We recently attended the Chery International User Summit in Wuhu, China, to see what Chery Group has in store for South Africa. On the Omoda and Jaecoo side, there's much to look forward to for the South African market. You can read more about our trip here.
Related: Omoda C9 2.0TGDI 400T Explore AWD (2024) Review
Amidst the many things happening at this event, we had the chance to drive the Jaecoo J8. The short samples gave us a decent idea of what the J8 is about, and indeed, this is one of the vehicles heading to the South African market. Here are three things we liked about the J8.
1. Offroad Ability
Despite its urban look, the J8 can handle some rough stuff. We sampled the all-wheel drive full internal combustion (ICE) variant at a RallyCross park. It had just rained, so the surface was indeed quite muddy. Though kitted with road tyres, the rest of the J8's setup can comfortably handle the softer side of the beaten path. Power in the ICE variant is adequate for this and has enough momentum and perk to get over some muddy hills.
2. The PHEV is potent but can be frugal
The J8 PHEV produces some mind-boggling figures. You have a hybrid powertrain, a 1.5-litre turbocharged 4-cylinder engine that makes 451kW and 915Nm with twin electric motors—one motor on the front axle and the other on the rear. Power is sent through to all four wheels via a dedicated hybrid transmission. Those are certainly figures you can't scoff at. As far as frugality goes, while we don't have official figures for fuel consumption when we look at Chery's recent efforts with a Tiggo 9 PHEV with a similar powertrain, there's a claimed 1400km range on a single tank of petrol and fully charged hybrid battery and a 1200km endurance test was conducted to prove this. We can expect a similar range with the Jaecoo J8 PHEV.
If you're only keen on the ICE-only J8, it has a 2.0-litre petrol 4-cylinder turbo engine making 191kW and 390Nm. Power is sent to all four wheels via a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission.
3. Ramped up luxury
The J8, at heart, is a luxury 7-seater SUV. The cabin is premium as it comes and feels quite German in its style and quality. There is a slew of soft-touch surfaces and woodgrain in the units we sampled. One stand-out feature would be the seating with a rather cushy feel and ergonomic setup. The usual elongated digital screen housing the instrument cluster and infotainment system. The centre console contains wireless charging pads, climate controls, and radio volume control. There's even a nifty crystal dial to round off the look. The seating is electronically operated and heated.
Stay tuned for when the Jaecoo J8 officially launches in South Africa, and we'll have more information then.
