Following the returns of Geely, MG and JMC last year, as well as Chana under its official name, Changan, the influx of Chinese vehicles into the South African market will have no let-up in 2026.
Picture in 2025
As it stands, the end of 2025 saw 18 marques from the People’s Republic being present locally.
They include:
- BAIC;
- BYD;
- Changan;
- Chery;
- Deepal;
- DFSK;
- Dongfeng;
- GAC;
- Geely;
- Great Wall Motors (GWM) Haval;
- JAC;
- Jaecoo;
- Jetour;
- JMC;
- LDV;
- Leapmotor;
- MG;
- Omoda
Coming in 2026
Denza
Headed by Chery and GWM as the only regular brands to feature in the top 10 monthly National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa (Naamsa) sales figures, four other brands have so far been confirmed for 2026.
Of these, BYD-owned Denza will, seemingly, be the first to arrive with a pair of SUVs from the dedicated off-road Fangchengbao
Known as the Denza B5 and B8, but in their home market as the Fangchengbao Bao 5 and Bao 8 respectively, both utilise plug-in hybrid powertrains, as well as body-on-frame platforms – the former sharing its platform with the BYD Shark.
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Equipped with BYD’s Disus-P hydraulic suspension, the Denza B5 uses the same 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol engine as the Shark, mated to two electric motors powered by a 31.8-kWh Blade battery pack.
The result is a combined output of 505kW/760Nm, a claimed 0-100 km/h time of 4.5 seconds and an all-electric range of 125 km according to China’s CLTC measurements.
Inclusive of the combustion engine, the B5 has a total range of 1 200 km.
Seating seven instead of five, the B8 eschews the 1.5-litre engine for a 2.0-litre unit, still paired with two electric motors, but powered by a larger 36.8-kWh Blade battery.
Combined, the B8 develops 550 kW and will do 0-100 km/h in 4.8 seconds. The claimed CLTC electric range is 100 km and the combined with the combustion engine, 1 200 km.
For now, these are the only Denza models planned for the local market.
Furizon, Zeekr and Riddara
More obscure, the return of Geely will come with the debut of the Furizon, Zeekr and Riddara brands.
While no further details are so far known, the announcement of the latter, known as Radar Auto in China, seemingly suggests Geely as having taken control from local distributor, Enviro Automotive.
As mentioned, though, expect the finer details of the trio to emerge throughout the course of the year.
iCaur
Known in its home market as iCar but renamed iCaur for copyright reasons, the fourth brand under the Chery marque in South Africa will launch with two products, followed by a third later.
Still pronounced “i-Car” despite the change in name, the mostly off-road focused marque will launch with a pair of electric offerings, both previewed at the Kyalami Festival of Motoring in August last year.
This includes the 03T, a facelift version of the regular iCar 03 that was supposed to be sold as the Jaecoo J6, and the retro Toyota Land Cruiser 70-series inspired V23.
Set to go on-sale in China later this month, the third iCaur model, the V27, will make its local market arrival later in 2026 powered by a range-extending powertrain developing 335 kW in dual-motor form.
As with the 03T and V23, final details of the V27 will only be announced after the brand launches.
Lepas
Taking brands under Chery to five, 2026 will see the arrival of Lepas, which, as with Omoda & Jaecoo, Jetour, and iCaur, will operate in a separate capacity with its own dealerships and corporate identity.4
Announced at Chery’s annual international user summit in its hometown of Wuhu last April, the export market-only Lepas brand takes its name from “leopard” and “passion”, and will be positioned above the mainstream Chery brand with an initial range of three models.
All based on existing Chery products, these include the L4, L6 and L8, of which little information has so far been announced.
Current projections, though, point to the same choice of petrol and hybrid powertrains as prevailing Chery models, but with a Lepas specific exterior and interior design.
As with iCaur, only expect final clarity to emerge once the official launch takes place this year.
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