This Chinese SUV Was The UK's Best Selling Car Last Month

The UK's best-selling car last month wasn't a small, European-made diesel hatchback or even a luxurious British SUV. Well, it kind of looks like the latter. The Jaecoo 7, a Chinese SUV widely known as the "Temu Range Rover," found over 10,800 buyers in September, according to the UK's Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.

It's the model's second monthly sales crown this year. Last month, the 7 edged out the Tesla Model 3, Ford Puma, and Kia Sportage for the top spot. 

Chinese vehicles are finding support in the UK, claiming 23% of September's market share, according to Bloomberg. Jaecoo took 4.3% of the market, Chery (which is Jaecoo's parent company but also sells cars under its own brand) claimed 2.8%, and BYD sold 5.75% of light-duty cars, according to the SMMT data.

Photo by: Chery

Chinese automakers are also seeing success as sales of electric vehicles more broadly boom in the UK. In September, battery-electric vehicles made up 28.3% of the UK car market, up five percentage points from September of last year. Plug-in hybrids came in at 17% of the market, an increase of 4.8 percentage points, SMMT says.

It isn't hard to see why the UK would be so fond of the the 7. It looks strikingly similar to a Range Rover Velar—hence the slightly rude nickname. 

The Jaecoo 7 was the UK's best-selling car in September, edging out the Ford Puma and Tesla Model 3.

Photo by: Jaecoo

With a starting price of around £30,000, the Jaecoo 7 undercuts the Velar by about £26,000. With similar looks and a luxurious interior, the Chinese-made SUV is a no-brainer for many customers. It gives them the posh look and opulence they want, at normie prices. It also helps that the UK lacks the Chinese car tariffs the European Union has, so Chinese brands can offer attractive prices few other countries can match.

Additionally, the Jaecoo 7 comes as a plug-in hybrid, proving how popular such models have become in the UK. Plug-in hybrid sales increased by 55.7% in September, according to Autocar, with a total of 59,563 new registrations. Affordable hybrids like the Jaecoo 7 are a big part of that.

Things aren't all sunshine and rainbows for the Chinese Range Rover lookalike, though. According to What Car, the Jaecoo 7 was among the 10 least reliable cars in the UK this year. Most of its issues seem to stem from non-powertrain electronics, and 65% of customers with issues saw repair times take longer than a week. So sometimes the cheaper route isn't always best.

However, the Jaecoo 7's success does indicate that UK customers are more than willing to buy Chinese vehicles and plug-in hybrids.

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