Fuel-sipping Jaecoo J7 plug-in hybrid arrives in Mzansi
The SHS has arrived in SA as the new petrol-electric version of the Jaecoo J7 midsize SUV, and one of the most affordable plug-in hybrids in its segment. The first of several new electrified models from the Chinese brand, the new flagship SHS grows the J7 line-up to four variants after Jaecoo, sister brand of Chery, made its SA debut in April 2024.
The J7 has been available as a 1.6 petrol turbo model with front wheel drive and outputs of 145kW and 290Nm.
SHS is short for Super Hybrid System and combines a turbocharged 1.5 l petrol engine and an electric motor. The total outputs of 255kW and 525Nm are sent to the road via all-wheel drive.
A dedicated hybrid transmission drives the wheels with different modes and is able to control the balance between energy consumption and performance. Jaecoo claims the vehicle sips only 5 l /100km and has 90km of pure electric drive range, and has a 1,200km combined driving range on a single tank with a fully charged battery.
In my week-long test drive on a mix of urban and open roads, the J7 SHS averaged 5.2 l /100km, which was very close to the factory claim and an impressively low figure for a car of this size and power.
The 18.3 kWh lithium iron phosphate battery can be charged from 30% to 80% in only 20 minutes using a DC fast charger. It takes about two-and-a-half hours to charge at an AC public charger, or overnight on a regular 240V home socket.
When fully charged the battery initially drained quickly, but once it got down to about 30% the car's energy recuperation system kept it at around that level, meaning we didn't have to plug it in to charge it.
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