Jaecoo E5 Review 2025

The fast-growing range of Chinese cars in the UK continues at pace, with logical, targeted moves to boost their sales chances. One of the newest models and one that you wouldn’t bet against when it comes to winning over car buyers – is this, the Jaecoo E5.

It sits alongside the petrol-power Jaecoo 5 and whereas that car is powered by a 1.6-litre combustion engine, the Jaecoo E5 is a fully electric SUV.

Unsurprisingly, they look identical from most angles, sharing the same ‘is that a Range Rover Evoque?’ styling vibe – at least until you see them from the front. While the petrol Jaecoo 5 has a wide rectangular grille with chrome-look vertical vanes, the Jaecoo E5’s is smoother and blanked off, with the brand name’s logo set within a transparent panel linking the headlights.

Beneath its luxury SUV-aping lines, the Jaecoo E5 has a great number of components in common with a model originating from their shared parent company – the newly improved Omoda E5. That both cars are called E5 could present a degree of would-be customer confusion, not least because they’re sold from the same showrooms. 

While a sensible family-focused SUV doesn’t need to be a performance-car hero, the Jaecoo E5 is usefully spry thanks to its motor’s outputs of 204PS of power and 288Nm of torque. That's sufficient for a 7.7-second 0-62mph time, which is again slightly worse than the Omoda E5 to the tune of half a second. Drive is sent to the front wheels via a single-speed transmission, which you'll use just like a regular automatic.

With a growing number of electric SUVs of around the same size, the Jaecoo E5 won’t only be vying for attention with its in-house rival – one of the best-regarded alternatives, the Skoda Elroq, has been Europe’s best-selling EV in 2025.

Among other models the Jaecoo E5 will need to go toe-to-toe with are the excellent Kia EV3, the stylish Hyundai Kona Electric, the all-new Nissan Leaf (which has been reimagined as an SUV), plus the fine MG S5 EV.

As you would expect, the Jaecoo E5’s dashboard is effectively a facsimile of that in its petrol-engined twin – minimalist in feel with a slender driver’s display screen and a portrait-aspect, 13.2-inch multimedia touchscreen angled between the main dashboard and the centre console below.

That means a lack of physical adjusters for the Jaecoo E5’s climate control operation, requiring the use of the touchscreen to vary the settings. Permanently on-screen temperature settings is a sensible decision under the circumstances, but not ideal.

Dotted around the Jaecoo E5’s passenger space are 35 individual cubbies and storage areas, including spaces for smartphones and drinks in the centre console. A boot capacity of 480 litres with the rear seats up and 1180 litres makes it pretty practical to er, boot. 

The Jaecoo E5 is available in Pure and Luxury trim level choices. Entry-level E5 Pure models feature a six-speaker audio package with wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay smartphone connectivity on its kit roster.

Additional goodies for the pricier Jaecoo E5 Luxury trim include an eight-speaker Sony stereo, a wireless and cooled smartphone charging pad, dual-zone climate control, electrically adjustable front seats (both heated and ventilated), a panoramic sunroof and multi-coloured LED interior ambient lighting.

Jaecoo E5: Range and charging times 

The Jaecoo E5 comes only with a 61.1kWh battery pack and a front-mounted electric motor, resulting in a driving range of up to 248 miles before it needs to be plugged in again. As is always the case, this is a figure that is taken in test conditions, so expect the number to be lower in real-world driving. 

Recharging the battery using a public DC facility is limited to a modest 80kW energy flow rate, which is much lower than many of the E5's rivals. Interestingly, the quoted rapid charge time of 27 minutes is for a 30-80% top-up rather than the more usual 20-80%, making it seem not quite as far off the pace as it actually is. 

Although an 11kW AC on-board charger is standard, most UK residences with EV wallboxes are limited to a maximum of 7.4kW – Jaecoo hasn’t provided recharge times for that combination, but we’d estimate a flat-to-full recharge will take in the region of 10-11 hours.

It's also worth noting that the Jaecoo E5’s charging port is located on the driver’s side front wing. This keeps cabling costs and weight in check but it isn’t always the most convenient location when using public charging points.

The first thing you notice in the Jaecoo E5 is the high driving position, which is certainly higher than something like an Elroq or EV3. 

Like the Jaecoo 7 before it, the ride and handling have been the responsibility of the brand’s German R&D centre. This means that the focus has been on setting up the E5 to satisfy European and UK drivers. 

So what’s the Jaecoo E5 like to drive then? Without wanting to sound too underwhelmed – it’s fine. It doesn’t have the finesse that some rivals have, but it handles bends well. The trade-off here is that the ride does feel a bit on the firm and rather fidgety side, so you can feel various lumps and bumps on even fairly well-maintained roads, though it’s not so firm that you notice every imperfection in the road, and larger thumps over potholes are well damped.

