A new pair of utes, one being electrified, could soon go on sale in both New Zealand and Australia if the parent company of Omoda and Jaecoo’s plans come to light.
The news comes as the executive vice president of Chery, Charlie Zhang, recently made comments saying the Chinese carmaker is planning to develop two pick-ups.
One of those will be a small to medium-sized model, while the other will either be a large plug-in hybrid or a fully electric vehicle.
“[A ute] is something we are planning for. Also for the traditional pickup, we will see if there are emerging opportunities for us – we will see if we can do it through mergers or acquisitions,” said Zhang.
While that’s all we have to go on at this time, if the project does come to light, we have full confidence that the larger model of the two would be sold here under the Omoda or Jaecoo brand – more likely the latter.
In saying that, the ute would have its work cut out if it’s introduced to the local market thanks to Kiwi’s unshakable appetite for dual-cabs like the Ford Ranger, a model that’s set to get a PHEV variant in 2025.
BYD is also planning to release its own plug-in ute later this year, adding to Omoda/Jaecoo’s list of competitors.
Omoda’s current crop of models consists of the petrol-powered C5 SUV which features a turbocharged 1.5-litre making 108kW and 210Nm of torque, as well a turbocharged 1.6-litre offering. The SUV is also offered as an EV called the E5, while larger C9 and C7 SUVs are also set to arrive on our shores at a later date.
With that being said, the pick-up would need a bit more power than any of the aforementioned models if it wants to match the industry standard towing capacity of 3500kg.
We can expect to hear more information about Chery’s plans to develop the bite-size and larger electrified ute models in the coming months.
