Omoda OMODA 5 (2024 - ) review

The Omoda 5 starts at around £25,000 and the extra premium for a top of the range model is relatively small. It all sounds very reasonable given the number of features you get for your money and significantly undercuts other family cars such as the Nissan Qashqai or Volkswagen Golf. However, the Omoda 5 has no assistance from hybrid technology and wasn’t very efficient on our test drive averaging a paltry 24mpg. Based on this, fuel costs are likely to add up quickly. Omoda is also an unknown quality for insurance companies, and we don’t yet know how this will be reflected in the cost of premiums. To try to mitigate this Omoda has made sure it has the logistics for replacement parts in place and has collaborated with Thatcham on repair methods, which should hopefully help to some degree.

Omoda is new here, so we don’t yet have a feel for reliability and have reflected this in our score. That said, its owned by Chery which has been around for a while and has sold 12m cars globally, which gives some reassurance. For additional peace of mind, the Omoda 5 comes with a seven-year/100,000-mile warranty and extended breakdown cover if you keep up with the service schedule. Omoda is also planning to have around 100 dealerships in the UK by the end of the year, so there should be support should anything go wrong.

The Omoda 5 was gained the full five stars from Euro NCAP when it was tested in 2022 and has the usual collection of safety features including adaptive cruise control and various systems to keep you within your lane and to avoid collisions. The Omoda 5 also has 11 airbags to protect you should the worst happen. We found the systems were generally unobtrusive on our test drive, although the car did like to reprimand us for taking our eyes off the road, even when we were looking straight ahead. Unlike its electric sibling, the petrol 5 has a touch-sensitive bar for temperature controls permanently on display, which is easier and safer to navigate than hidden touchscreen menus. We’d still prefer physical buttons, though.

Omoda is keen to highlight it has specifically tuned ride quality to UK roads. To Omoda’s credit its 5 coped well with rough country roads and didn’t crash over potholes. General comfort levels were good. Up front the seats are supportive and there’s a decent amount of storage space. However, overall, the Omoda 5 doesn’t feel as roomy as you would expect for the size of the car. Taller occupants will find limited headroom in the front and back – particularly on models with the panoramic roof – and longer-legged passengers will find space limited in the rear. The boot is a usable size, but not particularly large for a mid-size SUV. While our test car looked plush from a distance, on closer inspection we noticed a lack of attention to detail. There were bits of plastic covering and alignment marks on the seat runners and some loose carpet in the footwell, making it feel unfinished and rushed rather than the premium or luxury.

The key selling point of the Omoda 5 is the amount of equipment you get as standard. Entry-level Comfort trim cars come with two 10.25-inch screens, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a wireless phone charger, front and rear parking sensors, and a reversing camera. Upgrading to a top of the range Noble model will get you extras like dual-zone climate control, a 360-degree camera, heated front seats with a heated steering wheel, and a sunroof. We found the touch-screen was responsive, but the infotainment menus were fiddly to navigate, and the 360-degree camera dominates the screen every time you indicate and slow down – whether you want it to or not. This was particularly annoying at roundabouts as you lost your view of navigation instructions, making it easy to miss your exit.

The Omoda 5 comes with a 1.6-litre turbocharged petrol engine producing 186 horsepower and you would expect this to be plenty for a car of this size. However, the seven-speed automatic gear box is slow to respond and the Omoda 5 feels laboured – putting your foot down at any speed creates lots of noise and not much action. This contrasts with the electric Omoda E5, which was much swifter off the line and inspired more confidence at junctions. Although there are three drive modes to choose from – Normal, Sport, and Eco – there’s not much difference between them and the most noticeable change is the different colour of the graphics associated with each mode. Once you do get going in the Omoda 5, it does settle into a smooth cruise and the very light steering makes it easy to drive. It’s not the most engaging and doesn’t give you much feedback, but it is adequate for a family SUV and the future introduction of a hybrid version is likely to improve both the efficiency and performance.