Chery establishes German headquarters and prepares Chery Q EV market entry
Chery is introducing the Chery Q, its first electric model for EU markets. The 4.19-meter-long electric compact car joins the Chinese carmaker's previously hybrid-focused lineup in Europe. The market launch of the Chery Q in Germany is scheduled for a slightly later date than the company's hybrids.
Image: Chery
While Chery started exporting to Europe in 2022 with hybrids and is already active in major markets such as Spain, Poland, and the UK, the automotive giant, China’s largest automotive exporter, only just announced the launch of hybrid SUVs from its subsidiaries on the German market earlier this year, starting with the PHEV SUV Jaecoo 7 SHS. In the first half of 2027, the core Chery brand will debut in Germany through its own subsidiary and launch its first fully electric car – just presented at the Paris Auto Show; see details below – soon after the hybrids.
Chery is currently setting up its German headquarters in Frankfurt am Main, including showrooms for the core Chery brand and its sub-brands, Omoda & Jaecoo. The Chinese export giant, founded and still partially owned by the Wuhu municipal government in Anhui province, opened its European Operations Center in Barcelona in April 2026, which, according to Chery, was its first overseas regional operations centre. Chery Q, the brand’s first all-electric model for EU markets, made its European public debut in France, while in the UK, the order books for a different fully electric SUV from a Chery sub-brand, Lepas, openedin August just passed.
The four launch models for the German market – already announced beforehand in several other European markets – are all SUVs from the Tiggo model family and notably all hybrids. The Tiggo 4 is a full hybrid, the Tiggo 7 is available as a full or plug-in hybrid, and the seven-seater SUVs, Tiggo 8 and Tiggo 9, are plug-in hybrids. It came as a surprise in Germany that hybrids were announced in August before any fully electric models. Now, with the Chery Q, the manufacturer is quickly following up with a purely electric model in Europe’s biggest car-making country, which is also the first model to be marketed in Germany under the main Chery brand name rather than its sub-brands.
Chery Q: a 2.70-metre wheelbase for a spacious Interior
On its international website, Chery has been announcing the new series for some time as a playful electric compact car that vaguely resembles the Renault 5 E-Tech. The Chery Q is positioned as an electric city car with dimensions of 4.19 x 1.81 x 1.56 metres and a wheelbase of 2.70 metres. The overhangs are short. For its overall length, the four-door car offers a generous amount of interior space. Chery highlights a boot capacity of 375 litres and an additional 70 litres under the hydraulically opening front bonnet.
In terms of powertrain, the Chery Q delivers 89 kW of power. This is slightly more than the entry-level version of the similarly sized VW ID. Cross. Chery specifies the battery’s energy content as 41 kWh (compared to 37 kWh in the ID. Cross). The Chinese manufacturer thus positions its newcomer as an alternative to the current offensive by European manufacturers such as VW and Renault in the electric small and compact car segment.
It is somewhat unusual that Chery specifies a range of up to 400 kilometres for the Chery Q according to the NEDC cycle, since NEDC is a test cycle rarely used in Western vehicle presentations today. The more comparable WLTP figure is not yet available, but it will be lower than 400 km. For fast charging, Chery only provides the equally hard-to-compare charging range from 30 to 80 per cent, for which the manufacturer says the electric compact car takes 17 minutes. No specific DC charging power is mentioned, but a Vehicle-to-Load (V2L) function has been announced.
Image: Chery
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While Chery states that the Chery Q is already “available on numerous international markets,” the upcoming availability of the fully electric car in the EU is seen as part of the Chinese carmaker’s next stage of expansion in Europe. The company says the launch on the German market is not expected until “a later date”. Patrick Reimers, Country Director of the Chery brand, indicated that the Chery Q will be followed by more battery-electric models during the brand’s introduction presented in August this year.
In addition to the all-electric car, Chery is currently presenting another full hybrid at the Paris automotive trade fair, the Tiggo 4 — the most compact representative in the manufacturer’s European hybrid portfolio at 4.32 metres. No pricing details have been announced for either model series.
Eric Zheng, CEO of Chery Auto Deutschland and Vice President of Chery Automotive Europe, underlined that Chery electric vehicles are affordable and are aimed at enabling families to switch to electric mobility without having to compromise on budget or safety.
China’s top passenger car exporter for 23 Years
Chery is approaching Germany with caution. Although still relatively unknown in Germany, Chery is China’s most successful passenger car exporter. Eric Zheng recently pointed out that Chery has been the top Chinese passenger car exporter for 23 years, achieving a new delivery record in July 2026 with over 275,000 cars (including 202,500 exports), around half of which were electrified. According to Zheng, Chery is present in 130 countries, including 25 in the EU. As mentioned above, the manufacturer is already active in major markets such as Spain, Poland, and the UK.
So why is the market launch in Germany only planned for 2027? In August, Zheng described the German market as “challenging” and the customers as demanding. “The German market forces us, so to speak, to meet the highest standards with our products, services, and partners from the very beginning.” In his view, it is not about being too early or too late—it is simply about “the right timing”.
Within the group, Chery is to be positioned as a family-oriented car brand (advertising slogan: “Chery. For Family”). With its sub-brands Omoda and Jaecoo, specifically designed for international markets, the group also aims to target two additional audiences. According to its own marketing, Omoda is intended to appeal to a progressive, urban target group, while Jaecoo embodies the spirit of adventure. Interestingly, the manufacturer intends to keep the brand presentation, management, and distribution channels for Chery on one side and Omoda & Jaecoo on the other relatively strictly separate.
Chery plans to start with 30 dealerships in Germany
The Chinese manufacturer aims for a classic model through physical dealerships in Germany. For the market launch next year, Chery plans to have 30 partner dealers, increasing to a network of at least 100 locations across Germany by the end of 2027. Regarding market positioning, the company states it will focus on technical refinements and a high level of safety—at moderate prices, as can be inferred from other EU countries. For example, in Austria, prices for the full hybrid Tiggo 4 start at well under €25,000.
The fact that several Chinese brands are currently pushing into the German market—such as Leapmotor, Xpeng, and Geely—does not impress Chery. Patrick Reimers comments that, as a highly export-experienced company, “we are the most international passenger car manufacturer to come out of China” — and thus, “if at all, we align ourselves more with brands like Škoda or Hyundai”.
Chery’s broader strategy for Europe
At the Paris Auto Show, Chery also reiterated its European roadmap, which aims to “strengthen local research and development, production and service networks; continue to evolve its product range; and offer plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV), hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) and battery electric vehicle (BEV) options.” The Chinese automotive giant’s diversified powertrain strategy is meant to “support both short urban journeys in electric mode and longer family trips with hybrid power.” Chery also says its strategy includes “responding more precisely to different markets and customer groups.”
Under its plan for Europe, Chery will expand into 20 EU markets, including France and establish 687 sales and service outlets. In terms of sales numbers, the company says it intends to “serve around 100,000 EU families in 2026.” Following up with rapid expansion, in 2027, Chery expects to be present in 27 EU markets, with 1,143 outlets “supported by a more complete localised system of products and services.”
_Source: Information via email_