OMODA 7 Review & Prices

The Omoda 7 is a sleek family SUV from China that stands out from other, similarly-sized alternatives thanks to its premium cabin, loads of interior space and brilliant hybrid engine. It could be a touch more comfortable around town, however, and the infotainment is annoying to navigate.

It’s also Omoda’s first attempt at disrupting the highly contested family SUV crowd, with some seriously capable alternatives in the Volkswagen Tiguan, Hyundai Tucson, Kia Sportage and Nissan Qashqai. It’s mechanically similar to the Chery Tiggo 7 (which is a bit less posh but even roomier) and the Jaecoo 7 (which is worse in every dimension).

In fact, you can consider the Chery, Jaecoo and Omoda trio as siblings moving to a new school - or a new country, in this case. While they’re all trying to make friends and find their way, the Omoda 7 is doing so by being a bit cooler and sportier than the others.

It has looks on its side, too. The Peugeot 3008 and Citroen C5 Aircross may be more stylish, but there’s something about the Omoda’s sleek silhouette, sharknose front end with slender headlights and lightning bolt taillight design that works very well. It is a little Lexus-y in appearance, that being said, so it loses points for a lack of originality.

The cabin isn’t quite as interesting to look at, because even with its quirky touches, there’s a strong similarity to a lot of other Chinese cars like the Changan Deepal S07, Geely EX5 and Leapmotor C10. That means a simple, upholstered dashboard, dominated by a large touchscreen (15.6-inches in this case) and a slim driver display behind the steering wheel.

Reach lower down and you’ll feel scratchy plastics on the door cards and centre console, but that’s to be expected in an affordable SUV. It’s the leatherette on the door tops and dashboard that are a little odd, as they aren’t very convincing at imitating real cow peel.

Still, everything feels solidly assembled, and the infotainment is lightning fast to respond to your inputs. If only the menus were less of a faff to navigate, especially on the move where a row of physical shortcuts for basic functions would come in handy.

At least it’s hugely spacious inside, with plenty of room for tall adults both front and rear and a whopping 639-litre boot, well ahead of a Skoda Karoq and Volkswagen Tiguan PHEV - even if it’s a little shallow.

You can have an Omoda 7 with a petrol engine, but the plug-in hybrid is the one to go for on account of its 56-mile electric only range and smoothness. It’s peppy, too, which adds to the Omoda’s driving manners in town.

The light steering and easy-to-judge brakes help when making tight manoeuvres, but it could do with some softer suspension to better dispatch bumpy roads. There’s some noticeable wind noise at motorway speeds, but the Omoda 7 is capable and borderline fun to drive on a twisty road.

Verdict:

A lot of Chinese cars get kudos mainly for their low prices, but the Omoda 7 stands toe-to-toe with the best family SUVs on merit. The cabin is more premium and spacious than a Volkswagen Tiguan, the hybrid system is more efficient than in a Hyundai Tucson and it’s better to drive than either. Omoda has pulled a blinder here, this is a great - and affordable - family car. If only it were a bit more comfortable…

Browse the latest Omoda 7 deals on Carwow, as well as Omoda 7 lease offers and used Omoda 7 options. There are loads of other used Omodas for sale, and don’t forget, you can sell your current car through Carwow, too.

The Omoda 7 starts at £32,000 in PHEV guise, while the petrol version starts at a hair under £30,000. The petrol version only comes in entry-level Knight trim, while the plug-in hybrid can be had in top-rung Noble and Noble Tech trims.

Knight versions come as standard with 19-inch alloy wheels, LED lights at both ends, rear privacy glass, leatherette upholstery with heated front seats and steering wheel, keyless entry-and-go and surround-view cameras. The Omoda 7 Noble takes the Knight trim and adds a Sony sound system, 20-inch alloy wheels, a glass sunroof, front seat ventilation and ambient interior lighting.

The Noble Tech adds a self-parking feature and a sliding function to the infotainment display, which can scooch over to the passenger side…for whatever reason.

That means the petrol model will cost a touch less than the Nissan Qashqai and Kia Sportage, and the SHS plug-in hybrid versions massively undercuts the Hyundai Tucson or Volkswagen Tiguan PHEVs - while being better equipped than either.

