Jaecoo J5 EV 2026 Review

Until the end of April, the 2026 Jaecoo J5 EV is priced from $36,990 drive-away, making it one of the most affordable EVs on-sale in Australia.

The brand new GWM Ora 5 SUV (on-sale in June) undercuts it by starting at $33,990 drive-away, while the BYD Atto 2 starts at $31,990 plus on-road costs.

Other compact electric SUVs in the vicinity include Jaecoo sister-brand Chery’s twin-under the skin E5 ($36,990 plus ORCs), the Leapmotor B10 ($37,888 plus ORCs) and the MG S5 EV which opens from $40,490 drive-away.

The only non-Chinese interloper down here is the tiny Hyundai Inster at $39,000 plus on-road costs.

The drive-away pricing for the 2026 Jaecoo J5 is currently scheduled to end as of May 1, but it’s been extended before and could be again.

Even if it did go up to $36,990 plus on-road costs, the equipment level would still make it a good deal.

Standard exterior equipment for the single electric model (an ICE is coming) on offer includes LED headlights, roof rails, a rear spoiler, 18-inch alloy wheels, a glass sunroof with powered sunshade and a power tailgate.

Accessed by remote central locking, the interior includes dual-zone climate control, synthetic leather seat trim, six-way powered, heated and ventilated front seats and a cargo cover.

The big-ticket item that’s missing is a spare tyre, which is annoying, because the E5 comes standard with a full size one.

There are four paint colours on offer, all of which are a no cost option until at least the end of April.

The J5 is covered by a generous eight-year/unlimited-kilometre vehicle and battery warranty,  as well as eight years roadside assistance.

Service intervals are 12 months/20,000km and the eight year capped price service program adds up to only $1520.

The 2026 Jaecoo J5 EV is yet to score an ANCAP result and there is no official indication it’s happening anytime soon.

That said, there’s no shortage of driver assist systems: autonomous emergency braking, various forms of lane policing, various forms of adaptive cruise control, various forms of rear-end protection and driver monitoring.

There are less bing-bongs and ding-dongs than the normal Chinese cavalcade and most of them are switchable via a drop down menu on the screen. Most of them stay off too.

When employing cruise control, the J5 is one of those cars that will slow in corners to what it judges a safe speed – it’s annoying but not as much as some other systems that force you to intercede and speed up again, lest you be run over by a cranky semi driver.

The safety package includes seven airbags, three child seat tethers, two ISOFIX anchors, a very high quality surround camera with multiple views (it’s much better than many more expensive cars), a reversing camera and front and rear parking sensors.

The 2026 Jaecoo J5 is typical of current Chinese design with a screen-dominated set of controls.

Most functions are managed through the 13.2-inch infotainment touchscreen, while the instrument panel is a much smaller and less decipherable 8.88-inches.

Sadly, there’s a lack of physical controls for functions such as audio and air-conditioning – at least voice control is well-tuned to cope with strike!

Standard tech gear includes wired and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, AM/FM and digital radio bands and an eight-speaker sound system.

But there is no embedded satellite-navigation – the budget pricing has to bite somewhere.

The upside? You do get a karaoke machine!

The 2026 Jaecoo J5 is an absolutely orthodox small EV in its powertrain layout; a 155kW/288Nm e-motor drivers the front wheels via a single-speed reduction gear and is fed by a 58.9kWh LFP battery pack. 

All these numbers are competitive for the segment.

The 2026 Jaecoo J5 claims a 13.9kWh/100km consumption rate that equates to a 402km WLTP range.

We never got close to the claim, tending more toward the mid-teens around town and high teens on the open road – a range in the 350km region would be a good achievement.

The claimed maximum DC charge rate is 130kW while AC is 6.6kW for single-phase and 10.3kW for three-phase. All these numbers are also acceptable.

The charge port on the right-side front quarter panel is accessed by a power-operated door that doesn’t like to be closed manually.

It was broken during our time with the J5 and then hung limply without ever sealing properly, sometimes generating a ding-dong warning in the cabin.

Chery vehicles haven’t been at the top of the list when it comes to well-sorted dynamics, but the 2026 Jaecoo J5 at least manages to be competent and acceptable.

The best bit is the way its e-motor provides sharp and instant step-in throttle acceleration, even in Eco mode. Normal and Sport are a tad sharper, but the biggest change you’ll notice are the graphics on the touchscreen.

In fact, there’s lots of adjustment to different bits of the J5’s mechanical package, more so than seems necessary, really. Three levels of regen braking is fine, although it should be adjustable via paddles not through the screen, and it does vary the retardation.

The J5’s instant response works perfectly with its compact 4.38m length and 1.86m width to make it a great city and suburban scoot. Obviously, the limited battery range makes it more suited to that role as well.

The worst bit of the J5’s dynamic makeup is the ride, which can be a bit too sharp on some rougher Aussie bitumen. Local tuning would help here.

The steering has evidence of that glugginess off-centre some electric-assist systems proffer, but it’s tuning details only, because the light and accurate tiller also helps with manoeuvring in the tight stuff.

Out on the open road the J5’s handling retains a commendable balance. It’s not sharp, but it’s not a shambling mess either.

The generous equipment level is backed up in the 2026 Jaecoo J5 EV by pleasant two-tone trim presentation.

The seats are large, comfy and supportive and the driver benefits from a reach and rake adjustable flat-bottom steering wheel and a large left footrest. In my case, I didn’t feel the steering wheel dropped low enough, but that’s a personal thing.

The seat trim has also been declared pet-friendly by an authority in Germany (TUV SUD), so that’s nice.

Rear passengers aren’t going to feel as loved as those up-front. While shorter members of the troop will fit okay, taller people at 180cm and beyond will find themselves with knees pressing into the seatback if the driver is medium to tall.

While there are cupholders, seatback pockets, door bins and a fold-down armrest, there is also only one air-con vent adjuster to fight over and one USB point as well. Could get messy!

Up-front, the amount of storage options in the centre console is aided by the shift of the gearchange column to the steering column. There are multiple bins and cupholders and two pads to rest your smartphone on (the charger is the left one).

But it would be great if Jaecoo made the gear selector a different look and feel to the identical indicator stalk on the left side of the column – then I’d be less likely to be rolling through left turns in neutral without a blinker blinking.

The boot is decent for the category at 384 litres to the top of the seatback, and there’s a frunk that adds a further 35 litres under the bonnet.

There’s not a lot of features in the boot, but it’s that missing spare tyre that hurts the most.

Should I buy a Jaecoo J5 EV? 

If you’re need is economical city family motoring then the Jaecoo J5 EV fits the bill. But obviously, only if you’ve got your recharging sorting out.

It’s well equipped, drives… acceptably well and has pricing very much on its side – especially till the end of April (at least).

Also, of course, there’s huge savings to be made compared to ICE because of the oil price spike.

However, like a lot of these Chinese newcomers, we don’t yet know a lot about Jaecoo aftersales, spares, reliability and resale rate, so take that into account if you’re interested in the J5.

2026 Jaecoo J5 EV at a glance:
Price: $36,990 drive-away
Available: Now
Powertrain: Single permanent magnet synchronous motor
Output: 155kW/288Nm
Transmission: Single-speed reduction gear
Battery: 58.9kWh LFP
Range: 402km (WLTP)
Energy consumption: 13.9kWh/100km (ADR)
Safety rating: Not tested 

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