Omoda C9 makes its point as ‘new’ standard in Chinese luxury

The Omoda C9 was a surprise debutant at the Kyalami Festival of Motoring two years ago none of the local media had predicted of the then-new Chery-owned brand.

We meet again

A rebadged version of Wuhu’s premium Exeed brand’s Yaoguang, known in other export markets as the Exeed RX, the second Omoda model after the C5 would become a frequent topic of discussion throughout 2024.

This includes an exclusive drive of the Russian-spec left-hand-drive model shown at Kyalami in January, before a preview drive of a South African market right-hand-drive prototype in June.

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Launched officially in October, the first proper drive of the C9 pre-dated its premiere in another exclusive for The Citizen weeks before.

While the most premium product in the entire Chery product portfolio for now – an accolade it could soon hand over to sister brand Jaecoo’s six-seat J8 – the svelte-looking C9 made an immediate impression during the pre-launch drive, which involved the two-wheel-drive Inspire variant.

No sooner had its unveiling and jaw-dropping sticker price been revealed, a fourth meet-and-greet was scheduled, this time with the flagship Explore that features the all-wheel-drive system from the Chery Tiggo 8 Pro Max AWD.

Clad in a soft blue-esque shade called Moonlight White, the second most expensive Chinese SUV in South African after the ladder-frame GWM Tank 500 continued to impress, but also frustrate in several areas where products from the People’s Republic are still lacking compared to many Western offerings.

Styling success

Not applicable to the latter, the C9 makes itself known in the area most Chinese products do before a gander at the price tag is made; appearance.

While similar to the Range Rover Velar as per Chery’s partnership with the former’s parent company JLR, the C9, when viewed on its own merits, represents possibly the best-looking Chinese vehicle on-sale in South Africa today.

Not as futuristic as the C5 but not as chunky as the Jaecoo products, the coupé-styled C9 looks dramatic and stylish, with the comparatively large rear overhang being another deliberate key highlighting hint.

Premium hits and misses

Opening the doors via the flush pop-out handles reveals, arguably, the C9’s main drawing card; an interior packed with luxury and tech, but also not lacking in quality.

Making a case for perhaps the plushest interior of any Chinese car in South Africa, fit-and-finish felt on par with some German brands with a combination of soft-touch plastics and leather, and a well devised balance of piano-key black finishes and imitation brushed aluminium inserts that didn’t feel as plasticky as expected.

It doesn’t stop there as the Explore swaps-out the Inspire’s leather seats for Nappa-leather trimmed chairs which, apart from being heated, electric and ventilated, feature speakers integrated into the headrests as part of the 12-speaker Sony sound system.

Outfitted with the type of cushions reminiscent of the Malaise-era personal luxury car trend in North America, the soft seat adds another “tick” to the C9’s premium box, aided by the rear chairs that also feature electric adjustability and heating.

Although lacking the ottoman function for the front passenger seat displayed by the Kyalami prototype, the so-called “boss” remains. In essence, this allows it, when not in use, to be moved completely as a means of aiding legroom for those not seated behind the driver.

In truth, this can be seen as overkill as space, both legroom and headroom-wise, is such that feeling cramped is unlikely to materialise regardless of the position of the front chairs.

As alluded to earlier, the comparatively big rear overhang justifies itself by revealing a 660-litre boot that extends to 1 783-litres with the rear seats folded flat.

Inviting and modern as it is – with the sound system being of the best in any current Chery product – the interior isn’t perfect, with the main point of content being the infotainment system that makes-up part of the dual 12.3-inch displays with the instrument cluster.

Running an updated version of Chery’s current software, the system is not the most user-friendly, with too many sub-menus and fiddly overall usage.

What’s more, the touch-sensitive buttons on the steering wheel proved finicky and the position of the volume “dial” on the outer side of the screen too much of a stretch as it clearly has been set-up for left-hand-drive markets and not relocated for right-hooking nations.

Despite the welcome retention of the periscope-style physical knobs for the climate control and drive mode selector, the main functions for the former also reside within the display, which proved just as frustrating and not as intuitive as an “analogue” layout.