It’s not quite as good value compared to more similarly equipped cars such as the more affordable Chery Tiggo 7, but it feels far more upmarket than the MG HS and it looks classier than the BYD Seal U.

The Omoda 7 has a fantastic, refined hybrid system, but it’s not as comfortable as some alternatives

In town

At low speeds, the Omoda 7’s hybrid system has plenty of pep. Thanks to the big battery the SUV rarely has to use its engine to get around - unless it needs to charge - and the electric motor provides strong, smooth acceleration. It tackles big speedbumps well, but the Omoda isn’t as comfortable through pot holes and over rough sections of road as a Citroen C5 Aircross.

The light steering and good forward visibility help when maneuvering, but over the shoulder your view isn’t great as a result of the thick rear pillars. A clever touch is in the car’s software. While a lot of cars with regenerative braking and electric assistance are hard to bring to a smooth stop, the Omoda 7 can be set to modulate the brakes in that final moment to stop you being jolted around.

If you have a habit of easing off the brake naturally as you come to a stop then you won’t notice a huge difference, but if you compare the modes back-to-back you’ll be surprised at how effective it is.

On the motorway

Getting up to speed in the Omoda 7 PHEV is a piece of cake, with 204hp making for easy slip road acceleration and hassle-free overtakes. Once you get up to the national speed limit the Omoda 7 is quiet and composed.

There’s a bit of wind noise noticeable from the pillar next to your head, but tyre roar is well contained. That being said, high-speed ruts can thud through the cabin on Noble models with the larger alloys. It’s never alarming or intrusive, though.

The driver attention warning is a bugbear with most Chinese cars on sale in the UK, and it’s often most noticeable on the motorway, but the Omoda 7 is far less frequent (and jarring) than in some alternatives in the Leapmotor B10 and BYD Atto 3.

On a twisty road

Given the Chery Tiggo 7 and Jaecoo 7’s lacklustre performance on a twisty road, the Omoda 7 surprises by being really rather capable - to the point of being a bit fun. Okay, it’s no Cupra Ateca, but it’s more fun to drive than a Hyundai Tucson or Ford Kuga..

There’s a decent amount of grip, while the well-weighted steering and settled suspension over bumpy sections make it easy to keep pace up through a series of corners. Put it in sports mode and the steering becomes weightier, throttle response sharpens up a touch and brake regen increases, too.

The brakes are sharp, so overall you have more confidence in the Omoda 7’s ability on a good road than in a lot of other SUVs. It’s not the most refined when you’re hustling along; you can hear the engine kick in when you put your foot down, but this is easily forgiven.

There’s plenty of legroom and shoulder room in the Omoda 7, but extra-tall adults will feel their hair touching the headlining

You won’t struggle to find a good seating position in the Omoda 7. The steering wheel doesn’t have all that much adjustment, but the seat has plenty of movement and fits a wide variety of body shapes and sizes. The armrests are comfortable, too, and there’s plenty of storage space up front.

There’s a huge, open shelf underneath the centre console, while on top of it is a pad with a wireless phone charger, and space for a second mobile. Behind that are some physical controls for important functions such as driving modes and demisters, followed by two hidden cubbies - including cupholders and a ventilated space beneath the armrest.

The door bins are large enough for a big water bottle, while there are extra little spaces by the door handles for little bits and bobs, as well as a generous glovebox to lose your sunglasses in.

Space in the back seats

Legroom is where the Omoda 7 shines, because there’s more than enough to get comfortable in the back. You can slot your feet under the front seats, and a generous amount of shoulder space - combined with the cushioned bench and flat floor - means three adults can fit with little fuss.

Headroom is good, but not great, compared to alternatives such as the Skoda Karoq and Volkswagen Tiguan thanks to the sloping roofline, but the wide-opening doors and easy-to-access ISOFIX points will help when loading in car seats. You get a pair of cupholders in the flip-down centre armrest, and large door bins.

Boot space

The 639-litre boot is a very impressive figure, beaten only by the Volkswagen Tiguan in non-hybrid form and other larger SUVs. This is a huge chunk larger than the 450-litre Jaecoo 7, which might tempt you away from its posher-looking counterpart.

