Omoda 9 Virtue 2026 Review

The 2026 Omoda 9 Virtue is $61,990 before on-road costs (ORCs). This is the only model within the Omoda brand (for now), with this being the premium offering by Omoda Jaecoo Australia, itself a subsidiary of Chinese manufacturer Chery.

The Omoda is classed as a large SUV, and in that category there are hybrids and plug-in hybrids (PHEV) like the Hyundai Santa Fe, Mazda CX-80 and Toyota Kluger. While the Omoda 9 is shorter and lower than all of these (it’s closer to the medium SUV category), it is just as wide.

Price is to the Omoda’s advantage, from about $15,000 to $30,000 less than these competitors if considered in their similarly decked-out top-spec variants. The one catch is that the Omoda is a five-seater only, against these more expensive models that have seven seats.

The 2026 Omoda 9 Virtue comes with 20-inch alloy wheels, adaptive suspension (linked to drive modes), automatic parking, full-width LED signature lights front and rear, powered tailgate and retracting exterior door handles.

Inside, you’re treated to heated and ventilated leather seats front and back, powered front seats (including lumbar and thigh support extension for the driver’s seat), power-adjustable steering column, heated steering wheel, three-zone climate control, panoramic glass roof, ambient lighting as well as heated and folding powered mirrors.

Silk White is the standard colour, while for $750 extra you can choose from Ink Black or Dove Grey, while the matte Shadow Grey is $1500 extra. As tested in Shadow Grey, the Omoda 9 Virtue is $63,490 (plus ORCs).

The warranty is for eight years with unlimited kilometres (including the batteries). There’s also free roadside assistance for one year (topped up for 12 months with each capped-price service). Services fall every 12 months/15,000km, and the capped-price service offer is $3343 across eight years/120,000km.

There are eight airbags folded away in each 2026 Omoda 9 Virtue and include the expected front, front side and side curtain airbags, with the addition of a front centre airbag and a driver’s knee airbag.

ANCAP gave the Omoda 9 its full-cream five-star safety rating this year, with 90 per cent for Adult Occupant Protection, 87 per cent for Child Occupant Protection, 81 per cent Vulnerable Road User Protection and 82 per cent for Safety Assist.

The active safety systems that are present in the Omoda (some of which are over-active, as we will explain) are autonomous emergency braking (AEB), adaptive cruise control, forward collision warning, blind spot detection and lane keeping and departure control.

There’s also speed limit information, speed control assist, rear cross-traffic alert and braking, lane change assist, driver monitoring and door opening warning. A 360-degree around view monitor, front and rear parking sensors and tyre pressure monitoring are also standard.

There’s a big widescreen up front on the 2026 Omoda 9 Virtue’s dashboard, with an expansive 12.3-inch dash display in front of the driver and a 12.3-inch infotainment screen in the centre.

There are features such as wired and wireless phone mirroring (Apple CarPlay and Android Auto), embedded satnav, digital radio, a head-up display, a 12-speaker Sony audio system (plus another two speakers in the front headrests), four USB-C ports and a 50W wireless phone charger.

The 2026 Omoda 9 Virtue offers a well-executed PHEV powertrain.

Employing what is termed the ‘Super Hybrid System’, the Omoda PHEV bundle includes a 105kW/215Nm 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine and 34kWh NMC battery. That pack supplies energy to the trio of electric motors (75kW and 90kW front and a 175kW rear e-motor) that power all four wheels.

The net result (in Sports mode) is a combined 395kW and 650Nm, leading to a sub-5.0 second zero to 100km/h acceleration time – which is fast for a large SUV.

The official combined fuel consumption figure for the 2026 Omoda 9 Virtue is 1.4L/100km. We achieved a bit more than that on test, with a 2.5L/100km average.

Although we didn’t run exclusively in EV mode, the claimed 145km EV-only range would appear to be not far off the mark – depending on how you drive, of course.

The 2026 Omoda 9 Virtue’s PHEV powertrain does what it needs to do when commanded, seamlessly. 

Starting the car is a matter of jumping in via the keyless entry and once the dash has powered up, you select a gear and you’re good to go.

Driven mostly in Normal mode, the Omoda 9 is responsive, quiet (even when the 1.5-litre petrol engine kicks in, it is unobtrusive) and when needed, an absolute slingshot. When put into Power mode, there is a gut-wrenching instant response at low speeds, but one that is easily modulated. On the highway, the urgency tapers off a little, but there is still plenty of overtaking power.

The ride-and-handling compromise feels like it could do with some more development, and isn’t as promising as the straight-line performance the Omoda delivers. It is not bad for a large family-oriented SUV, but there are a few rough edges. For example, the suspension can be caught out by speed bumps more easily than rivals, with the front suspension topping out on rebound.

Accelerating out of a 30km/h corner, the inside rear wheel broke traction, with the body roll not helping. While there are suspension adjustments available if you dig deep into the settings screen, I’m not sure if they’re beneficial. Without switching up the drive modes, the brake pedal occasionally reacts more sharply than usual when coming to a stop and the steering feel is remote, too.

While the Omoda’s speed-sign alerts are not as annoying as some other brands, there is an intensity to the lane keeping/centring when active cruise is activated.

The towing capacity is 750kg (unbraked) and 1500kg (braked).

There is a great deal of easily accessed space in the 2026 Omoda 9 Virtue. The doors open wide to reveal a plush interior with seating providing enough leg and headroom to comfortably accommodate four adults.

Front-seat comfort is not often mentioned as we all have different shapes and sizes. Most manufacturers design front seats that will allow a variety of people to settle in and be comfortable. However, the Omoda 9’s rather firm front seat base and side bolsters make it feel narrow. Perhaps if you have slender buttocks you’ll be fine, but for those of us who don’t, it might be an issue.

The central rear seat position is, like many such arrangements, a bit narrow and the padding is hard. For sub-teens, it’s okay for a long trip – for anyone else, it probably isn’t. This isn’t an issue for the outboard rear seats.

There is so much storage in the Omoda 9, with a large centre console, covered tray area and a hollowed-out cubby below as well as lots of door-pocket space. The rear also has a fold-down centre armrest with two cupholders within it.

Air vents are found in the B-pillars as well as dedicated climate control adjustment for the rear, while the outboard back seats gain heating/ventilation, too. There are even power seat controls for the front passenger seat on the inner seatback should occupants want to move the seat for more legroom.

It’s easy to recommend the 2026 Omoda 9 Virtue in terms of its value for money, fit and finish, cabin space, powertrain performance and fuel economy.

Yet, a few question marks concerning seat comfort remain, as well as the fact the chassis isn’t quite up to the task of harnessing the combined grunt underfoot. Ultimately, there is room for improvement.

2026 Omoda 9 Virtue at a glance:
Price: $61,990 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Engine: 1.5-litre 4-cylinder turbo-petrol hybrid
Combined output: 395kW/650Nm
Transmission: Three-speed reduction gear/11-speed dual clutch
Fuel: 1.4L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 32g/km (ADR Combined)
Battery: 34kWh lithium-ion
Range: 1100km (combined) 145km (EV only, WLTP)
Energy consumption: 19.3kWh/km (NEDC)
Safety rating: Five stars (ANCAP 2025)

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