One of South Africa’s favourite Chinese automakers has reaffirmed that it is developing a new bakkie to take on the likes of the Toyota Hilux and Ford Ranger.
The as-yet-unnamed Chery double cab is only expected to be unveiled no sooner than 12 months from now, so the finer details are still scarce.
Be that as it may, more information is making it into the public arena day by day.
Plug-in hybrid power
The new Chery bakkie will be focused more on the lifestyle segment as it’s mainly being developed as a double cab, though lower-spec single- and extended-cab silhouettes are not off the table, writes Brazil’s Motor1.com.
It will be based on a monocoque design unlike the ladder-frame-chassis Hilux and Ranger so comfort levels should be at the higher end of the bakkie spectrum, however, ladder-frame setups are usually preferred for off-roading applications so it will be interesting to see how the Chery stacks up in this arena.
Thus far, its designers have divulged that the bakkie will take inspiration from Chery’s current stable of sleek-looking SUVs, so it will no doubt give the segment favourites a run for their money in the styling department just as models like the Tiggo 8 Pro SUV have done to its better-established rivals.
Chery Tiggo 8 Pro Max
The Chery bakkie will feature a variety of drivetrains including petrol, plug-in hybrid (PHEV), and eventually fully electric, but diesel seems to be ruled out at the moment.
“We don’t have any diesel engines in any of our vehicles at the moment, so it’s hard to imagine a diesel pick-up for Chery,” Chery Australia chief operating officer Lucas Harris told carsales.
“But a PHEV is a little more imaginable.”
The mention of a PHEV makes things a bit more interesting, as it suggests Chery’s bakkie will be targeting the Shark, another upcoming Chinese double cab from one of its biggest rivals BYD.
The Shark boasts a 1.5-litre, turbo-petrol engine combined with a rear electric motor for a total system potential of 320kW, a figure that Chery is likely eyeing to match or surpass.
Chery could look inward for a power source as it already has a PHEV option in its stable fitted to sub-brand Jaecoo’s J7 and J8.
The J7 combines a 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol engine with an electric motor to produce 255kW and 525Nm, while a large battery affords an electric driving range of 88km.
The J8 PHEV uses the same 1.5-litre combustion engine but features two e-motors, giving it an impressive total of 445kW and 912Nm to play with.
BYD Shark
South African launch looking likely
Speaking to Australia’s carsales, Harris mentioned that South Africa is on Chery’s radar as a bakkie-mad market, though he didn’t outright say that it would be coming to local shores.
When quizzed about the possible introduction to Australia, Harris said that a monocoque bakkie likely wouldn’t be as well received Down Under as it would be here.
“So pure speculation would be, think about some markets like South Africa and like South East Asia where monocoque chassis pick-ups are quite popular, but something like that maybe wouldn’t be as popular here potentially,” Harris said.
It’s guaranteed that he knows something we don’t, but the mere mention of the domestic market seems that Chery is at least mulling over the idea of a South African launch for its upcoming bakkie.
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