ANOTHER Chinese auto maker is setting out its stall in the UK with the arrival of Omoda to the British market.

Omoda is part of the giant Chery group - China's largest car exporter - and its first vehicle to reach here is the 5 SUV available either with a petrol engine or an all-electric powertrain.

That's part of a brand philosophy to give drivers what they want in terms of and with the petrol model priced from £25,035 and the electric £33,055 they are certainly competitive.

They also come with a seven-year/100,000-mile warranty as standard and already there are some 60 Omoda dealerships in the UK with a target of more than 100 by the end of 2024.

We have just sampled both petrol and electric versions of the 5 and in typical Chinese fashion they are well built, well equipped and do the job adequately.

The Omoda 5 has a 1.6-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine that produces 183bhp allowing for a performance of 0-62 mph in 7.9 seconds and a top speed of 128 mph.

Drive is sent to the front wheels via a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission while the electric E5 has a 204bhp motor and a 61 kWh ‘blade' battery that comes with an eight-year warranty.

Performance is an acceleration time of 7.6 seconds and the range is claimed to be 257 miles on a full charge with an 80 per cent recharge time of 28 minutes.

Two trims are being offered - Comfort and Noble - with the higher specification versions priced from £27,035 and £34,555 respectively.

Subtle differences set the two vehicles apart - the EV has a solid front as opposed to the rather intricate grille design of the petrol model and inside the layout of the controls and instruments is very different but both have the same fair-sized boot at 380 litres extending to 1,075 litres with the rear seats folded.

On the EV more storage space is available with a ‘frunk' under the bonnet while it gets 12.3-inch twin display screens as opposed to a 10.5-inch set-up on the petrol cars.

It also has a row of buttons for commonly-used features, such as climate control, integrated into the centre console while the petrol 5 has a wireless phone charger for two phones ahead of the gear shift,

The E5 also comes with a head-up display and pound-for-pound is comprehensively kitted out compared to some other electric SUVs.

On the road there are few complaints from either of the Omodas. Both ride competently and there's little noise penetrating the cockpit from the outside. There's also a choice of drive modes to help get the most from the car.

Omoda says the suspension set-ups have been tuned from European roads and certainly they can handle the bumps and holes found in Britain in satisfactory fashion.

The EV was slightly more responsive to the throttle despite being a heavier vehicle tipping the scales at slightly more than 2.2 tonnes but realistically there is nothing lacking from either powertrain.

Fuel economy from the petrol engine is rated officially at 31.4mpg with emissions of 170g/km but that appeared to be very conservative and we managed to average more than 38 to the gallon with ease.

The E5 can power external devices such as kettles, cookers and fridges, thanks to the battery's vehicle-to-load capability.

Noble models on both types also have a 360-degree surround view camera and powered tailgate while driver aids include adaptive cruise control, traffic jam assist, lane change assist, lane departure warning, blind spot detection, forward collision warning, autonomous emergency braking, rear cross traffic brake, and door open warning which have helped them attain a five-star Euro NCAP safety rating.

The only let down was with the vanity mirrors inside the sun vizors which has a rather flimsy-looking drop-down cover but overall Omoda's strength is in its build quality and finish with plenty of strength to the body and some fine detail in the materials used.

That makes the Omoda 5 and E5 sound propositions as newcomers to the UK scene - and one that given the resources of Chery means that these newcomers are just the beginning.

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