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OMODA and JAECOO, the two new global brands from the Chery Group, were recently put through their paces by over 100 media members from across the globe. The media were hosted by Brand O&J in Wuhu, China, on 22 April where the company set up 10 extremely challenging test drive courses in three experience zones for the media to test.
“The best and fastest way to convince media about the quality and capabilities of your new vehicles is to let them drive the test tracks and obstacles that you would normally use to test your vehicle prototypes,” says Tony Liu, Executive Deputy General Manager for Brand O&J in South Africa.
Media from over 30 countries and regions were present at the vehicle tests in Wuhu, where the company laid out three zones spanning a massive 40 000 square metres. The areas each had different driving tracks that tested high speed and handling, straight-line acceleration and, for the JAECOO models, off-road performance.
In between these three zones, the company’s test engineers added several real-world driving simulations, including a U-turn simulation and two winding tracks that were designed to put both car and driver out of their comfort zone.
“The tracks were designed to exacting global standards, and the attending journalists could see for themselves how well the OMODA and JAECOO models performed. Our guests left with a lasting impression of the design and build quality and performance of our vehicles,” says Liu.
One of the most popular tracks at the Brand O&J Experience was the off-road track, where journalists had the opportunity to experience the JAECOO 7 for the very first time.
This track included all the staple off-road tests, including obstacles to test both axles at the same time (double-axle escapes), cross-axle ruts, sharp mounds to test approach, departure and breakover angles and side-slopes for include and lean-over tests.
While the JAECOO was new to all attending journalists, the OMODA C5 was more familiar. Many journalists have had the opportunity to drive this vehicle in their home markets, yet they left with a new impression of its handling and performance capabilities.
In post-event feedback, journalists reported their good impressions of the OMODA C5 and its surging power and good handling from its solid chassis.
The OMODA C5 has an independent suspension with a MacPherson-strut set-up on the front axle and a multilink rear suspension system. This system proved flawless on the S-bend test and showed its impressive damping capabilities on the vibration track.
During the high-speed tests, the journalists also reported their strong positive impressions of the 1.6 turbo GDI engine, which delivers rapid acceleration in all driving conditions. This, matched with the suspension and sharp steering, made the OMODA C5 a firm favourite during the test day.
While all the focus was on the driving experience, OMODA did showcase its first production-ready electric vehicle, the OMODA C5 EV. This pure electric model was available for static evaluation and it exhibited some unique interface and design innovations.
“At the end of the day, the journalists left with a good grasp of the quality of our vehicles and their capabilities, both on and off the track. We trust that they also left with optimism about the future of OMODA and JAECOO, both in terms of our design language and upcoming products such as the OMODA C5 EV,” says Liu.