There are two shopping hooks, four tie-down points, a pair of side pockets for smaller items and a little bit of under-floor storage, but the Omoda 7’s high loading lip and shallow boot make it a pain to load in heavy, bulky items, The back seats only fold in a 60:40 arrangement, which isn’t a huge issue, but a poor effort given most of the alternatives offer a 40:20:40 solution.

At least you get seatbelt holders to stop them getting caught when flipping the seats back up, and there’s a handy flap on the back of the boot floor which stops things from getting caught on the seat bases when pushing items along the near-total flat floor.

A neatly-styled cabin with pretty displays, but there are some odd materials in the Omoda 7

On paper the Omoda 7 has an identical cabin to a lot of Chinese SUVs on sale at the moment, not just from Jaecoo, but brands such as BYD and MG, too. Yet Omoda has given its latest SUV some quirky details and pleasant styling touches which do set it apart.

For starters, the padded dashboard is slender and broken up by a full-width strip, housing the outermost air vents. The central vents are actually mounted on top of the dash and look rather funky, almost like they’re poking out from under a flap. Oddly, though, you can’t adjust the vertical angle they blow air at, and you can’t hide them away - even though it looks like you can.

The four-spoke steering wheel is comfortable to hold but isn’t very attractive, with a lot of glossy black plastic just waiting to get scratched by rings and covered in fingerprints. The twisty/clicky roller knobs aren’t very intuitive to use, either.

On a similar note, the 15.6-inch infotainment display has pretty graphics and it’s super responsive to your inputs thanks to its powerful processor. It's a shame the menus are so irritating to navigate, with a few too many different steps to get to simple controls such as the seat heating options, and no clear shortcut to get back to Apple CarPlay or Android Auto.

A novel feature is the built-in fragrance dispensers in the central cubby, allowing you to pipe one of three different scents through the air-con.

Material quality is generally high in the Omoda and everything feels solidly put together, but the leatherette on the door tops, while soft, feels more like neoprene more than it does leather. There are scratchy plastics on the lower door cards and dashboard, but that’s par for the course in an affordable SUV.

Official figures suggest Omoda 7 PHEV can achieve a frankly outrageous 403mpg on a combined cycle, but that’s not a figure you’ll see in the real world. We achieved 49mpg in our roughly 60-mile test route through Oxfordshire, which is impressive given the hilly, winding sections at the national speed limit - with some spirited driving meaning the engine was running more than it would in town. The car’s battery was almost fully charged.

The 18.6kWh battery can take you up to 55 miles on a full charge, but the hybrid system’s party trick is in its long-range ability. The engine is designed to keep the battery charged up above 20%, rather than driving the wheels. Even if you never plug in you’ll see a reasonable fuel economy figure, but if you top the battery up and brim the tank you’ll achieve over 700 miles of range.

We wouldn’t suggest the petrol-powered Omoda 7 once it reaches the UK. If the Chery Tiggo 7 is anything to go by you’ll achieve an MPG figure in the low-30s, it’ll be noisy and slow. Stick with a hybrid Omoda, it’s worth the extra.

The PHEV also makes a lot more sense as a company car, as it sits in a very low Benefit in Kind band. No matter which Omoda 7 you opt for, you’ll avoid paying the luxury car supplement on top of your road tax as they all cost under £40,000.

The Omoda 7 has yet to be crash tested by the safety experts at Euro NCAP, but the Jaecoo 7 and Chery Tiggo 7 both scored five stars - boding well for the mechanically similar Omoda.

It comes as standard with a whole host of sensors, safety and driving assistance systems including driver attention monitoring, automatic emergency braking and collision warning alarms, both front and rear.

Omoda is too new to have made the 2025 Driver Power owner satisfaction survey, but we’ve not heard any horror stories yet - nor have there been any major brand recalls.

Fortunately the Omoda 7 comes with a pretty comprehensive warranty at seven years and 100,000-miles of coverage, with unlimited mileage in the first three years. This may not be quite as impressive as Toyota and Lexus with their ten-year cover, but nonetheless it puts a lot of European cars to shame, far surpassing the industry standard three-year, 60,000-mile policies.