Overall, the Jaecoo E5 is an easy and pretty undemanding car to live with – the steering is responsive and quick, and you can firm it up if you prefer a bit more of a weighted feel), while the brake pedal is nice and progressive. 

We haven’t been able to try the Jaecoo EV5 on a dual carriageway yet, but on forays into town and on flowing country roads, wind and tyre noise didn’t particularly encroach into the cabin.

While rivals often a couple of different battery sizes, the Jaecoo E5 keeps things simple (or is that lack of choice?). Powered by a reasonably large 61kWh battery, it runs a 204PS motor that drives the front wheels. The result is a small electric SUV that'll hit 62mph in 7.7 seconds, which makes it a bit quicker than a lower-powered Skoda Elroq and a match for a Kia EV3, while the Jeep Avenger Electric is lagging at the back. 

While it never really feels particularly quick (and why should it? It's a family SUV after all), there's more than enough power for day-to-day driving. Just be careful, though if you jab the accelerator when exiting a junction or similar, as the tyres tend to scrabble for traction a bit. 

It'll probably come as no surprise to discover that the Jaecoo E5 comes with a long list of safety tech as standard. There's a rather serious-sounding multi-collision defence system for starters, lots of stuff to keep you in your lane (lane departure warning, lane departure prevention and emergency lane keeping), while there's plenty of collision prevention stuff as well. There are a total of 19 ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems) on board. 

The trouble is, all these systems can be quite intrusive when you're on the move, and while you can turn them off, you need to be stationary to do so. This means that before setting off, you'll need to dive into the touchscreen interface to disable the ones you don't want active.

There's also a full complement of airbags, including side airbags, and there are two Isofix fastenings on the outer two rear seats. Currently, the Jaecoo E5 hasn't been tested by independent safety organisation Euro NCAP, but the Jaecoo 7 scored a full five stars when it was tested, so we anticipate the E5 to do well, too.

At the time of writing, the towing capacity for the Jaecoo E5 is yet to be published.

The Jaecoo E5 measures 4380mm long and 1860mm wide, which only makes it a smidge smaller than the larger Jaecoo 7 (120mm shorter and only 5mm narrower if we’re being precise). If you’re trying to place its size, then think of similar proportions to something like the Nissan Qashqai. 

Inside, the cabin feels nice and spacious, and if you plump for the Luxury version of the Jaecoo E5 then the panoramic glass roof adds to the airy feel. Up front, the gear lever has been mounted on the steering column, meaning the central column is given over to a couple of large cup holders, a decent-sized cubby and somewhere to put your phone (and there’s wireless charging on the Luxury model). 

Moving to the rear, even adults should find a good amount of space in the back. Legroom is surprisingly good, while headroom isn’t too bad either. Being targeted at family buyers, there are naturally a couple of Isofix points for car seats (though it’s a shame there’s no Isofix on the front passenger seat). The rear doors open nice and wide, making it easy to lean in and fasten seatbelts once the kids have scrambled in. If you’ve got older children, you should be able to get three in the back without any problem, and whoever pulls the short straw and gets stuck in the middle shouldn’t feel too short-changed thanks to the relatively flat floor. 

At 480 litres you’ve got a bit more boot space in the Jaecoo E5 than a Skoda Elroq, and it offers 20 litres more than a Kia EV3. Need more space? Fold the rear seats down and you get 1180 litres of space to play with. If you need to put a bike rack or roof box on the top, the roof rails can hold a weight of up to 75kg, but only on the Luxury trim.

Jaecoo makes a big thing about how pet-friendly the E5 is – there are some thirty dog-related accessories available, while there’s a dedicated ‘Pet Mode’ climate function in Luxury trim. This keeps the cabin at a safe, regulated temperature when you leave your dog in the car. The E5 also gets an intelligent air filtration system to block pet hair and keep the cabin fresh and clean.

Jaecoo also wants to be thought of as an active, outdoors brand, so the E5 gets Vehicle-to-Load (V2L) capability. This means that you can use your Jaecoo E5 as a mobile power source, charging anything from portable fridges to camping lights. Speaking of which, the Jaecoo E5 gets a ‘Camping Mode’ (again, Luxury trim only) – under-bonnet speakers can cast your music outside the vehicle when parked up, though we’re not too sure how popular this will make you with the rest of the campsite.

When you look at the price of the Jaecoo E5 and the fit and finish is perhaps one area where you might expect it to struggle against rivals, but it’s really not the case. 

