Exeed premium brand still TBC for Australia
BY MATT BROGAN | 16th May 2024
CHERY will not be adding the Exeed sub-brand to its stable in Australia anytime soon, based on comments from the company’s local chief operating officer.
Speaking with GoAuto at the launch of the new seven-seat Chery Tiggo 8 Pro Max, Lucas Harris said the business is not yet looking to add Exeed to its fast-expanding raft of offerings in the Australian market.
“No, is the short answer,” Mr Harris responded when asked if Exeed is coming here.
“I think there's a niche market for it,” he said.
“So, the two new Exeed models, the sedan and the SUV, they're EV only, and they're super premium,” Mr Harris said, referring to the high-end fully-electric Sterra ES sedan and the Sterra ET SUV.
The Sterra ES is a large sedan, measuring up similarly to a Mercedes EQE sedan at 4945mm long, and it is offered with a range of powertrains with up to 353kW for the dual-motor range-topper.
Exeed also claims up to 905km of driving range on the CLTC test cycle for the CATL-sourced 97.7kWh LFP battery model.
The Sterra ET, only just been revealed, has similar claimed figures with 350kW of power, 530km of WLTP-rated range, and a 0-100km/h time of 4.5 seconds for the battery electric model.
Mr Harris made it clear that those models, should they be considered for the Australian market, would be playing at a higher price point due to the fit, finish, technology and design on offer.
In other words, they would be playing in the $60,000-$90,000 bracket, which Chery Motor Australia is not ready to enter just yet.
“The fit and finish is excellent, the materials are beautiful. So I really would love to see them in Australia and I think they're a good alternative option for a premium EV,” Mr Harris said.
He did, however, make it clear that it’s not a “never” situation for the Exeed model range, and left the door open for a future introduction for the brand into the market once Chery has its Tiggo, Omoda and Jaecoo brands firing.
“It's probably a little bit down the track once we've got a few other things established,” he said.
Chery Motor Australia has big model plans, with the Tiggo range now expanded to include the Tiggo 7 Pro and Tiggo 8 Pro Max, while the Tiggo 9 is also on the radar and likely due in 2025.
The Omoda line-up will expand with the all-electric E5 model in the coming months, too, with an expected sub-$50K starting price for that version of the distinctive Omoda 5 small SUV.
