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By Jonathan Crouch

Chinese brand Jaecoo expands its UK market reach with this car, the compact Jaecoo 5. Jonathan Crouch takes a look.

Ten Second Reviewword count: 41

Expect this car, the Jaecoo 5, to be the enormous Chinese Chery motor group's best seller in the UK. This small, fashionable boxy SUV can be had in combustion or full-electric forms and should look great in the gym car park.

Backgroundword count: 161

Small cars are being offered in increasingly interesting packages. Take this one, the Jaecoo 5. As the name suggests, it's the smaller sibling to the Jaecoo 7, a lower mid-sized lifestyle-orientated combustion SUV which has managed to sell in surprising numbers (over 8,000 units in its first year in the UK) since its original launch here in 2024. People seem to like the way the Jaecoo 7 looks, so the auspices are good for the Jaecoo 5 because it's more of the same thing - just in a smaller package. Jaecoo, you'd be excused for not knowing, is one of the sub-brands of the enormous Chinese Chery motor group. Another, also sold in the UK, is Omoda, and it's the Omoda 5 that provides all the engineering for the Jaecoo 5, with a choice of both combustion and EV powertrains. The target market here is amongst small SUVs like Ford's Puma, Jeep's Avenger and Skoda's Elroq. Let's take a closer look.

Engines and Tech Specword count: 224

Jaecoo buys in the combustion unit used in this car, but it's a pity its parent Chery Group wasn't able to furnish it with something a bit more modern. The 1.6-litre four cylinder unit in question (shared with the Omoda 5) isn't in any way electrified but tries to compensate with a healthy 145bhp power output. It drives the front wheels must be had with a seven-speed dual clutch auto gearbox. There's 275Nm of torque to propel you along and three drive modes - 'Eco', 'Normal' and 'Sport' - are provided. The chassis geometry is supposed to have been specifically tuned to UK roads by Chery International's European R&D centre. Don't expect that to mean particularly engaging handling. It's reasonably quick though; expect 0-62mph in around 7.5s en route to around 128mph. The Jaecoo 5 EV also borrows its drivetrain from the equivalent Omoda 5 (or, as in this case, the E5), which means a 61.1kWh battery energising a 201bhp front-mounted e-motor. Expect up to 245 miles of driving range. Which is comparable to rivals like the Puma GEN-E and the Jeep Avenger but some way behind slightly pricier class competitors like the Skoda Elroq and the Kia EV3. Level 2 autonomous driving is built-in. And there are no fewer than 19 ADAS safety functions. You can't accuse the Chinese of not being thorough.

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