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The Jaecoo J7 has landed; the Chinese marque is the sister brand to Chery. It is aimed towards the premium lifestyle segment and aims to take on the established with its European styling, well-equipped cabins, premium trim, safety equipment and attractive pricing. But will it tick all the right boxes? We get behind the wheel of a J7 in the 1.6T Glacier guise to find out.
Related: Jaecoo J7 (2024) First Drive Review
But before we get into the details, remember that you can sell your car quickly and easily on our website here. You can also search for new or used Jaecoo J7 models on AutoTrader here.
Styling
Jaecoo said that during the development of the J7, they benchmarked a few European models in the same segment. Based on the exterior styling alone, that is evident. But that is not a bad thing. When looking at pictures, you might mistake it for being compact, but that is not the case. When you first see it in the metal, you will quickly note the generous dimensions, which come in at 4 500 mm long, 1 680 mm tall and 1 865 mm wide.
Up front, you get a large imposing grille with verticle slats instead of the mesh designs seen on the sister brands Chery and Omoda. Flanking this are LED daytime running lights with a modern pixel-like design, while lower down, you will find the headlights and foglights sunken into the bumper and styled to resemble sporty air vents. Down the side, the A-, B-, C- and D-pillars are finished in a glossy black for a floating roof design.
Like the Inferno derivative, the Glacier model has 19-inch alloy wheels that give it a tall stance and fill the flared arches well. Also, a very nice touch on the sides is the door handles sinking into the doors, providing a cleaner and more aerodynamic design. At the back, a single light bar stretches the vehicle's width. However, the corners have brake, indicator and reverse lights in a similar pixel-block design as the daytime running lights.
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Space & Interior
The interior of the J7 1.6T Glacier is both minimalist and busy. Where the Chinese automaker has omitted many buttons to provide a cleaner look, they have incorporated nice textures, glossy and patterned trim, and brushed metal finishings in the cabin. But it is done subtly and is very easy on the eyes. The overall interior theme is rectangular, with the horizontally styled dashboard broken up by a large vertically oriented infotainment screen.
The soft artificial leather-clad seats are very comfortable, and both front occupants have ample head and shoulder room. Even with the front seats set far back, the rear occupants have a lot of legroom, and the head and shoulder room is easily convenient for two adults or three children. The boot can take up to 412 litres; however, if the rear bench is folded flat, you can stow up to 1 335 litres.
Related: Is the Jaecoo J7 a 7-seater?
Comfort & Convenience
As mentioned earlier, the Jaecoo J7 is a very comfortable car, with plush seats and a spacious cabin. But there is also a lot of convenience. Prominent in the Glacier and Inferno trims is the large 14.8-inch touchscreen infotainment display. Everything from the dual-zone automatic climate control to heated and ventilated front seats and various other settings for the car is controlled from here. The menus and layout are very intuitive, too.
The infotainment system also offers wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto functionality. A bonus of the large display is that navigation applications such as Google Maps and Waze are displayed quite large and legibly. While mentioning smartphones, just below the infotainment screen is a 50W wireless charging bay. However, there are also USB ports available at the front of the vehicle, as well as two ports at the rear.
Once your smartphone is connected, you can control various functions with the built-in voice command system and play some music via the 8-speaker Sony sound system. The voice command is accessible on the multifunctional steering wheel, which, instead of individual buttons, has smooth plastic surfaces to press. Behind the steering wheel is a 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster that can be configured to show various relevant vehicle information.
But what stood out was how, on this display, the system visualises nearby vehicles or pedestrians while driving, giving the driver a better idea of what is around them at all times. A head-up display is also fitted so the driver can focus more on the road. This system can display various other safety and vehicle information with the vehicle speed.
Related: Which is the best variant of the Jaecoo J7?
Performance
When you first glance at the car, you might think that a 1.6-litre, turbocharged, four-cylinder petrol engine might be a little small. However, the 145 kW and 290 Nm are ample, especially because the motor is paired with a 7-speed dual-clutch automatic. While it won't set any records around a racetrack, the power and its delivery is enough to build speed quickly for overtaking.
The engine also doesn't feel too strained going up hills, and with that smooth transmission, the acceleration can be described as a constant surge rather than aggressive.
Related: Does the Jaecoo J7 come in automatic?
Fuel Economy
Switch the drive mode from Sport or Standard to Eco mode, and you will notice a more gradual throttle response. This is to assist you in getting as close as possible to the manufacturer-claimed average fuel consumption figure of 7.0 L/100 km. For the first 350 km of our test period, we exclusively drove the model in Eco mode and were attentive not to accelerate too hard. With this more frugal driving style, we managed an impressive 7.5 L/100 km.
