Australia's cheapest car to remain at $10,990

The cheapest ticket into a new car remains at $10,990 driveaway after the distributor decided to extend the deal into June, and possibly indefinitely.

The offer on the Chinese-made J1 hatchback was supposed to finish on May 31, according to the fineprint in the advertising.

But the deal has been deemed so successful that the importer has continued the offer on Australia's cheapest new car.

"It was always our intention to continue (with $10,990 pricing) as long as the Australian currency remained at current levels," said the spokesman for distributor Ateco Automotive, Daniel Cotterill.

"We will continue the offer as long as it remains commercially viable."

Sales figures for the Chery J1 for May are due to be published by the FCAI in the coming days but Ateco says the response to the campaign was good.

"It's still early days. It's hard to know whether the response has been the result of the price or the fact that we did an advertising campaign," Cotterill said.

It may be Australia's cheapest car but the J1 is powered by a 1.3 litre petrol engine that requires premium unleaded.

The car is not sold in Victoria because it does not have stability control (advanced braking technology that can prevent a skid), which became compulsory on all new cars introduced there on or after January 1 this year.

The Chery J1, with only two airbags in a class whose recent arrivals have six, recently scored a below average three-star rating by independent crash test authority ANCAP.

The $1000 price cut introduced last month also undercut the Malaysian-made Proton S16 sedan, which until then was the equal cheapest new car in Australia at $11,990.
 
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