Chery Automobile launches Omoda car brand in UK

Chinese car giant Chery is launching in the UK. The automaker, which has been China's largest car exporter for more than 20 years, has set up two new sub-brands – Omoda and Jaecoo – especially for the international market.

The Omoda 5 – available in both electric and petrol – is the first model to launch, and it's a mid-size SUV designed to rival the likes of Nissan's Qashqai and Hyundai's Kona. The petrol model is expected to cost around $30,000 and it'll be around $42,000 for an electric vehicle.

The company believes a combination of futuristic design and value for money will be a winning formula with customers.

"I think in a segment where it's difficult to stand out, our cars do stand out – so that's a really good start, that's enough to get the interest," Rob Durrant, Head of PR for Omoda and Jaecoo in the UK, told CGTN Europe.

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"We call it affordable premium. We benchmark against a lot of the premium brands, we're trying to bring those attributes, that design, the materials, the quality and the level of features you'd expect but at a price point you perhaps wouldn't expect."

Its sister brand Jaecoo, which will launch in the second half of the year, is being marketed as more high-end and rugged. The Jaecoo price tag is expected to be closer to $45,000.

At a working breakfast to mark the London launch, Omoda executives including UK country manager Victor Zhang and engineer team leader Peter Matkin spoke about the importance of localization – and how Omoda not only wants to sell cars but also provide a great service for customers, including a seven-year warranty. Already scouting out locations for a British assembly plant, Omoda believes the UK is a market with lots of promise.

China and EV cars

China became the world's top EV market last year - with almost 5 million vehicles shipped worldwide. And as more Chinese brands enter the UK and European markets including Omoda and Jaecoo, auto experts predict that by 2030 Chinese companies will claim a sixth of the competitive UK market.

Chinese brands already operating in the UK include one of the world's biggest EV companies BYD, plus MG and Great Wall Motor, while Nio, Xpeng and Seres are among those expected to launch within the next year.

But as increasing numbers of Chinese cars appear on British and European roads, questions are being asked whether the influx, particularly of electric vehicles, could hurt European carmakers.

The European Union has opened an investigation into whether Chinese EV companies are receiving state subsidies, and it could impose tariffs – something that Beijing has criticized as 'protectionist behavior.'

And there's also the question of whether the EV market is slowing down, with Tesla reporting a sharp fall in worldwide sales and Mercedes-Benz delaying its electrification goals.

Omoda still believes the future will be electric, fueled by battery technology advances – it's working on battery sustainability solutions. The company is aiming for around 10,000 sales in its first year, increasing to 50,000 a year by 2028.

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