Changan and Deepal brands officially approved for South Africa

Ahead of the imminent return of Geely after more than two decades, Saudi Arabian-based Jameel Motors has announced its first foray into South Africa from the fourth quarter of the year as the importer for Changan and Deepal products.

An announcement made on Monday (31 March) in Rosebank, Johannesburg, that takes South Africa’s Chinese vehicle manufacturer count to 15 after BYD, Chery, Dayun, Dongfeng, Foton, Great Wall Motors (GWM) Haval, JAC, Jaecoo, Jetour, GAC Motor, LDV, MG and Omoda, the two-pronged market approach will see Changan focus largely on combustion engine products, and Deepal on mostly electric vehicles.

A new name

One of Saudi Arabia’s oldest automotive companies known for its links with Toyota, Jameel has since also established ties with Lexus, BYD, GAC Motor, Geely, MG and now Changan/Deepal, as well as Ford in no less than 10 markets.

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The importer for the mentioned brands in various African countries, namely Egypt and Algeria, its arrival in South Africa will be gradual as initially, it will operate mainly in the larger cities with Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban being key points.

Accordingly, it plans to open a maximum of 35 dealers by 2027, although unlike Chery with its Jetour and Omoda & Jaecoo divisions, neither Changan nor Deepal will be sold separately from different dealers as individual brands.

Coming in 2025

Changan

Arriving first, the initial range of Changan vehicles, a brand better known as Chana that marketed the Suzuki Carry-aping Star bakkie and Rainbow panel van, as well as the tiny Benni hatch over two decades ago, will consist of three radically different products in the form of an SUV, bakkie and compact sedan.

CS75 Pro

Introduced last year as a step-up from the CS75 that debuted in 2019, the Changan X7 will formerly adopt the CS75 Pro moniker as part of its first mid-life update introduced earlier this year.

Providing seating for five, the unibody CS75 Pro has an overall length of 4 742 mm, height of 1 720 mm, width of 1 870 mm and wheelbase of 2 786 mm.

Initially sold under Changan’s now-discontinued Oshan brand, it will derive power from an in-house made 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol engine producing 138kW/300Nm. Drive will go to the front wheels through a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission.

Alsvin

At the other end of the scale, the Alsvin sedan will take-up station as the de facto replacement for the discontinued Nissan Almera, and the direct rival to the Honda Amaze, Kia Pegas, and Suzuki DZire.

Introduced in its current third generation guise in 2017, but with a series of revisions applied since then, the Alsvin measures 4 390 mm long, 1 725 mm wide, and 1 490 mm tall.

In both China and Pakistan where production commenced three years ago, the Alsvin offers a choice of two normally aspirated petrol engines, both approved for South Africa; a 1.4 developing 74kW/135Nm and 1.5 outputting 77kW/145Nm.

The standard transmission for the former is a five-speed manual, with the latter getting a five-speed dual-clutch as its only option.

Hunter

For its third and final model, Changan will introduce its version of the Peugeot Landtrek known in the People’s Republic as the Hunter.

Not expected to compete direct with the Landtrek that will be build locally from 2026, the Hunter comes with the same dimensions, but will only be sold as a double cab powered by the same 110kW/350Nm 1.9-litre turbodiesel engine connected to a six-speed automatic gearbox.

Deepal

On the Deepal side, a marque that produced its first new energy vehicle in 2017, the S07 debuts two years after going on-sale in China, and less than 12 months after its first revision.

Unveiled in Australia this year, the five-seat S07 has an overall length of 4 750 mm, width of 1 930 mm, height of 1 625 mm and wheelbase of 2 900 mm.

Its ground clearance standing at 145 mm, the S07 makes uses of an 80-kWh battery pack that drives a single electric motor on the rear axle.

Producing 160kW/320Nm, the Australian-market S07 will get from 0-100 km/h in 7.9 seconds and travel 475 km between visits to the plug.

Supporting DC charging up to 92 kW, which will reduce waiting time to 35 minutes from 30-80%, the S07 will, however, have a seven kilowatt on-board charger as standard that will require eight hours waiting using a conventional AC outlet.

Plans for 2026

Changan

Entering 2026, the Changan range will grow by four additional vehicles; a fully electric bakkie, a range-extending electric bakkie and two combustion engine SUVs.

Positioned below the CS75 Pro, the CS35 Plus will become Changan’s entry-level SUV, but also oldest as it went on-sale in 2018 before adopting its current look four years ago as part of a mid-life facelift.

Measuring 4 335 mm long, 1 825 mm high and 1 660 mm tall with its wheelbase rated at 2 600 mm, the Mercedes-Benz GLB-inspired CS35 Plus is motivated by the same 1.4-litre engine as the Alsvin, but with the addition of a turbocharger that ups power and torque to 118kW/260Nm.

The only transmission option is a seven-speed dual-clutch, with drive again going to the front wheels.

For its final roll-out, the CS55 Plus will take-up station between the CS35 Plus and CS75 Plus as Changan’s rival for the Chery Tiggo 7 Pro and incoming facelift GWM Haval H6.

A unibody SUV with five seats similar to its siblings, the CS55 Plus stands 4 515 mm long, 1 856 mm wide and 1 680 mm tall. Its wheelbase is 2 656 mm.

Unsurprisingly, it utilises the same engine as the CS75 Plus and with the same 138kW/300Nm outputs. The seven-speed dual-clutch ‘box is again the only gearbox only.

Deepal

On the Deepsal side, an electric B-segment SUV will be made available, along with a bigger C-segment SUV in both electric and range-extending guises. For now, details about both are unknown.

More soon

“By leveraging Jameel Motors’ extensive experience and Changan Automobile’s renowned focus on safety, quality, and technology, I believe we can effectively meet the diverse automotive demands of South African drivers and deliver a positive market experience,” Jameel Motors South Africa Country Manager, Marinus Venter, said.

Given Jameel’s arrival only before end, pricing and specification of the various Changan and Deepal products will only be announced then.

Additional information from Changan Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, and autohome.co.cn.

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