Chery (above) and Haval sold 88% of Chinese-branded vehicles locally in 2024
In 2021, Chery and Haval hit the South African market hard with luxury-looking cars at an affordable price.
Chery released the Tiggo 4 Pro and Tiggo 8 Pro, and later the Tiggo 7 Pro, while Haval released the Jolion and the H6.
Chery and Haval’s vehicles came onto the market with features you would only find in cars priced over R1 million — but they were closer to VW Polo money.
It had South Africans all over the place. The Chinese were definitely not here to take part but to take over.
For R400 000, you could own a car that came with leather seats, big screens, ambient lighting, a sunroof and a bunch of safety features such as lane-keep assist, rear-collision warning and 360 degree cameras.
The cars also looked like they were worth a million bucks. They came with good service plans and warranties. Chery even offered a 1 million kilometre engine warranty to the first owners of their vehicles.
This showed South Africans that these manufacturers had confidence in their products and that they were not just good-looking cars with plastic engines.
There had to be a catch somewhere, right? For many, it was the fuel consumption and the drivetrain.
The Chery Tiggo 4 Pro and Tiggo 7 Pro both were powered by 1.5 turbo-charged engines and had continuously variable transmission gearboxes, while the Haval Jolion was powered by the same engine but had a dual-clutch transmission gearbox.
The continuously variable transmission gearboxes are not the most reliable, so this raised some questions, but we still see many Tiggo 4 Pros and 7 Pros on the road.
Both Chery and Haval now consistently sit in the top 10 for vehicles sold in South Africa every month.
After the early success, the Chery group has brought Omoda, Jaecoo and Jetour into the South African market, while GWM, owner of Haval, has introduced the Ora and Tank.
To its credit, GWM has introduced vehicles to accommodate a broad range of buyers. For example, the Ora is a completely electric Mini lookalike, while the Tank is more of an off-roader.
Haval extended the range of the Jolion by bringing in the Jolion Pro. However, like an iPhone, you might as well purchase the regular one. It might look better but it is powered by the same 1.5-litre turbocharged engine.
Omoda entered the South African market just after the release of the Tiggo 4 Pro and 7 Pro as the luxury arm of Chery — kind of like what Lexus is to Toyota. But, while the Omoda C5 had a more sleek and sporty look than the Chery’s, it had the same engine and gearbox. In fact, you could even purchase a Tiggo 4 Pro or 7 Pro with more features than an Omoda C5.
We can’t leave out the Baic Beijing X55, another Chinese vehicle that is beautiful inside and out — but still has that 1.5 litre engine.
Chery recently brought in the Jetour, which has the same engine as the Tiggo 4 Pro and 7 Pro but with a dual-clutch transmission gearbox.
To their credit, however, when they launched the Tiggo 7 Pro Max in 2024, they did move up to a 1.6 TGDI turbo-petrol engine that accelerated the power output. They have powered the Jaecoo J7 with the same engine.
There’s no doubt that the inside of the newer vehicles, like the Jetour and Jaecoo, feel a lot more luxurious than the early Tiggo 4 Pro and 7 Pro models, but the drivetrain is something Chinese manufacturers will need to improve on.
The fuel consumption on all their vehicles also needs to shape up and that 1.5 litre turbocharged engine doesn’t help this.
While the Chinese cars might seem similar, each brand does a good job of reminding you which you are driving with small little things such as welcome lights and their unique infotainment systems.
For the price, we might just have to put up with the engines for now, and if that makes them all feel the same to drive, it makes it harder for the consumer to choose between them when buying.