The Chinese motor manufacturing giant HAVAL has done it again. HAVAL has now included a Jolion Hybrid variant to its popular Jolion SUV lineup.

For those not familiar with the brand, HAVAL is one of the four brands of GWM, and became independent brand back in 2013, HAVAL has a strong product matrix covering basically all SUV segments. HAVAL is the first Chinese SUV brand to join the Five-million-sales Club globally.

Hybrid powertrain vehicles are becoming more popular here in SA and some big hitters have already came to the party, with the likes of the Toyota Corolla Cross Hybrid, Toyota Corolla Hybrid, Honda Fit Hybrid, Toyota RAV4 Hybrid and the Jolion’s big brother the Haval H6 1.5T HEV Ultra Luxury

With emission laws getting more and more strict globally, manufactures have realized that change is necessary and a lot of time and money has been spent in producing technologically advanced Hybrid, Plug in Hybrid and full Electric vehicles

The Chinese motor manufactures has of late offered affordable vehicles, but with profound levels of luxury and built quality. The Jolion HEV one such example.

So what is a Jolion HEV ?

It is basically a self charging hybrid vehicle, that consistently adapts to its driving environment. Switching between Electric motor and the internal combustion engine is seamless and effortless, one does not even notice the transition.

When driving in traffic or coasting along in town, the Jolion HEV would relay mostly on the Electric motor, making the urban commutes exceptionally fuel efficient. With real world fuel consumption averaging around 5.0 to 5.8 liter per 100km

On the outside there is not much setting the Jolion HEV aprt from its Jolion sublings, miner syling accents would be the blue trim around the headlights and obviously the HEV badge at the back.

The Jolions styling remains familiar, including a diamond front grille, silver roof rails, flared rear brake lights, sport alloy wheels and a dual-vent rear spoiler.

The Jolyon HEV is available in his two trim levels, Luxury and Super Luxury, which will be familiar to HAVAL owners.

Smart keyless entry with push-start button is standard on Luxury and Super Luxury models.

A panoramic sunroof is a bonus, making the cabin appear larger than it actually is. The 10.25-inch multimedia touch display works well, is easy to use, and easily connects to Android Auto and Apple Car Play. The pixel quality of the screen is sharp and clear.

Its not a sports car at all, but performance is superb. Combined power output is a respectable 140kW and 375Nm

As mentioned above the Panoramic Sunroof is one of the highlights for me, just makes the cabin feel more spacious and letting in all that natural light.

Pricing:

HAVAL Jolion HEV 1.5T DHT Luxury – R549,950

HAVAL Jolion HEV 1.5T DHT Super Luxury – R579,950

Service Plan – 4 years / 60,000km

Warranty – 5 years / 100,000km

Hybrid Battery Warranty – 8 years / 150,000km

Pricing and specs as at February 2023

So how does the Jolion HEV stack up against its rivals ?

Its biggest competitor is the Toyota Corolla Cross Hybrid which starts at around R480,000

The Toyota is a naturally aspirated 1.5 4 cylinder Hybrid producing 72kW and 142Nm where the Jolion HEV is a 1.5T 4 Cylinder Hybrid producing 140kW and 375Nm as mentioned above.

So for around R70,000 more you could get into the Jolion which has about double the power and has all the gadgets you could imagine.

The Toyota is definitely a popular solid offering, but the Jolion is just much more bang for your hard earned bucks.

MurrayOnCars