I drove the lulxury Chinese SUV that costs £70k less than a Range Rover – 3 things I loved

Ask anyone to name a and most will now be aware of a few. , though founded in Britain, now , whilst the likes of , GWM Ora, and Nios are also starting to appear on UK roads.

However, one company that precious few Brits are aware of is one of China’s biggest – . Established in 1997, which is considered old by standards, the company began by making a licenced version of the SEAT Toledo but currently offers a significant range of models sold by sub-brands such as and .

These are the first of to go on sale here in the UK and, on face value, have the highest hopes. Already, the company has 71 dealerships across the country (with plans to have 130 by the end of the year), a sponsorship deal with the European Rugby Champions Cup, and offers a seven-year, 100,000-mile warranty on all models as standard.

However, arguably the biggest draw to Jaecoo’s first model, the 7 , is value for money. Speaking to journalists, Victor Zhang, UK Director of Omoda and Jaecoo, highlighted that the company wants to offer a for the price of a .

But can a £29,435 SUV really offer the same level of refinement as a £102,320 luxury car? To find out, I tried two versions of this particularly ambitious model.

Styling:

There’s no doubt that the Jaecoo 7 has an air of Range Rover in its styling. The bonnet is particularly flat, the roofline tapers toward the rear end, and the vertical rear lights are partially located on the tailgate – just like the latest Range Rover Sport.

However, there are quite a few touches that set the two models apart. The Jaecoo has an especially large grille with chrome-like vertical slats, which makes it look more like an American Lincoln or Chrysler. The alloy wheels are also particularly distinct and, according to the company, are particularly aerodynamic to boost fuel economy.

On the whole, I would argue that the Jaecoo 7 certainly looks the part. However, one element I am not keen on is the quad headlights. In contrast to the sleek, LED-powered matrix daytime running lights, the large square headlights are fitted into bulky fake air vents at the sides of the bumper in a way that makes the front end look a little too busy.

Interior:

Drivers who are sceptical about low-cost Chinese cars will be in for a pleasant surprise the first time they get into the Jaecoo 7. As more Western manufacturers cut costs by using cheap, hard plastics, almost all materials occupants would typically interact with were carefully considered.

Once again, the general design of the interior feels a lot like a Range Rover Sport, with the three-spoke steering wheel, a shelf-like centre console with a storage tray underneath, and plenty of chrome and customisable light bars.

A less tasteful part of the Jaecoo 7’s interior is the interior door handles. Whilst they certainly feel sturdy enough, they feature exposed screws which, whilst trying to give it a rugged appearance, do feel a little tacky. Fortunately, these handles are only used on the petrol-powered version, with the SHS hybrid featuring much cleaner door panels.

Practicality:

While the typical UK car buyer looks for good fuel economy and technology, Chinese drivers focus on buying a model with plenty of passenger space. As a result, the Jaecoo 7 is a particularly spacious model.

Sitting in the back, I found that there was plenty of space without having to ask the front passenger to slide their seat forward, and can imagine there would be enough shoulder room for three, even on longer trips.

However, the Jaecoo falls short of boot space. Compared to most rivals, the boot floor is particularly high, meaning only 412 litres are offered. In comparison, the Hyundai Tucson gives buyers 620 litres, whereas the Citroen C5 Aircross can offer up to 720 litres with all five seats in place.

Features:

In addition to feeling particularly upmarket for the money, the Jaecoo 7 offers an impressive list of standard goodies. The entry-level Deluxe version comes with features including 19-inch alloy wheels, a panoramic sunroof, heated front seats in synthetic leather, and a 10.25-inch touchscreen with smartphone connectivity and live GPS.

The Luxury version, which is around £3,000 extra, adds a Head-Up Display (HUD), heated steering wheel, ventilated front seats that adjust to the driver’s requirements when the door is opened, a Sony eight-speaker sound system, and a massive 14.8-inch touchscreen.

The layout of the touchscreen is very iPad-like, with drivers selecting different apps rather than scrolling through menus. Generally, I found it to be rather user-friendly, though the DAB radio struggled to pull in stations when travelling through Windsor.

Performance:

From launch, the Jaecoo 7 will be available with a 1.6-litre turbo-petrol engine, with either front-wheel drive or all-wheel drive, or as an SHS ‘Super Hybrid’, which uses a 1.5 petrol and an 18.3kWh battery.

The standard petrol engine isn’t the most powerful, but is still able to take the Jaecoo from 0-62mph in 10.3 seconds (11.8 for the all-wheel drive) and a top speed of 112mph. However, fuel economy is rather poor, with the all-wheel drive averaging just 35.3mpg on the WLTP test cycle.

The ‘Super Hybrid’ is certainly the more interesting powertrain. In addition to the 0-62mph sprint time of 8.5 seconds and the significantly better fuel economy of over 60mpg, Jaecoo claim that the battery will never run out of charge. Instead, when the charge is low, it begins charging the battery with a generator – turning it into a self-charging hybrid instead.

Driving:

Despite its large proportions, the Jaecoo 7 is a surprisingly manoeuvrable car, particularly when negotiating narrow town and village streets. Aided by the particularly clear 540-degree parking camera, the Jaecoo took tight corners surrounded by obstacles such as parked cars and bollards in its stride.

Unfortunately, the Jaecoo 7 still has its fair share of negative points, with the ride quality being significantly firmer than rivals, particularly at lower speeds. Travelling over potholes tended to result in a fair jolt throughout the cabin.

I also found that the petrol-powered version had a small delay between pressing the accelerator pedal and the engine adjusting accordingly. This is not a particular problem but it can cause some uncertainty and over-revving when moving off at high speed. Fortunately, the SHS variant does not seem to have this issue, helped by its single-speed transmission system.

Both the petrol and SHS versions certainly offer enough power for most driving conditions, especially with sport mode switched on. That said, the Jaecoo feels most at home cruising about town.

Conclusion:

Drivers who are hoping the Jaecoo 7 is as good as a Range Rover will be bitterly disappointed. That said, I would argue that a Range Rover is not £70,000 better. The Jaecoo 7 might have a rough ride and sluggish transmission, but it’s still pleasant to drive, has plenty of room for families, and plenty of equipment and standard.

The 7’s particularly good value for money will undoubtedly be the main reason why drivers turn to Jaecoo. The only models that come near the entry level version on price are the Dacia Bigster (which starts at £24,995), MG HS (also at £24,995), and the Citroen C5 Aircross (£27,415) – none of which quite offer the same level of standard equipment.

In the meantime, if I were to buy one, I would avoid the cheaper petrol-powered models and opt for the SHS hybrid, which offers a nicer interior, superior fuel economy, and better driving characteristics—all while still being about £5,000 cheaper than most plug-in hybrid rivals.