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Omoda 7 SHS

by Andrew Walker

What is it ?

The Omoda 7 is C sized SUV offering five-seat practicality but with a lower coupe profile. It shares it’s platform with the Tiggo 7 & Jaecoo 7 & sits between these in the Chery model range

Model choice

Two versions petrol or plug-in hybrid, the latter being the more tax friendly with 9% BIK.

Engines & prices

The Omoda 7 SHS Knight costs from £32,000, whilst the Super Hybrid in Noble trim is available from £35,000.

Trims

We’ve come to expect nice interiors on Chery products & the Omoda 7 doesn’t disappoint. Choose Knight or Noble & both come very well kitted out. Knight includes 19 alloys, LED headlights, silent glass, a leather heated steering wheel, 6-way driver seat power adjustment, 6 speaker stereo, wireless 50w cooled phone charging, wireless AppleCar Play & Android Auto, 2-zone air con, keyless start, a 540 degree panoramic camera, an 8.88” LCD display & a 15.6” central touchscreen.

Noble up’s the ante with gaming inspired front seats, 20” alloys, a power panoramic sunroof, multi coloured ambient lighting, a Sony 12 speaker audio system, six-way powered front passenger seat, a power boot lid, heated & ventilated front seats & a fragrance system with 2-zone voice control.

Outside

With two C-sized SUV’s already offered across the Chery brand, what could Omoda do to make the 7 look different ? The simple answer is to make it longer & a touch lower creating a sleeker & in our opinion nicer looking vehicle. At the front you get slim, high LED headlights, a honeycomb textured grille with flush door handles to the side. Darkened A, B & C pillars create a lower profile whilst the rear offers a small roof spoiler & a zig zag lightning rear light pattern. In side profile it looks not to dis-similar to a Jaguar F Pace.

Interior
Omoda made a point of telling us that the Omoda 7 would be Steve “more interesting” Davis on the inside than a Tiggo 7 or Jaecoo 7. However when we climbed in & having driven to the launch event in a Tiggo 7, the only colour offered is black & it was difficult to tell how different it actually was.
Better news then is ambient lighting to brighten things up & then there’s the “fragrance system” with three scents & three strengths that’s inside the climate control. There are three cartridges one for each scent & these can be removed from under the centre console & refilled. A bit like a walk through the centre of Grasse, the scent is piped through the air-vents & will certainly help disguise your smelly dog or post gym exertions. Different if nothing else.
Driving premium cars nowadays it’s sometimes difficult to see where the extra cost comes from, certainly inside the cabin.The Chery products we’ve tried do a decent job of using good plastics & to include some soft touch areas & the 7 is no different. We’d argue its nicer than the Jaecoo 7 & of higher quality than the Tiggo 7, so make of that what you will.
Infotainment
If you want to select this as an option, the Omoda 7 central touchscreen’s USP is that when stationary it will slide across to the passenger side. As far as usability goes it responds quickly to inputs & connecting hands-free to Apple CarPlay was simple. On-screen menus are intuitive, but even though we’d like to say everything isn’t controlled by the screen, most is & it’s the usual cocktail of beeps & bongs as you work out how to silence the driver safety. Similar to the Geely Starray PHEV, there are actually two screens.  A 15.6” touchscreen & a separate driver info-display which illustrates your speed, driving range, EV/battery range & revs.

Performance

The Omoda 7 Super Hybrid gets a 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine with a 201bhp electric motor, fed by a usable 18.4kWh battery & which uses a three-speed automatic gearbox.

