2022 Chery Omoda 5 EV Coming To Malaysia - Under RM200k?

Barely a week ago, Chery had opened bookings for their newest compact SUV in its home market of China, for the bold looking Omoda 5. With the imminent arrival of a fully electric version, they’ve turned to Malaysians to gauge interest.

Chery itself has been plotting a strong return to market with the Omoda 5 being used as a spearhead to capture new customers, but it seems we might rank pretty highly on the automaker’s regional priorities if the as-yet-unreleased EV variation is on the horizon.

Chery Omoda 5 EV - Early Specs

The ‘official’ OMODA 5 Fans Malaysia page on Facebook was set up by Chery Malaysia back in late March, but has most recently set up an online survey that also shed new light on its zero-emissions powertrain.

Its tentative specifications read very closely to that of the Hyundai Kona Electric in the range-topping e-Max guise. Like the Korean crossover, the Chery uses a single electric motor to motivate the front wheels with 204PS and 400Nm (395Nm in the Hyundai).

As its underlying vehicle platform allows for multiple powertrain types, its floor has been hollowed out to accommodate a 64kWh battery that, according to the automaker, should yield a maximum range of 450km based on the WTLP test cycle.

Performance details were not shared though we are expecting it to be pretty brisk around town. That said, Chery did disclose the projected charging wait times with a 0-80% charge capable within 40 minutes from a DC fast charger. Meanwhile, 5 hours are needed for ‘slow charging’, which we take to mean when plugged into a public AC charger/ wallbox (11kW is assumed).

The Omoda 5 EV is also confirmed to measure 4,374mm from nose tip to tail, is 1,824mm wide, and is 1,585mm tall while sporting a wheelbase of 2,630mm. By every dimensional measure, the Chery is markedly larger than the Kona Electric to which it shares very similar powertrain characteristics.

450km - Range Cukup Tak?

Speaking of which, though the car pictured here is not the final version of the electric variant, it has been confirmed that visual distinctions between the combustion-powered variants “will not be major.”

It's hard to gauge exactly when the Omoda 5 will be making its Malaysian debut, though we can probably hazard a guess at it being near the closing months of 2022. Harder still is trying to predict if the style-focused SUV will be arriving in combustion-only form or will be joined by the EV version from the start.

Things are definitely heating up in the Malaysian market as more Chinese automakers contend for the favour of our active car-buying population. Separately, GAC (with the GS3) has entered the arena, Great Wall Motors has announced an ambitious rollout, and Geely cars have infiltrated our roads via Proton for years now. We’ll keep you all posted if we hear anything more.