Omoda prioritises fleet with electric 5 SUV

Omoda, the Chinese brand owned by Chery, has confirmed that the full electric version of the Omoda 5 mid-size SUV will be available in the UK from March 2024, at the same time as the petrol version.

Pricing is yet to be confirmed but the full electric 5 is likely to have a £5,000 premium over the £24,000 starting price for the petrol Comfort variant, with a similar uplift over the £27,000 Noble trim.

Fleet News received an exclusive walk-round the car via video link by Omoda UK brand manager Young Zhu outside the Chery headquarters in Wuhu, Chia.

It revealed a number of design changes over the petrol version, the most notable of which is the face with the prominent diamond grille replaced with a smooth front end.

The body shape remains the same as does the full width LED lighting unit at the rear, but the small spoiler overhang is colour matched with some of the interior flourishes on the doors, seats, dashboard and centre armrest. On the pre-production model seen by Fleet News, it was an arresting orange.

The car also has a much wider infotainment touchscreen which extends across two-thirds of the dashboard. The petrol version has conjoined 10.15-inch screens.

A mix of leathers and smooth plastics, which feature the diamond design from the petrol car’s grille, a brand characteristic, present a premium look.

While full battery details have yet to be confirmed, Omoda has previously shown the full electric 5 with a 61kWh pack offering a 280-mile range, with 224PS power output and a 10-80% charging time of around 35 minutes (the charging port is located at the front, below the bumper). Longer range version may be launched later in the year.

The Omoda 5 BEV will be available with the same two trim levels (Comfort and Noble) as the petrol version.

The company is continuing to recruit its UK team and is looking to fill fleet, product, sales and IT functions, adding to its brand and network managers.

Zhu said: “Fleet is a big market for our sales in the UK and we are planning to do something to get a share of that market.”

Talks are also underway with prospective retailers, with the company choosing a traditional franchised dealer and aftersales route to market.

“We are having conversations now with our network manager meeting dealers in the UK to talk about our business plans,” said Zhu.