Chery Corporate Malaysia (Chery) has begun exports of locally assembled (CKD) vehicles to our Southeast Asian (SEA) neighbours. The first batch of vehicles to be exported include the Jaecoo J7 and Jaecoo J7 PHEV SUVs, but the company says that “more models and brands” will be joining the list soon, including those from Chery’s namesake brand.
Of the collection of SEA countries, Vietnam – a left-hand drive market – will be the first country to receive a shipment of Jaecoo J7 and Jaecoo J7 PHEV SUVs. Other countries planned for export include, but not limited to, Thailand, Brunei, Philippines, and Singapore.
All Chery and Jaecoo vehicles to be exported to Vietnam and other SEA nations will be manufactured in Chery’s production facility in Shah Alam, which was only officiated in June last year.
Chery Corporate Malaysia Vice President Leo Chen says that the brand is progressing well in making Malaysia the Chinese carmaker’s hub for production and research and development (R&D) in SEA. Chen said the expansion of export capabilities also enhances the carmaker’s production capacity to meet the region’s growing demand of the Chinese carmaker’s vehicles.
“Furthermore, Chery is excited to play a role in boosting Malaysia’s economy, develop local talent and strengthen our supply chain. We are confident in achieving our goal to make Malaysia the leading export hub for Chery vehicles which includes our premium sub-brand, Jaecoo.” says Leo.
READ: First CKD Jaecoo J7 PHEV rolls off the assembly line in Shah Alam – Launch in Feb 2025
The Jaecoo J7 PHEV, which has only recently begun local assembly works in Chery’s Shah Alam plant, is set for a local debut in Malaysia by the end of this month.
The soon-to-be-launched Jaecoo J7 PHEV sports a hybrid system coined by Jaecoo as the ‘Super Hybrid System’, which consists of a 1.5-litre turbocharged inline-four engine that is paired together with an integrated motor found in its dedicated hybrid transmission, both of which are connected to an 18.3 kWh hybrid battery pack.
READ: Jaecoo J7 PHEV – How different is it from the J7 petrol?
In total, the max output of the Jaecoo J7 PHEV tops out at 347 hp (255 kW) and 525 Nm of torque, sent straight to the front-wheel drive (FWD) drivetrain, giving it an 8.5-second 0-100 km/h time. Furthermore, the Jaecoo J7 PHEV can be driven with both petrol and electric power, or on pure petrol or electric power instead, the latter of which has a 90 km electric range.
In case you missed it, one of our presenters went on a convoy drive of Jaecoo J7 PHEVs from Singapore to Hatyai in one full tank of gas and battery. At the end of the journey, he went above and beyond Jaecoo’s claimed 1,200 km total range and recorded a whopping 1,427.5 km without refuelling or charging. Even going as far as to set a 2.5L/100 km fuel consumption rate against Jaecoo’s official 6.6L/100 km figure.
Naturally, being a plug-in hybrid, it supports up to 40 kW DC power and a 6.6 kW on-board AC charger. It also has different side mirrors and aerodynamic 19-inch alloy wheels with Kumho tyres. Other features and extras the Jaecoo J7 PHEV comes with will have to wait in the coming week for its official launch.
