Business 210
Used Ford F-150 Lightning EV Pickups Sell at Half Price as Demand Surges
Chery's iCaur to launch in UK in 2027 with V27 4x4
Chinese giant Chery has confirmed its adventure-focused iCaur brand will enter the UK market in early 2027, starting with the Defender-sized V27 range-extender 4x4. The move follows a recent Autocar scoop and makes iCaur Chery's fifth UK brand.
By George Kensington · 3 min read
Chery has confirmed that its adventure-focused iCaur brand will launch in the UK in early 2027, with the Defender-sized V27 4x4 as its first model. The announcement follows a recent Autocar scoop revealing that the Chinese giant had begun customer clinics in the UK to evaluate a market launch.
iCaur will become Chery's fifth brand in the UK, joining Omoda, Jaecoo, Chery and Lepas. The company's joint venture with JLR, Freelander, is expected to follow later, and the Jetour SUV brand could also arrive in due course. Unlike Omoda and Jaecoo, which share a retail network, iCaur will operate as a standalone brand, though it will draw on the backing, experience and resources of its parent company.
The V27 is a chunky, Defender-sized 4x4 that uses a 450bhp range-extender EV powertrain in other markets. Chery has not yet confirmed whether the UK version will offer exactly the same setup, but it has said the model will be electrified and will deliver electrified efficiency alongside off-road capability. Other Chery group cars in the UK currently offer petrol, plug-in hybrid and electric power.
The V27 has recently been spotted testing in camouflage on UK roads. Chery has opened a new engineering base at the Millbrook test track in Bedfordshire to adapt its models to UK market requirements. The company has not indicated how much the V27 will cost in the UK, but it opened order books in select European markets earlier this month with prices starting from €55,000, equivalent to around £46,000. That is roughly £18,000 less than the cheapest JLR Defender 110.
iCaur also sells a smaller, pure-electric crossover called the V23, which has not yet been confirmed for the UK but could follow the V27 into showrooms given the popularity of such models. There is also the mid-sized V25, which uses a range-extender powertrain like the V27.
Details of iCaur's UK retail operation remain to be confirmed, but Autocar understands that Chery has begun the dealer recruitment process and has been showing the V27 to prospective vendors. The brand's arrival will add further competition to the UK's growing market for electrified off-roaders, where established premium players such as Land Rover currently dominate.
Chery's expansion in the UK reflects a broader push by Chinese manufacturers into the British market, where they are increasingly offering electrified models across a range of price points. The iCaur brand, known as iCar in China but renamed elsewhere to avoid a dispute with Apple, positions itself around adventure and off-road capability. Its UK launch in early 2027 will be closely watched as a test of whether a standalone Chinese off-road brand can gain traction with British buyers.
11