A lot of the key touch points have been finished in substantial and tactile materials that give a very good first impression, while the ambient lighting in the Luxury model builds on this further and can be customised as well. It’s only when you start to delve a bit further that cheaper materials start to appear – the sheet of plastic in front of the dash, for example, has quite a low-quality plasticky feel.    

The standard Pure trim you get cloth seating, and while only time will tell, they feel nice and durable, with the pricier Luxury trim getting pet-friendly eco leather for a more premium feel. Luxury also benefits from front heated and ventilated seats and a heated steering wheel.

The front windows are double-glazed regardless of trim, and on the road, it's very refined and quiet.

While the E5 can’t quite claim to have the same epically proportioned touchscreen as that in the Jaecoo 7, it’s not far off. The 13.2-inch portrait-orientated touchscreen dominates the central console, and as is the case with most new cars, pretty much everything is controlled from here.

The good news is that with a powerful Snapdragron processor doing its thing behind the scenes, the screen is nice and responsive. The various settings are clearly laid out, though there are still lots of settings to get to grips with. That’s where something like the Kia EV3 excels, with a decent infotainment screen that’s supported by things like a volume dial and physical controls for climate control – interfaces that are missing in the Jaecoo E5.

Supplementing this large screen is an 8.8-inch digital instrument display that provides key driving info, while there’s wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity on both trim levels, with wireless charging available on the Luxury model. 

A six-speaker stereo system is standard on Pure trim cars, though Luxury models get a better eight-speaker Sony stereo. There’s a decent 540-degree camera as standard as well – not only does it give a top-down view, but the additional feed from other cameras allows the Jaecoo E5 to stitch all this footage together to let you ‘see’ outside the car via the central screen, showing you kerbs and other road furniture you might miss at lower speeds.

LED daylight running lights are standard and Luxury models get LED headlights, but halogen headlights on Pure cars seems a bit stingy. To be fair, we haven’t had the opportunity to try them at night, but still, it does feel a bit 2005…

The price point is going to be one of the biggest pulls of the Jaecoo E5. In Pure trim, which is pretty well comprehensively spec'd in most areas, a Jaecoo E5 will cost you £27,505, with prices rising to £30,500 for the high-end Luxury trim. The only other expense you'll need to consider is the colour – it comes in white as standard, with other colours costing a further £500, while a two-tone finish is £1000. That means the most you can pay for a Jaecoo E5 is £31,500. 

How does that compare to rivals? An entry-level Skoda Elroq in SE trim and officially only delivering a few miles less when it comes to range will set you back £31,710 at the moment. That's some £4205 more than a base-spec Jaecoo E5. 

The Kia EV3 is likely to be on your shortlist as well, but at £33,005 for the entry-level 267-mile range model, that's even more of an outlay than the Elroq. Something a bit closer in price to the Jaecoo E5 is the Jeep Avenger Electric. Matching it for a range, the Avenger Electric will set you back £29,999.

Looking closer to home and the Omoda E5, which shares much of the same tech under a different skin, sees prices start at £33,065.

The cost of charging the Jaecoo E5 at home will depend on your electricity tariff, but you should budget for around £12-15 for a full charge. 

Jaecoo is still a bit of an unknown quantity in the UK, so to put some of your potential concerns at ease, the brand is backing the E5 with a seven-year/100,000-mile warranty, with the first three years enjoying no mileage limit. 

Insurance groups are still to be confirmed for the Jaecoo E5, but if the Omoda E5 is anything to go by, expect insurance groups to be in the low 30s. That puts it potentially higher than the likes of the Skoda Elroq, which starts at insurance group 22.

The competitive price of the Jaecoo E5 means it's impossible to fall into the over-£40,000 premium car tax bracket – you'll pay the flat rate of £195 for your Vehicle Excise Duty. 

Jaecoo keeps things nice and simple with the E5, offering it with two trim levels, Pure and Luxury.  

The Jaecoo E5 Pure comes with these features as standard:

• 18-inch alloy wheels
• LED daytime running lights
• LED rear lights
• Halogen headlights
• Air-conditioning
• Synthetic leather steering wheel
• Dark colour cloth seat material
• 6 speaker audio system
• 13.2-inch infotainment display
• 8.8-inch digital instrument display
• Wireless Android Auto & Apple CarPlay
• Hill Decent Control
• Lane Departure Prevention
• Multiple Collision Defence System (MCB)
• 540-degree panoramic view camera
• Driving Modes (Normal, ECO, Sport)
• Adaptive Cruise Control

Building on this, the Jaecoo E5 Luxury benefits from:

• Heated steering wheel
• Heated and ventilated front seats
• 8 speaker Sony audio system
• Wireless smartphone charging
• Two zone air conditioning
• Power boot door
• Panoramic roof
• LED headlights
• Pet-friendly ECO leather
• Pet mode
• Camping mode