Model                Power    0-62mph       Top speed
Omoda  7 SHS      201bhp  8.4 seconds    112mph
Range & charging the Super Hybrid
The Super Hybrid’s claimed electric only range is 56 miles. You set off in EV mode & if the battery range is low it’s a simple toggle switch to switch to HEV mode. As far as charging goes it’s equipped with a 40kW charging speed so a 10-80% top-up on fast charger will take no more than 30 minutes. Plug in at home on a 7.4kWh charger like our own Rolec Evo & a full charge will take under 3 hours. V2L is also included.
Economy & C02’s
Omoda  7 Noble SHS  211mpg   23g/km
Cabin space
As with the Omoda & Jaecoo range in general, you sit quite high up in the Omoda 7, the plus point being you get an excellent all-around view. The drivers seats adjusts electrically so getting comfortable wasn’t an issue. Rear seated occupants get very good head & legroom & we’d suggest that five adults would be comfortable for most distances

Boot space

You get a whopping  590 litres in the plug-in version, but there’s no movable boot floor. Total are with seats down is 1,417 litres

Warranty
You get CHERY’s comprehensive 7-year/100,000-mile warranty, whichever comes first, with the Super Hybrid also coming with an 8-year/100,000-mile warranty on the battery. All models include free RAC roadside assistance for the first year which then renews with every dealer service in line with the Omoda 7-year warranty.
Safety
All versions come with autonomous emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, rear cross-traffic braking, lane departure warning & blind spot monitoring with Noble adding a 540 degree camera.
Driving modes & brakes
I tried all three with Eco, Normal & Sport driving modes, but as with the Tiggo 7, there really isn’t a discernible difference. And similarly, we did notice that the electric motor can get a touch noisy as it strains to accelerate from 50-70mph  but it settles down quickly, a common fault with many a PHEV & hybrid set-up. The Omoda 7 isn’t a fast car per-se, but is plenty quick enough for most driving scenarios. Unlike some Chinese cars we’ve driven the brakes own the Omoda 7 are actually well calibrated.
Urban & country driving
Our test route took in some small villages & plenty of undulating A & B roads. The car starts itself when you push the brake. You can toggle back & forth from EV to HEV mode with the former great for short trips & the latter more suited to longer journeys. The Omoda 7 handles poor road surfaces well thanks to soft suspension as it’s clearly set up for comfort & not thrills.
An 11.2 m turning circle & the all-around camera aided a three-point turn, which we did thanks to a massive HGV blocking a narrow B road on our route. The steering is light & doesn’t offer much feel  & over a series of rolling road, the car floats rather than hugs the tarmac, basically because it’s an SUV. A useful tip is to set the cars energy recovery to max & as we did & on a circular 30 mile route we added 20% to the battery range, which is always good news.
Driving on the motorway
We didn’t travel far, about 10 miles along the M40 but it was fine especially as we turned off Lane Departure, Driver Attention & Speed Sign Recognition.The cruise control is easy enough to engage but if you do leave Lane Assist on it does pull the car around too much for our liking. Nonetheless it was quiet & relaxing at 70mph & we’re sure would be a great companion on a longer journey.
Pros
Space for five adults. Bigger boot than Tiggo 7 & Jaecoo 7 PHEV’s. Comfortable.BIK of 9% to tempt company car drivers. Competitively priced.
Cons
Not that different to the Tiggo 7 or Jaecoo 7. Too much is controlled through the touchscreen. Predictably dull driving dynamics.
Verdict
If we could choose between the 7’s; Chery, Omoda & Jaecoo, we’d rank the Omoda first. Why ? We think it looks better & we love that massive boot. Furthermore, the cars quality is at least as good as the Jaecoo & the scented interior for us was a hit.
Is it exciting ? No. Interesting to look at ? No. Will it suit the average British SUV customer ? A definite yes & while we’re at it, should company car drivers who need a large five-seat SUV consider the Omoda 7 ?  Coming so well equipped & at such a low price we’d say yes again.
An O O Seven not a Magnificent Seven  3.5/5

About Andrew Walker

Andrew 'Max' Walker is a member of the Northern Group of Motoring Writers & has been reviewing cars & vans since 1991. He has supplied stories for Fleet North, MSA Newslink, Health Fleet Management, Local Authority Fleet Manager & various Chamber of Commerce & lifestyle publications. He launched Company Car & Van in April 2010 specifically for SME fleets, who are the backbone of the UK economy. His favourite car of all time is the original Citroen DS & like most motoring writers, he loves to drive a van.