Slick: The Jaecoo J7’s powertrain makes it feel like the best compact Chinese SUV on the market.
We’ve become accustomed to the offerings we get from Chinese car brands in South Africa. To put it simply, they are giving us luxury at affordable prices.
Last month, I wrote an article asking if all Chinese compact SUV’s were the same. My thought when writing it was that the brands offer similar features and similar engines but they all do well to mix up both the interior and exterior looks of their cars to create a sense of uniqueness, despite those similarities.
But then there’s the Jaecoo J7. This adds a whole new dimension to compact or mid-sized SUVs. It doesn’t look anything like the BAIC Beijing X55, the Omoda C5 or the Jetour Dashing, but it has classy written all over it.
The J7 has a large chrome grille in the front, thin, curved LED daytime running headlights and LED headlights.
But the rear and side profile of the car is where it really comes alive. With elements like the recessed door handles and short overhang, the vehicle begins to give Range Rover vibes.
There’s also the sharp light bar across the back of the vehicle — which most manufacturers are moving towards now — and that adds sportyness to an already classy exterior.
Powertrain and drive
The Jaecoo J7 comes in three variants: Vortex, Glacier and Inferno. All three have 1.6 litre turbocharged petrol engines that output 145 kilowatts of power and 290Nm of torque. The first two variants are front-wheel drives, while the inferno is an all-wheel drive.
It’s also refreshing to see a 1.6 litre turbocharged engine in a Chinese SUV rather than the 1.5 litre which most of them have. This engine feels a lot more responsive than the 1.5 engines.
It didn’t feel like too much of a kick down your spine when you put your foot on the accelerator, or a delayed reaction, but the speed picked up easily in an effortless, linear fashion.
It was also swift. 145kW is a lot of oomph and it certainly handles the power well once you are out on the open road. The steering did feel a touch heavy initially, but once I got used to that, the handling felt solid and comfortable.
The only downside is that the bigger engine didn’t do much to help the fuel consumption. Jaecoo claims that you should be getting 7 litres/100 km in the Glacier but I couldn’t bring it below 8.5 litres/100km.
Interior
The interior is what could make you fall in love with this car, as Jaecoo has combined a rugged-looking dashboard with some very luxurious touches.
Attached to the dashboard is a 14.8-inch, portrait-shaped infotainment screen to control the vehicle’s settings paired to a 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster. You also have a head-up display and driver monitoring system that detects distractions and drowsiness.
The seats are the winner in this vehicle. Forget bucket seats, these leather offerings hug you tightly and keep you warm or cool as they are heated and ventilated. The seats in the J7 really amplify Jaecoo’s emphasis on comfort.
Apart from the Range Rover, these are the most comfortable car seats I have experienced. The only reason they are not as comfortable as the latter is because they don’t have a massage function.
Jaecoo has made this interior feel like it cares for you. There is ample space in both the front and back and there is also ample space for your belongings in all the storage compartments and the large boot.
Every time you open your door to get out of the car, the seat moves back so that you can exit easily, and every time you climb back in, the seat adjusts into your preferred driving position. That’s just one of the many autonomous features that makes you think that, if cars have so much humanity, why can’t humans?
Safety
There is an abundance of safety features in the J7. These include a 360-degree camera system, lane-change assist, blind-spot detection, rear-traffic alert and door-opening warning.
For once, the safety features in a Chinese car were not overbearing and did not make me want to instantly switch them all off. My steering didn’t feel like it was about to pull me into the lane on the highway so firmly that, if I needed to swerve for any particular reason, I would have no chance. For that, I have to take my hat off to Jaecoo.
Verdict
The J7 excels in all areas. Luxury, performance, comfort and care.
The Vortex trim starts at R549 000, the Glacier comes in at R579 000 and the Inferno is priced at R679 000.
At that price and with all those features, the J7 is definitely a value for money product.
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