Back in December, we were in Auckland for the launch of the Chinese OMODA brand, one that has a parent company of Chery. At the same time, OMODA announced that their sister brand, Jaecoo, would also be coming to New Zealand.
Come July 2024, and we are back in Auckland at the launch of Jaecoo, and their first model, the J7 – a mid-size SUV. We’ve been teased with pricing for this new model, with unhelpful hints like, “it’s $3X,XXX” not really giving us any idea of the final pricing. But pricing would be revealed today.
Sheldon Humphries, country manager, officially launched the brand at Boomrock in Kauri Bay, near Clevedon, and promised that we would experience the J7’s off-roading capabilities after the launch.
While sister-brand OMODA had already been launched, that meant a “strong foundation” had already been set for Jaecoo, and since OMODA and Jaecoo will be sharing showroom space, it’s an easy move sideways to show a potential buyer either brand’s cars.
New Zealand is the 11th market in the world for the Jaecoo brand, and to get it out there right now, apparently “Jaecoo” is a combination of two words; Jäger (German for hunter) + Cool= Jaecoo.
2024 Jaecoo J7 – models
Humphries went to say that the J7 is designed and built to toughest international safety standards”, although ANCAP testing is not slated until later this year. But the model does have 20 ADAS (Advanced Driver Assist Systems) as standard.
There are two models of J7 to choose from:
J7 EX 2WD
J7 EX+ AWD
The AWD model has a system called, ARDIS, which is used as an “off-road intelligence system” to help maintain grip and control of the car in off-road conditions.
Both models are powered by a 1.6-litre, turbocharged 4-cylinder petrol engine that has outputs of 137kW of power and 275Nm of torque. This is mated to a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic (DCT) transmission.
With 200mm of ground clearance, an approach angle of 21 degrees and a departure angle of 29 degrees, Jaecoo are confident of the AWD version’s off-roading potential.
Across both models there is double-glazing on the side windows and windscreen, an 8-speaker Sony sound system, a power driver’s seat and a 50-watt Qi wireless and cooled phone charging pad.
2024 Jaecoo J7 – colour range
There are 5 colour options for your J7:
- Model Green
- Moonlight Silver
- Olive Grey
- Crystal black
- Khaki White
2024 Jaecoo J7 – pricing
Jaecoo New Zealand is starting off with introductory pricing:
2WD $37,990 +ORC
AWD $43,990 +ORC
These prices run until the end of September, when retail pricing will be announced.
As standard, there is a 7-year warranty, and up to 7 years of Roadside Assistance (as long as the car is maintained by a Jaecoo-approved repairer).
Humphries says that there is a hybrid option coming with 1,200km range, and this will be in consideration for the New Zealand market. Currently, the brand has 12 dealers spread across New Zealand.
2024 Jaecoo J7 – off-road experience
We headed down the road to the off-road portion of this launch, driving AWD J7s with road tyres. With a lot of rain lately, it was going to be slushy.
And slushy it was, as we headed up some far tracks to the top of the hill. Easy going to start with, and not really taxing the AWD J7 at all. Once through a couple of gates and onto tracks that had less metal on, it was a different story. While the J7 didn’t struggle too much, the road tyres were not helping it at all, and sometimes it was more wheel spin than wheel grip. However, the AWD J7 does have a Mud driving mode, and this allows more wheel spin at times to help clear the tread of mud.
As the four J7s continued to climb, the track got worse – but we all made it. At one point, we had to reverse back a bit to move onto part of the farmer’s field that had had no traffic on it, and then the J7 scooted up the hill without issue.
Taking stock at the top of the hill, we had made it just fine with a few small events, but nothing where we thought we might not make it. Chunkier tyres would have made all the difference, and certainly the 200mm of ground clearance helped our progress.
On the road back to the lodge, the J7 reminded me of its road manners; it sits well on the corners, and that turbo-petrol motor is very quiet, even under full acceleration. I’d already spent a week in the 2WD J7, a car that is pretty much identical to the AWD model, and it makes you wonder why someone would spend $10K more on a different mid-size SUV when this one seems so good. It will be interesting to see the model’s safety rating once it’s tested.
We aim to book in an AWD J7 at some point and take that to places where Jaecoo have shown us it can go, and will report back.