Chery Omoda E5 First Drive: A new affordable EV that ticks many boxes, and has a spare

The Chery Omoda E5 is the first electric vehicle offered in Australia from one of the rapidly emerging Chinese brands, and its recently announced pricing – from the mid-$40,000s – makes it one of the more affordable electric SUVs in the local market.

I had the opportunity to drive the Omoda E5 at an event in Canberra last week, giving me an idea of what it could be like to own either of the two variants coming to our shores this month.

Let’s start with the variants of the car which include the entry-level BX, which starts at $42,990 before on-roads and comes fairly well equipped, including 18-inch alloy wheels, 18 advanced driver aids, dual 12.3-inch instrument and Infotainment screens, Inbuilt sat-nav, Three drive modes a 6-speaker Sony sound system and much more.

This makes it a very well-equipped car.

For an extra $3,000, the top-spec EX version is priced from $45,990 before on-roads. This includes a power tailgate, 360-degree camera, Ambient interior lighting, an 8-speaker Sony sound system and heated seats.

Both variants of the Omoda E5 have 430 km of range, thanks to a common 61 kWh battery pack which can be charged from 30-80% in just 28 minutes.

My first impression of the car from the outside was its sharp front and styling of the mid-sized SUV. The green paint really stands out.

Getting into the car with its conventional door handles is straightforward and thanks to its ride height, doesn’t take much effort.

One thing that caught my eye early on was the build quality of the Omoda. It looked and felt solid and during the few hours I spent in it, the whole car gave a good impression on how well it was out together.

I found good legroom in the driver and passenger seats. In the rear, it was the same with plenty of space for adults and kids.

Cargo space in the boot was reasonable too given the segment of the car. We had a couple of suitcases in the back and they fit just fine.

Surprisingly, there is also a full-sized spare that comes with the car, making it one of the only new EVs on the market to have one. This will give owners a lot of confidence when taking it on road-trips.

Getting into the driving part was very easy. There weren’t any start buttons so as long as you had the key inside the car, the car could be put into drive by using the stalks behind the steering wheel.

From there, the car had good visibility all around. Driving on Canberra’s roads was easy and the car really felt at home. 

With its zippy 150 kW motor, which produces 340 Nm of torque, city driving is no drama, especially in traffic with its auto-hold function.

On top of the auto hold, the three regenerative braking settings were also handy once you discovered them in the car’s settings menu. 

With many EVs, the highest setting does a good job and makes the experience notes enjoyable. This was no different, so I put it on maximum regenerative braking, which was ideal, even on curvy country roads.

On country roads,  the Omoda E5 felt quite composed. On 80 and 100 km/h sections, the car stayed within the lanes and ADAS system wasn’t intrusive as is the case in some other cars.

This is likely a testament to the extensive testing Chery engineers conducted earlier in the year. According to Chery, the E5 had 8 months of extensive testing across 4 states on a variety of terrains.

The suspension mostly did a good job. Exiting some sharper corners, the car did have a slight wobble which is expected given it’s geared for daily driving around town and road trips.

During the drive, I also got to use wireless Android Auto which worked senselessly without any disconnections. For comparison, some cars on the market struggle with wired functionality and often disconnect which can be a hassle if you’re using it for directions.

After driving the car for a period of just under 3 hours, the Omoda E5’s average consumption was 16.9 kWh/100 km. This is expected given the sweepy moderate-high speed country roads we spent quite a bit of time on during the drive program.

All in all, the time I spent in the car gave me a solid impression of a family SUV that is well-built and will do an excellent job at an affordable price.

We look forward to spending more time with it in the coming weeks and sharing what it could be like to own in the real world.

Chery Omoda E5 variants, pricing and respective feature list

BX – $42,990 before on-roads

• 18-inch alloy wheels
• 18 advanced driver aids
• Dual 12.3-inch Instrument and Infotainment screens
• Inbuilt sat-nav
• Three drive modes
• Intelligent voice command
• 6-speaker Sony sound system
• Apple CarPlay and Android Auto
• DAB+ radio
• Wireless Phone charger
• LED exterior lighting
• Fabric seats with synthetic leather bolsters
• Full-size spare wheel

EX – $45,990 before on-roads adds or replaces:

• Power tailgate
• 8-speaker Sony sound system
• Puddle lamps
• Ambient interior lighting
• Black synthetic leather seats
• 360-degree camera
• Heated front and rear seats (outboard)
• Synthetic leather steering wheel with heating
• Powered sunroof