A light, airy cabin welcomes the driver of the brand new Chery J1 hatchback. Simple, smart design ensures that the Chery J1 is modern, spacious-enough and equipped for the road. There are plenty of excellent features to note, while the Chery J1 comes in a range of bright and bold exterior colours to win hearts and create excitement. Available in black, white, red (cherry red for a Chery, of course), and blue, the exterior design is eye-catching and almost flirtatious with its wrap around headlights, high waistline, poignant nose and curvy lines.

Small cars need to have a nice blend of fun, economy and comfort. What the Chery J1 boasts is a big tick for all three of the criteria – this is quite a respectable hatch.

Under the strong bonnet lines is a peppy 1.3-litre, 4-cylinder, petrol engine. Good levels of torque (122 Nm) make for some smooth response in town. Tackle the motorway, and the Chery J1 performs well with a maximum output of 62 kW of power. As you can imagine, the modern engine design allows for a quiet ride that remains delightfully frugal on fuel. You can expect the Chery J1 to average around 6.7 litres/100km. Mated to a light-weighted, five-speed manual gearbox, the J1 is easy to flick in and out of city streets and park up when you need that extra caffeine hit. In short, the Chery J1 gets along well and does all the right things well, indeed. Comfortable seats provide a good driving position, and the power steering is accurate and light.

Mechanically, when buying a new Chery J1, you have the added bonus of a great three year/100,000 km warranty. For the lowest price in motoring, you can’t argue with that now… can you?

Safety features are covered very well. Dual front airbags, front seat belt pre-tensioners, front ventilated disc brakes, ABS and EBD are standard safety items, and add to the car’s awesome value.

Many comfort items provide the Chery J1 with excellent in-journey features that help occupants pass the time easily while travelling from A to B. MP3 compatibility allows you to play your favourite music on the six-speaker CD/radio system. Electric this-and-thats include electric side mirrors, electric windows, an engine immobiliser, central locking, active safety features, a demister and a security light indicator. Always practical, the 60/40 split folding seats create a roomy luggage compartment – especially when the rear seats are fully flat. When all the seats are upright, you can fit four adults into the Chery J1, or five at a squeeze (or two adults and three small children). If you need that extra carrying ability, you can always make use of the great set of roof rails that come as standard. One thing you’ll enjoy in the Chery J1 is the soft, supportive cloth-trimmed seats. Fog lamps, air-conditioning, alloys and variable-speed wipers complete the Chery J1 package.

The Chery J1 has a nice interior layout. Though not majorly luxurious in tone, it is, never the less, smart and pleasant to behold. The bold centrally located console in the middle of the dash is a light grey colour, and seems to sit appealingly in the foreground. A funky triple cluster for the speedo, rev counter and fuel display looks the goods and works just fine with nice clear lettering and readable gauges.

Want some other accessories to go with your new set of wheels? At a small cost, side steps, headlight covers, carpet floor mats, a bluetooth kit and a driving light kit could finish the J1 off nicely, for some.

Get over the fact that this is the cheapest car on the market. Serious money savers will delight in the opportunity to purchase a sound little car for incredible value.

You’ll find that there are plenty of dealers Australia-wide.

The current model series includes the:

• Chery J1

For any more information on the Chery J1, or for that matter any other new car, contact one of our friendly consultants on 1300 303 181. If you’d like some fleet discount pricing (yes even for private buyers!), we can submit vehicle quotes requests out to our national network of Chery dealers and come back with pricing within 24 hours. Private Fleet – car buying made easy!

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