Chery’s iCAUR rules out diesel and hardcore 4WDs

Chery’s incoming iCAUR brand has ruled out launching diesel engines and traditional ladder-frame 4WD models, declaring that SUV buyers are seeking out adventurous styling without the agricultural refinement of traditional 4WDs.

The decision draws a clear line between iCAUR’s boxy, Land Rover Defender-inspired styling, and the concentration on mechanical 4WD shared by Australian favourites like the Toyota LandCruiser Prado, Ford Everest, and Isuzu MU-X.

Speaking with carsales in Chian ahead of the brand’s Australian launch in 2027, iCAUR chief executive Ronna Luo said the Stockman’s diesel plug-in hybrid powertrain wasn’t on the table.

“We definitely have no diesel engine plan,” she said.

Asked whether iCAUR might be granted access to the separate chassis prepared by sister brand Chery for the Stockman ute, iCAUR CTO Ma Yongdong said no.

“We won’t do that,” he said.

“I think we will not go in that direction. I think we will be more focussed on the city and daily driving.”

Even so, iCAUR is marketing a decent level of soft-roading capability.

Its V23, V25 and V27 models have upright bodies, generous ground clearance, and available electric all-wheel drive, but they use monocoque construction.

iCAUR is China’s answer to Subaru rather than an Isuzu or Land Rover rival.

Nevertheless, Luo identified the Toyota Prado’s durability and straightforward user experience as lessons worth learning.

“When designing iCAURs, one of the big things we learned from [Toyota] is not to make these cars too complicated,” she said.

Parent company to iCaur, Chery Group, has not rejected the hardcore 4x4 or diesel formula, with the forthcoming Stockman dual-cab ute combining a ladder frame chassis with 2.5-litre diesel PHEV powertrain.

The highly-anticipated pick-up truck is due in Australia next February – although that date may slide as development continues on the new ute.

Within the Group, Jetour’s G700 model takes yet another approach: a body-on-frame petrol PHEV designed for more demanding off-road use.

At the end of the day, diesel would be an unusual direction for iCAUR, as diesel models account for less than 0.1 percent of new passenger car sales in China.

Understandably, Chery builds very few diesel vehicles. The Stockman will join the Group’s Rely R08 pick-up, which has been sold in China since 2025 with a 2.3-litre turbodiesel engine.

iCAUR studied a pick-up early in the brand’s development, Ma acknowledged, before Luo intervened: “We don’t have any pick-up or truck in the plan,” she clarified.

iCAUR’s first Australian offering will be the V25 mid-size SUV, roughly the same size as the Toyota RAV4. It will be available in battery electric form initially, before a petrol range-extender hybrid version arrives a bit later on.

The range extender model pairs a 33kWh CATL battery with a 1.5-litre turbo petrol engine for about 150km of electric range and a combined range of around 1000km.

Pricing and Australian specifications remain elusive but are expected to be announced later this year.

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