GWM Ora 5 SUV Luxury

An interesting compact EV SUV from GWM – launched mid-year this small offering arrived sharply priced and highly equipped in a package that’s rather funky and very enjoyable to drive.

This five-door SUV from Great Wall Motors impresses as soon as you get behind the wheel. A little investigation and I find that this SUVs chassis tune was carried out around Holden’s former proving ground at Lang Lang in Victoria by that companies’ former chassis guru Rob Trubiani. But more of that a little later.

This Chinese newcomer is available in two models – GWM Ora 5 Lux at $33,990 and the better equipped Ultra as tested here for $36,990 – both prices plus on road costs. As to the looks, a somewhat simple rounded style that GWM’s VP of Design suggests was inspired by the forms of nature. Maybe so, but for me the headlights dominate the design and are a little overbearing.

Certainly, for a small SUV the cabin is roomy with good kneeroom in the rear but a limited in boot space. at 362-litres down on several of its EV competitors but at least it is equipped with a full-size spare wheel which is a rare find in Chinese EVs. With the rear seat backs folded it offers a more respectable 1060L of useable space, with the ability to raise a false floorboard, providing a flat floor with the folded seat backs.

For a small SUV seat comfort is excellent, well bolstered front and back with the only downside the lack of seat height adjustment on the passenger seat. This is a common disappointment with many of the Chinese SUVs, and it presents as unnecessary cost cutting and a gripe I hear from many potential buyers.

For the money the equipment list is impressive – a 50W wireless phone charger, a panoramic glass roof with power sunshade, a power tailgate, heated and ventilated front seats, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, 6-way driver and four-way passenger power seats, dual zone climate control, a heated steering wheel, native navigation, a nine-speaker sound system and 64 colour ambient lighting.

These features on top of 18-inch machined alloy wheels, roof rails, LED electric levelling headlights, LED taillights, rain-sensing wipers, keyless entry and rear privacy glass. Also throw in a 360-degree camera, a tyre pressure monitoring system, seven airbags, ISOFIX child restraints, a multi-function steering wheel, adaptive cruise control, leatherette seats and steering wheel, dual zone climate control with rear vents and a full range of active driver assist systems (ADAS) and this is one well equipped small SUV.

The mostly cream interior on the test car gave the impression you were driving a much bigger SUV making it feel light and airy. Good storage elements with a fly-over centre console and nice interior detailing with a great instrument binnacle until you get to activate the 14.6-inch touch screen which displays the usual frustration with such user function and offers no driver convenience at all.

Why the Chinese persist with such a driver element staggers me for they are far from user friendly and can be downright dangerous if accessed while driving. There is some toggle switches located below the screen but given their design they are far from user friendly. The unmarked steering wheel controls also take some time to get acquainted with but once familiar they are very user friendly.

Power source on both Ora 5 models is a single front-mounted electric motor with 150kW and 260Nm of torque fed by a 58.3 kWh lithium iron phosphate battery pack. Drive is taken to the front wheels via a single speed reduction gear. Charge rates are not that quick with a standard AC charger at a rate pf 6.6kW while its peak rate on a DC charger of 120kW will take around 30 minutes from 10 to 80 per cent capacity.

GWM suggest a driving range of up to 430 kilometres with a power consumption rate at 15.5 kWh/100km. The performance is more than satisfying, brisk when needed via four different drive modes, Eco, City, Normal and Sport, an easy driver with a nice ride/handling balance for a small SUV. Given the quietness of an EV tyre roar becomes more noticeable and the cheap 225 x 60 series Chinese produced Prinx XNEX Sport EV tyres became more than obvious on courser road surfaces.

One driving feature you don’t expect on an affordable small SUV is the ability to adjust the steering calibration - noticeably over assisted on Light mode while Comfort delivered the nicest balance with Sport also providing the right amount of feedback for brisker driving.

Also adjustable is the level of regenerative braking and this is one of the nicest features of driving an electric car – with little need to touch the brake pedal on deacceleration and making for a nice driving experience. In low and medium settings, a nice addition to your normal brake pedal pressure but in High mode providing enough retardation to negate the need to touch the brake pedal in normal driving conditions.

GWM have also done a great job of tuning the active driver assist warnings, chimes and assistance to an acceptable level, far superior to the tuning on many of the cheaper Chinese EVs.

All told, I found this small Ora 5 fun to drive, somewhat funky and different and in a bright range of colours teamed with an appealing cream interior it stands out in the crowd, especially in the Flamingo Pink of the test car.

A few annoyances like the right-hand gear selector stalk requiring the blinker function on the left stalk while the lack of a manually operated park brake is concerning on a slope. Simply selecting Park on the gear selector on a sloped surface does not generate confidence that the car is adequately braked. Especially as you then step out to turn off the car via the smart key.

ANCAP safety rating – As yet not locally tested.

Warranty: 7-year/unlimited km. with 7-years capped price servicing and roadside assistance.