences in our approach to the brands is that established brands' way of thinking, because there are established brands that have multi-brand arrangements, they typically stack them on top of each other,” he said.“This one's volume, this one's kind of premium mainstream, this one's luxury, this one's a supercar. And they segment them and separate them really just by price. And in some of those examples, you could find the first three segments or first three layers of their brands, and they segment them by price, but a normal consumer can't tell the difference between the $80,000 or $90,000 one and the $40,000 one. The fit and finish and the standard is very similar on those.“So our approach is less about pricing and much more about trying to create a unique brand image and a unique brand feeling. And, product is a big part of that and you can see quite a big difference in the design of our products across the brands. The idea is to try and have different brands that speak to different sub-sets of consumers.”Naturally that leads to the obvious question about the potential for Lepas to take costumes away from Chery, Omoda and Jaecoo. But Harris is ready to rebut that concern.“ So my short answer to that is no, I don't think there will be any,” he said.“And the reason why I say that is that we're very intentionally trying to target different customers, and those different customers consume their media and respond to different marketing messages than others do."That's not to say that all customers are going to fit squarely into the four boxes that we've created. There might be a little bit of overlap between the boxes, but the end goal is we reach a broader audience and reach more people.”One major difference between Lepas and the other three brands, beyond colours, is what’s underneath.The L6 rides on a different vehicle underpinnings than the others, which was developed at the company’s German design and engineering hub.Harris believes this will provide a meaningful difference between the Lepas range and what Chery, Omoda and Jaecoo can offer, with a more European-centric ride and handling program resulting in a different driving experience.But we’ll have to wait until we can jump from the passenger seat to the driver’s seat before we can pass judgement on that.

Australia’s newest car brand is edging towards an official launch. Lifestyle-focused Chery sub-brand Lepas will hit showrooms with its L6 electric mid-size SUV in November. The brand confirmed the car has now completed an extensive local testing and adaptation program.Engineers have put the L6 through thousands of kilometres of driving, including hot- and cold-weather testing.They also focused on fine-tuning the advanced driver assistance systems and software integration to identify Australian road markings, signage and traffic environments.The L6 will land Down Under on a delayed schedule, having been previously slated for a mid-year launch. Lepas has not revealed pricing for its first model, but expect it to be available from a competitive price-point.It is likely to sit above the very popular Jaecoo J5 electric small SUV that starts from $36,990, drive-away. The mid-size SUV segment is the most popular part of the Australian market, so the L6 will face fierce competition from its rivals. It will take on everything from budget offerings like the BYD Atto 3 and Geely EX5 to more premium-pitched alternatives such as the Zeekr 7X, depending on the variant. The L6 is powered by a single electric motor, producing 160kW and 275Nm.It has a 67kWh battery, with a total driving range of 450km, according to WLTP standards. Lepas will feature a different design to other Chery Group cars, and will appeal to a different buyer, according to the brand. The L6’s interior shows off a more rounded look, with curved and flowing elements as well as two-tone trim materials. It is expected to get the same 13.2-inch central touchscreen and 8.8-inch digital driver display as on the Jaecoo J5. There will be a plug-in hybrid version of the L6 coming to Aussie shores next year. Lepas is also planning to introduce an L4 small electric SUV and L8 large plug-in hybrid SUV in 2027.

New Chinese brand Lepas is gearing up to take on the Australian market in 2026, starting with an electric family SUV.Chery Group has officially announced its Lepas brand will launch in Australia with the L6 mid-size electric SUV in the fourth quarter of this year. The L6 is roughly the same size as the popular Toyota RAV4, but at this stage the L6 will only be available with a fully electric setup. There is a plug-in hybrid variant available overseas that will be made available in Australia in 2027.The L6 EV will contest the most popular segment of the Australian market in the mid-size SUV, facing off against the BYD Atto 3, Zeekr 7X and Geely EX5. It will also provide competition for conventionally popular petrol competitors like the Mazda CX-5.The L6 has a single electric motor, producing 160kW and 275Nm, while offering a driving range of 450km (WLTP) from its 67kWh battery. Lepas Australia said more details on the incoming L6 will be revealed closer to its local arrival in Q4. It comes after plans for Lepas in Australia were pushed back from mid-year to the end of this year. Lepas models have a different design language from other models in the Chery Group, with the brand targeting “lifestyle-focused” buyers.The brand said it will appeal to a different buyer than what Chery and Omoda Jaecoo does.This means the L6 is likely to be more expensive than the Jaecoo J5 EV small SUV that starts from $36,990 (drive-away). The L6 is expected to start from around the $40,000-plus mark when it goes on sale. While it offers exterior styling tweaks compared to other Chery Group models, it seems to share the same 13.2-inch central touchscreen and 8.8-inch digital driver display as found on the J5. The L6 will be followed by the L4 small electric SUV and the larger L8 plug-in hybrid, both due in 2027.Lepas is the latest in a growing number of sub-brands under the Chery Group in Australia.Omoda Jaecoo launched roughly a year ago, with Lepas to be followed by the Freelander brand in 2027. Off-road brand iCaur is also on the agenda for Australia.