2024 Chery Omoda E5: electric SUV unlikely to undercut BYD Atto 3's price

The 2024 Chery Omoda E5 – an all-electric version of the Chinese brand’s small SUV – is due in the second half of the year to rival the BYD Atto 3 and MG ZS EV.

Chery Australia has confirmed it’ll offer the Omoda E5 in two variants – Standard and Premium – with a front-mounted 150kW/340Nm electric motor and a 61kWh lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) battery pack.

The Omoda E5 has a WLTP-rated driving range of up to 430 kilometres (15.5kWh/100km), and a claimed 7.6-second 0-100km/h acceleration time. The Chinese-made electric SUV can charge from 10 to 80 per cent in 30 minutes at up to 110kW DC.

This article, originally published on 19 February, has been updated with new information.

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Speaking to Wheels at the Omoda E5's reveal, managing director Lucas Harris did not reveal the price of the new electric SUV.

However, the brand reinforced its ethos and indicated where the fleet-oriented base E5 might start. When asked whether Chery is likely to engage in price wars as BYD did with its Dolphin, Harris was quick to rule this out as an option.

"Chery has never really been about providing cheap cars, and we're certainly not interested in being cheap and cheerful. For us. It's really about making sure that what we're doing is good value", said Mr Harris.

As a reference, the BYD Atto 3 Extended and MG ZS EV Long Range with similar performance and battery sizes list at between $50,000-$55,000 before on-road costs.

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We therefore expect the base Omoda E5 to start a little above $50K, with the flagship priced closer to $60K.

Like its combustion-engined models, Chery wants to have drive-away prices though with varied incentives and taxes across each Australia state, Mr Harris admitted this may prove challenging.

"Certainly for a new brand like [Chery], we think it's quite important to have that drive-away pricing, which gives the maximum transparency for customers".

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Confirmed equipment for the Omoda E5 includes a 12.3-inch curved infotainment system, a digital instrument cluster, a panoramic sunroof, and a “wealth of exterior and interior colour options”.

Like its MG ZS EV rival, the Omoda E5 sits on a converted internal-combustion engine platform – sharing the same underpinnings as the petrol Omoda 5 available in Australia since early 2023.

This makes the Omoda E5 different from other, value-oriented Chinese-built EVs including the BYD Atto 3, MG 4 and Tesla Model 3, which use dedicated electric vehicle architectures.

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Design differences compared with the petrol Omoda 5 include a smoother front end with longer and more angular LED daytime running lights and restyled headlights.

It also features more aerodynamic-looking wheels and a different rear bumper without fake plastic exhaust tips.

Inside, the Omoda E5's architecture is distinctly different from petrol models with the brand saying around 90 per cent of the cabin parts are new for the EV.

Chery re-launched in Australia in 2023 with the petrol Omoda 5 small SUV, which is priced from $32,990 drive-away. Its line-up has since expanded with the five-seat Tiggo 7 Pro and seven-seat Tiggo 8 Pro Max medium SUVs, as well as more powerful and all-wheel-drive versions of the Omoda 5.

Details of the 2024 Chery Omoda E5, including local pricing and features, will be confirmed closer to its launch in the second half of the year.