2026 Beijing Auto Show with Omoda & Jaecoo – What’s coming to SA

CAR Intern Cale Nuttall reports back from the Omoda & Jaecoo stand at the 2026 Beijing Auto Show, which kicked off on 24 April 2026.

We attended the 2026 Beijing Auto Show, which kicked off on 24 April, with Omoda & Jaecoo to get up close to this Chery sub-brand’s latest wares and find out what the automaker has in store for our market in the future. Here’s a summary of what stood out, as well as what’s been confirmed for South Africa.

Omoda C4

2026 Omoda C4 SHS

Image: Supplied

The series-production Omoda C4 made its official debut at the 2026 Beijing Auto Show. Confirmed for SA in 2026, the strikingly styled compact crossover will be available with the choice of atmospheric and turbocharged 1.5-litre, four-cylinder internal combustion engine (ICE) options. Omoda is currently mulling transmission options for our market – the latter including CVT, dual-clutch and, potentially, manual. Traditional hybrid (HEV), plug-in hybrid (PHEV) and  battery-electric (BEV) variants are set to be introduced at a later stage.

Omoda E5

2026 Omoda C5 EV

Image: Supplied

Under consideration but not yet confirmed for our market, the Omoda C5 EV, also known as the E5, is, as its name suggests, a battery-electric version of Omoda & Jaecoo’s popular C5. The E5, which we sampled on a gymkhana track in Wuhu, features revised exterior styling and is fitted with a 150 kW/340 N.m front-mounted electric motor, fed by a 61 kWh battery offering a claimed range of 430 km on a full charge.

Jaecoo J8

2026 Jaecoo J8 SHS

Image: Jaecoo

Another model expected to join Omoda & Jaecoo’s local product portfolio in the future, the Jaecoo J8 will be positioned above the J7 as the flagship Jaecoo model in SA. We had the opportunity to sample the J8 in PHEV seven-seater guise. If the J8 makes its way to our market, it will likely be similarly priced as the Omoda C9 and Chery Tiggo 9 with which it shares its T2X platform. The ICE J8 is powered by a 195 kW/400 N.m 2.0-litre, four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine, mated with a dual-clutch transmission and either 2WD or AWD drivetrains. The 1.5-litre PHEV variant produces 445 kW/920 N.m.

Jaecoo J5 SHS HEV

2026 Jaecoo J5 SHS

Image: Supplied

Perhaps one of the most insightful experiences we had during our time with the Omoda & Jaecoo brand in China was representing SA in the firm’s ‘9 Countries Super Hybrid Marathon’ – a long-distance road trip in which we competed against representatives from eight other countries to see who can record the lowest fuel consumption in the SA-bound Jaecoo J5 hybrid. At the end of the two-day-long trip, we managed an overall figure of 3.7 L/100 km; taking home the bronze medal behind Spain and Brazil, who placed second and first with 3.5 and 3.4 L/100 km, respectively.

Sharing its underpinnings with the Omoda C5 SHS HEV, the J5  SHS HEV’s powertrain comprises a turbocharged 1.5-litre, four-cylinder engine mated with an electric motor fed by a 1.83 kWh battery. The setup produces a combined system output of 165 kW and 295 N.m of torque. Power is sent to the front wheels via a dedicated hybrid transmission (DHT).

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