12/10/2025

Contributing Editor Keshy Dhillon / keshy@piston.my Editorial

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SUNDAY | OCT 12, 2025

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This massive grille is known as the ‘waterfall grille’ for its vertical slats.

Jaecoo J8 proof that you don’t need a lot of money to have a premium car d ’t d l t f t h i Value, redefined

Underneath that panel sits a 2.0-litre, turbocharged engine.

BY KESHY DHILLON

The electric door handles of the J8 pop back in when locked .

CHINESE cars are many things, but if there is one thing they deserve credit for is bringing technology to the masses. There used to be a time when certain features were reserved only for the upper segment cars. You could never find suede trimming, massage seats or even captain seats in any car below RM200,000. But the Chinese have completely changed that, specifically Jaecoo. It has only been in Malaysia for a little over a year, but has already made an impact that other car makers have strug gled to match despite their years of being in the market. The first model launched in Malaysia was the J7, and it was an immediate suc cess thanks to its design, interior trimming and advanced technologies. But more than anything else, it was a success because of its price. Suddenly, Malaysians realised that they could have more for less – much to the horror of legacy car makers who were got too comfortable for too long. But Jaecoo is not a company that rest on its laurels, it is on a roll and has introduced more models such as the J8. WHAT IS THE J8? The Jaecoo J8 is a D-segment SUV and is available in two variants, the two-wheel drive model which is priced at RM178,800, and the all-wheel-drive variant which is priced at RM198,800. The latter is what we will be focusing on for this article. It is currently the flagship model for Jaecoo Malaysia and like the J7, it is also locally assembled in Shah Alam. It shares a lot of its underpinnings with its cousin, the Omoda C9. But since Jaecoo

20-inch wheels blend in perfectly with the overall design of the car.

Column mounted air vent works a treat.

is the luxury division of the Chery umbrella, it has certain elements that make it more “upper class” than the Omoda. WHAT MAKES IT PREMIUM? Let’s first try to define what premium means to a car buyer. To a person driving a Perodua Axia, a Honda WRV will feel pre mium. For the person driving a Honda WRV, a Civic will feel premium and to the person driving the Civic, a BMW 3-series is a pre mium car. It is all about perception. But there is a noticeable trend here, every person who wants that premium feel must spend more money. And that is what makes the Jaecoo J8 different. The J8 feels as premium as any sub RM500k BMW, Mercedes-Benz or Volvo, and costs nearly half the amount. So with the Jaecoo J8 you don’t have to spend more to get a premium vehicle. I recently drove the all-wheel-drive

Third row seats fold flat to reveal a massive boot.

(AWD) variant and it is everything a car should be without breaking the bank. The exterior is a safe blend of grace and style. But of course, beauty is always in the

eye of the beholder and design is subjec tive. I like the way the Jaecoo J8 looks, more than the Omoda C9 though these two