However, we adopted a more normal driving style for the latter part of the road test and spent some time in both Standard and Sport modes. Surprisingly, the fuel consumption didn't increase much, resulting in an average of 8.0 L / 100km by the end of our test.
Related: Is the Jaecoo J7 a petrol or a diesel?
Safety
A very important criterion when considering purchasing a car is its safety credentials. The Australasian New Car Assessment Program, or ANCAP, did crash tests with the Jaecoo J7, and the Chinese model achieved a five-star rating. This is due to the plethora of standard safety systems installed. In the Glacier trim, you will get eight airbags, driver and passenger front and side units, two curtain bags, one driver knee and one centre bag between the driver and front occupant.
However, to mitigate a collision, drivers can expect ABS brakes with Electronic Brakeforce Distribution, a Brake Assist System, a Brake Override System, an Automatic Emergency Braking system, and an Electronic Park Brake with auto hold. Other safety items include stability control, hill descent control, and a tyre pressure monitoring system. The Automatic Emergency Braking system above can identify vehicles, bicycles, and pedestrians.
The driver further benefits from assist systems such as Forward Collision Warning, Lane Departure Warning, Lane Keeping Assistance, Lane Change Assist, Adaptive Cruise Control, Multi-collision Brake, Speed Assist Systems, Traffic Jam Assist, High Beam Assist, Traffic Sign recognition, Blind Spot Detection, Rear Traffic Alert, Rear Cross Traffic Assist with Braking and Emergency Lane Keeping to name a few more.
Two items that stood out during our time with the vehicle were the 360-degree parking camera, which activates when you start reversing and when going around tight bends at slow speeds to help mitigate scratching the wheels or climbing a curb. The other was the Driver Monitoring System, which will detect if a driver is drowsy or tired and whether or not the driver is paying attention and keeping their eyes on the road ahead.
Related: Is the Jaecoo J7 a safe car?
Price
The purchase price of the Jaecoo J7 includes a five-year / 150 000 km vehicle warranty, a ten-year / 1 000 000 km engine warranty for the first owner, and a five-year / 70 000 km service plan with service intervals every 15 000 km.
| Model | Price (incl. VAT) |
| Jaecoo J7 1.6T Vortex | from R 549 900 |
| Jaecoo J7 1.6T Glacier | from R 599 900 |
| Jaecoo J7 1.6T Inferno AWD | from R 679 900 |
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Competitors
This segment is saturated with options, with most manufacturers available locally providing products. One local favourite amongst the Chinese competitors is the Haval Jolion. The Jolion in 1.5 HEV Super Luxury guise, which produces 140 kW and 375 Nm of torque, will set you back from R 579 950 and is also well-specified but perhaps not to the degree as the Jaecoo J7.
Another local favourite is the Toyota Corolla Cross. In the flagship 1.8 Hybrid GR-Sport guise, the model is quite well-specified and provides a host of standard driver assistance systems. Combined with the hybrid electric drive, the Corolla Cross delivers 90 kW and 142 Nm of torque plus some more torque from the electric motor. This model will set you back R 543 700.
Lastly, there is a newcomer from Ford, the Territory. In the 1.8T Ambiente trim, the model produces 138 kW and 318 Nm of torque and will cost R 576 000.
Related: Jaecoo J7 vs Kia Seltos vs Suzuki Grand Vitara: Which one has the lowest running costs?
Verdict
We spent around a week with the Jaecoo J7 1.6T Glacier and are very impressed with the standard equipment, especially at that price point. After a few days in traffic and more kilometres on suburban and open roads, the ride quality is impressive, and we achieved quite a frugal fuel consumption result. Will the engine blow your socks off? Perhaps not, but it doesn't mean it isn't ample for the daily commute.
There are a few characteristics to which to get accustomed, such as the Driver Monitoring System. While it is certainly a good safety system, it sometimes feels too sensitive. Without the possibility of deactivating it, it does mean that regularly, you will audibly and visually be reminded to bring your attention back to the road instead of looking at vehicle information on your digital instrument cluster or choosing a podcast on the infotainment system.
In conclusion, the writer thinks that the Jaecoo J7 will make many waves in the segment and even ruffle the feathers of the more established brands. And it is with good reason that it does so. It presents high value for the price, and with that five-year / 150 000 km vehicle warranty, a ten-year / 1 000 000 km engine warranty for the first owner and a five-year / 70 000 km service plan, Jaecoo is very confident in the model's reliability.
