Chery's Lepas brand launching in South Africa soon: here's what to expect
From left: The Lepas L4, L8 and L6 will launch in South Africa during the first half of 2026.
Image: Supplied
South African SUV buyers will soon be even more spoiled for choice, with the all-new Chinese brand Lepas set to launch in early 2026.
Although the official brand launch took place on Thursday evening, the company confirmed that the first batch of products will be launched during the first and second quarters of 2026.
This means there has been a slight delay in rolling out the brand locally, as the L8 and L4 models were originally scheduled to arrive later this year, with the L6 following in 2026.
Media were given a sneak preview of the new brand on November 20.
Image: Supplied
Although Lepas is a completely new brand, it has significant backing, being fully owned by the Chery Group and utilising the Chinese auto giant’s well-proven parts and technology.
The Lepas name is derived from the words “leap” and “passion”, and it will be positioned above the core Chery brand, while still offering compelling value for money. Pricing and positioning have yet to be announced; however, Lepas says pricing will come in below traditional luxury rivals.
Where does Lepas fit in?
Within the Chery Group hierarchy, Lepas aims to offer a “youthful-premium” personality, as opposed to sister-brand Jaecoo’s “rugged urban” approach, and Omoda’s “style-centric” and “tech-savvy” focus.
The Lepas L8 will be the flagship of the range.
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The L4, L6 and L8 SUVs all follow a uniform design philosophy that the carmaker says is centred on “Leopard Aesthetics”, but dare we suggest there is some Jaguar inspiration in there too, and we’re not referring to the animal!
As this brand is completely new and not yet rolled out globally, information on the new models is thin on the ground.
The Lepas L4 is based on the Tiggo Cross.
Image: Supplied
The Lepas L4 appears to be based on the Chery Cross, and power is expected to come from the familiar 1.5-litre turbopetrol engine that produces 108kW and 210Nm.
The L4 will be the entry point to the range until the L3, L2 and L1 are launched.
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The L6, which will be launched after the L4 and L8, is the brand’s midsize product, and it is likely to be powered by the firm’s 1.6-litre turbopetrol engine, which delivers 145kW and 290Nm.
The Lepas L6 is thought to be based on the Tiggo 7.
Image: Supplied
The Lepas L8 is the flagship of the range, and while some have compared it to Chery’s Tiggo 8, it is slightly shorter, with its overall length of 4,688mm putting it at the larger end of the Rav4 class, and unlike its sibling the L8 seats five rather than eight occupants.
Jaguar meets Porsche? The Lepas L8 certainly is elegant.
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The only powertrain mentioned thus far during international test drives is a plug-in hybrid system that pairs a 1.5-litre turbopetrol engine with an electric motor for a combined output of 255kW. Its 18 kWh battery allows for an electric range of up to 93km on the NEDC cycle.
Lepas L8 interior.
Image: Supplied
However, don’t be surprised if Lepas also offers the L8 with the Tiggo 8’s 187kW 2.0-litre turbopetrol engine as a more affordable alternative.
Further down the line, the Lepas brand will expand downwards with L1, L2 and L3 compact vehicles designed for city use.
The Lepas brand is expected to launch with around 30 dealerships, subject to confirmation. Because the vehicles share their core engineering and supplier networks with Chery, servicing and parts availability should be straightforward, Group1 Chery Auto said.
“Expect dealer integration rather than an entirely new support structure, which is a big plus for ownership confidence.”
Chery Auto describes the Lepas brand as a vanguard of the company’s globalisation strategy.
“The rapid growth of Lepas is inseparable from the strength of Chery Group. Relying on Chery's accumulation of 22 years as an export leader, the technical network of eight global R&D centres, and the fully integrated global R&D, production, and supply chain,” Chery Auto said.
“Lepas has had the confidence of ‘technical trust from 16.3 million global users’ since its inception. This all-dimensional capability of ‘manufacturing-R&D-integration’ has provided a solid guarantee for the rapid implementation of L4.”
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