WeeklySA_AdminUBER LUXURIOUS: The new flagship crossover C9 raises the luxury ante with pop-out door handles, augmented-reality (AR) navigation and facial recognition
By Ali Mphaki
As a start, it comes with a quartet of pipes, what we call “four pipes” in the kasie. Add a borderless grille that incoprorates distinct diamond shapes, flush exterior door handles and stylish alloy wheels – the styling can only be exceptional.
And when the package is wrapped in an eye-catching coupe-like silhoutte – complete with a dramatically sloping fastback-style roofline – it is the new five-seater Omoda C9, set to shake up South Africa’s luxury SUV market.
The exterior styling may have echoes of a certain Rover, or even another Lexus, though a quick peek inside the vehicle show the kind of luxury associated with premium brands like the BMW 7-Series or even Merc’s S-Class.
The front passenger seat, for instance, has a fold-out leg rest, both front and rear occupants get seats that are powered, heated and ventilated, while those up front get to enjoy a massage function.
As to be expected, the Omoda C9 interior is a cloth above its younger sibling, the Omoda 5, and this is where are welcomed by a very pleasing curved aesthetic with full leather upholstery and trim and a large 24.6 (or two 12.3-inch displays ) for driver’s display and infotainment duties – with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, of course.
There’s the requisite panoramic sunroof, 50W wireless charger, a 540-degree all-round view monitor, 14-speaker sound system by Sony, powered/heated front seats (ventilated and heated) power-adjustable rear seats (heated), and even paddle shifters.
On the safety front, there is no compromise when it comes to the Omoda which is endowed with quite an extensive list of ADAS features including Autonomous Emergency Braking, blind spot monitoring, and lane keep assist.
There is also stability control, airbags and a host of driving assistance systems including automatic headlights, rain-sensing wipers, adaptive cruise control (ACC), forward-collision warning, emergency braking, blind spot detection (BSD), lane keeping and rear cross-traffic alert.
Boot space is galore at a commodious 660-litres, expandable to almost 1,800-litres the rear seats collapsed. A full-sized spare wheel beneath the boot floor, also wearing one of those Michelin tyres – enough for the manufacturer to boldly make the claim – “Uber Luxurious” with Chinese characteristics.
Underneath the bonnet is a turbocharged 2.0-litre petrol with 197kW and 400Nm feeding all-wheel drive via an eight-speed automatic transmission.
Local buyers will also get to choose between front-wheel drive and all-wheel drive variants. As the most expensive Omoda to date, the C9 is indeed a sleek surprise from Chery’s premium brand.
Omoda says the C9 and lookalike sister battery-assisted E9 PHEV will also be joined in 2025 by another crossover, the C7. This also has an E7 PHEV equivalent.
You might be wondering what is the meaning of the word Omoda, the manufacturer says it derives from Oxygen and Moda, meaning modern.
But from where I am standing, it is the likes of Kia Sportage, Toyota RAV4, Hyundai Tucson, Peugeot 5008, Volkswagen Tiguan, and even the Toyota Fortuner who will be waiting to exhale.
The list price for the Omoda C9 2.0T GDI 400T Inspire is R785 900, while the C9 2.0T GDI 400T Explore AWD model will set you back R885 900. There’s a special launch price for October (2024) where you get R25 000 off on both models.
Motoring: Briefs
NEW VW BUS
VW has unveiled the all-new Tayron, which will replace the popular seven-seater Tiguan Allspace. VW South Africa confirmed to TopAuto that the Tayron is heading to our shores, with the first units to arrive between July and September 2025. “The Volkswagen Tayron is set to join our local lineup in Q3 2025 offering customers a new level of sophistication and driving excitement,” said the automaker. “Further details including specifications, pricing, and launch dates will be shared in due course.”
BEST SELLING BAKKIES
The Toyota Hilux had another great month in South Africa in September 2024, with sales showing a month-on-month growth from 2,527 to 2,942 units. This gave the Hilux a comfortable lead as the country’s number one bakkie, though its biggest rival – the Ford Ranger – also had a good turnout with 2,382 customers compared to 2,312 in August.
Meanwhile, the Isuzu D-Max saw a small dip, going from 1,634 to 1,592 units, though this is still far ahead of the other competitors as the top three were the only models to sell more than 1,000 examples. Outside this group, the Mahindra Pik Up virtually matched its numbers from August with 782 sales, and the Nissan Navara still sits in fifth place with 451 purchases.
TESLA CYBERCAB REVEALED
ELON Musk has unveiled a driverless robot bus EV – but fans have spotted an eerie similarity to an iconic kids’ show. Tesla’s new Robovan can carry up to 20 people at a time and transport goods. Fans said the Robovan looks like something out of the Jetsons The prototype self-driving EV is roughly the size of a bus – but little else is known about it.
Musk revealed the Robovan at Tesla’s We, Robot event in Los Angeles this week. As it rolled onstage, he said: “We’re going to make this, and it’s going to look like that.
“One of the things we want to do – and we’ve done this with the Cybertruck – is to change the look of the roads.”
TOYOTA BACK IN FORMULA 1
Japanese car company Toyota is returning to Formula 1 after a 15-year absence in a partnership with the US-based Haas team. Toyota, which withdrew its own team from F1 at the end of 2009, has become Haas’ “technical partner”. A statement from Haas and Toyota said the two companies would “share expertise and knowledge, as well as resources”.
Toyota would provide “design, technical and manufacturing services”, it said, while Haas will give “technical expertise and commercial benefits”. There will be Toyota branding on the Haas cars starting at the United States Grand Prix in Austin, Texas, from 18-20 October.
AFFORDABLE KIA SONET
Kia has launched a new entry-level model for the Sonet family in South Africa. The new Sonet LS is priced at R299,995, undercutting the previous starter option, the LX, by a sizeable R67,000. With the introduction of the LS in both manual and automatic specifications, the Sonet range has grown to a versatile eight models.
Like all other entries in the Sonet catalogue – bar the EX – the LS is driven by a 1.5-litre petrol mill paired with either a six-speed manual or continuously variable transmission (CVT)
ONE MORE THING….
The South African Police (SAPS) recently arrested a 48-year-old Tanzanian citizen in Promise Land, Kuruman, for allegedly manufacturing and selling fraudulent vehicle license discs.
According to the police, it is alleged that the individual manufactured and sold fraudulent vehicle license discs. He would give clients a printout of the same license disc with an extended expiration date which he “renewed” for an amount of R350.
The suspect appeared in court on Friday, 4 October 2024, charged with cyber fraud, alternatively fraud, alternatively forgery and uttering.
He was released on R500 bail with the condition of informing the investigating officer about his movements out of Kuruman at all times, with the case being postponed to 5 December 2024.Vehicle licence disc fraud is a massive problem in South Africa, with the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) currently being on a drive to recoup as much as R2.1 billion in lost licensing revenue across the Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, and Mpumalanga provinces.