As with the Tiggo 7 Pro Max AWD that served as our long-termer last year, and indeed most other Chery products, the rear-view mirror simply couldn’t be get used with the same applying to the extra reach required to work the infotainment system itself.

Packed means packed

Unsurprisingly, the C9 wins background, a lot, on the specification front. Besides the items mentioned, the Inspire comes standard with a panoramic sunroof, a pair of wireless smartphone chargers recessed above the massive lidded floating centre console, an electric tailgate, ambient lighting, a three-scent fragrance dispenser, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and used significantly throughout the seven days, remote engine start plus the Hello Omoda voice recognition system.

On the safety side, the C9 Inspire isn’t found lacking either, as the LED headlights feature Auto High Beam Assist and a somewhat gimmicky music rhythm light-up sequence.

Also standard is a Head-Up Display, front and rear parking sensors, Adaptive Cruise Control, Blind Spot Monitoring, Rear Cross Traffic Alert with Reverse Automatic Braking, Lead Vehicle Alert, Lane Keep Assist, Lane Departure Warning and a 540-degree camera system that surprises with its resolution.

In a welcome departure from other Chinese products, the C9 allows for some of the systems to be switched off entirely.

Frustratingly though, this doesn’t extend to the Driver Attention Alert which continuously bongs with the same “you have been distracted for too long” readout regardless of whether one scrolls through the infotainment system or checks the mirrors.

Drive not up to scratch

The biggest grip of the C9 though remains a familiar one as for all its luxury and tech, it is comprised on the driveability front to the detriment of an engine unable to deliver its true potential.

Carried over from the Tiggo 8 Pro Max AWD, the 2.0 T-GDI has been uprated to produce 192 kW and, as per the badge on the tailgate, 400 Nm of torque.

Unfortunately, the typical Chinese vehicle throttle calibration lag means the C9 is slow to respond, before coming alive potently once the lag has subsided.

Compounding matters further is the column shift activated eight-speed automatic gearbox. Selected specifically for South Africa, the ‘box suffers from the same calibration issues and while slick at slow speeds, became indecisive at higher speeds and tended to hunt badly often between sixth, seventh and eighth gear.

For the Explore, Omoda has upped the drive mode count to seven with the Eco, Normal and Sport from the Inspire being joined by Snow, Sand, Mud and Off-Road.

Although no attempts were made to sample the new additions, spells in Sport mode drove the message home further that the engine feels unjustifiably hamstrung in moving C9’s 1 876 kg mass with greater ease than subjected to.

Dynamics and consumption

Fortunately, this hasn’t spilled over to ride quality. The first Chery product in South Africa to feature Continues Damping Control, the automatically adaptive dampers have undergone noticeable revisions from the South African-spec prototype driven in June.

Although still a touch on the floaty side, the ride is cosseting, refined and more than up to the ask of making rippled sections feel smooth. However, care will still have to be taken to avoid damaging the fetching 20-inch wheels.

What has, however, stayed the same is the overly electric power steering that lacks in feel, and the need for improved brakes as the stoppers of the test unit, which admittedly only had 49 km on its clock, felt way too spongy and with more than the usual middle pedal input needed to bring the C9 to a stop.

As for fuel consumption, the need to “run” the C9 wasn’t taken lightly as 579 km eventually passed underneath its wheels.

The eventual indicated consumption came to a best of nine-litres per 100 km, not far from Omoda’s 8.5 L/100 km claim.

Conclusion

“Fine-tuning” has been a term widely used to describe the majority of Chinese vehicles throughout 2024 with the Omoda C9 being no exception.

Although improved significantly from the prototypes, the niggles associated with the tech and driveability all conspire to ruin a product easily capable of putting a significant dent in the monthly sales figures of established brands.

Simply put, the C9 Explore’s R885 900 asking price makes it an incredible value proposition a comparative European or Japanese will struggle and probably fail to match.

With its various foibles therefore sorted out, the potential to do exactly that will only become greater and result in the C9 becoming a serious segment player.

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