Chery, Jaecoo J5, MG S4 — which one has the fewest "surprise" costs in the first month?
Still in the research phase, haven't signed anything yet. Sub-$40K budget, mostly city commuting, maybe 4-5 drives a week, nothing exotic like towing or long regional runs. Trying to work out not just the sticker price but what's actually in the box versus what I'll end up buying separately in the first month — charger, cable, whatever else the dealer conveniently doesn't mention until delivery day. I've had one quote so far for a completely different reason and it felt high, so I'm wary of getting surprised again. Anyone gone through this comparison with actual figures rather than just vibes? Chery, Jaecoo J5 and MG S4 are the three I keep coming back to.
Filed under: Chinese EV Owners
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23 answers
23 ANSWERS
@bazza_wJuly 29, 2026
MG S4 comes with a proper Type 2 cable and a 10A portable in the box as standard, that's the one causing the fewest delivery-day surprises based on what's floating around owner groups. Jaecoo J5 is newer to the local market so accessory pricing isn't settled yet — budget a few hundred beyond whatever's actually in the boot. Chery varies more by dealer bundle than the other two, get the accessory list in writing before you sign anything.
Different story on mine, mine's an MG4 not the S4 — cable only in the boot, no portable charger, and the dealer took three days to even reply about it. Ended up just buying my own.
Following this because I'm looking at doing whichever one through a novated lease rather than cash. Does anyone know if accessory costs like this get folded into the running cost budget, or is that always a separate out-of-pocket thing regardless?
Mine wasn't bundled, provider called it 'non-standard equipment' straight up and I paid for the charger separately outside the lease altogether. Might be different provider to provider, no idea if that's universal.
@trent_b87July 24, 2026
Whichever one you land on, the same check applies across all three — confirm the granny charger has an actual AS/NZS 3112 marking on the housing before you rely on it daily, not just a number printed on the box. Seen people caught out across all three of the brands you've mentioned, it's not specific to one of them.
When you say check the housing marking — is that something dealers will actually hand over details on if you ask, like an accessory list in writing, or do you have to push for it?
Depends on the dealer a lot more than the brand in my experience. Ask before you put a deposit down, not after — you've got more leverage at that point and they're more likely to actually put something in writing.
Good to know, will do that up front then. Is that a normal ask that dealers expect, or does it tend to put people offside asking for it that early?
It's a normal ask, and any dealer who's sold more than a handful of EVs will have an answer ready for it by now, the accessory question comes up too often for it to catch them off guard. It's the ones who get cagey or vague about it that are worth being suspicious of, not the fact that you're asking. If anything, asking upfront signals you're not going to be an easy mark for extra costs after you've signed, and plenty of salespeople respect that more than people expect.
@just_lurking22July 24, 2026
does anyone know if these three actually include a home charger or cable in the box, or is that another one of those find-out-on-delivery-day things?
@kelso_jJuly 30, 2026
No home charging option where I am at all, so whichever of these three I ended up with, the accessory situation would matter more to me than any of the driving comparisons. Following for that reason.
@shazbot99August 03, 2026
Nobody ever compares how these three actually handle charging in real heat, it's always the cold-weather write-ups getting all the attention. Would be curious myself, up here it matters more than the marketing suggests.
Different climate for me in Newcastle but same complaint really. Most reviews assume a fairly mild commute and don't say much about anything outside that.
@petey_fxJuly 31, 2026
Whichever one you land on, check the cable length before you rely on it day to day. Mine came with something barely long enough to reach a standard bay, learned that one the hard way.
Mine's the standard 5m on the MG4, reaches fine for street parking near me but I haven't tried squeezing it into a tight multistorey bay yet.
Does the 5m reeling in and out easily matter as much as raw length for a tight multistorey bay, or is it more about clearance around the bay itself?
Clearance around the bay matters more than the reel itself in my experience — a 5m cable coils fine regardless, the actual problem is whether there's room to walk around your own car to reach the port without squeezing past the next bay's mirror. Measured my own local multistorey out of curiosity once and the tightest bays don't leave much room for that at all, independent of cable length.
@fi_macJuly 24, 2026
Not across these three specifically, but priced accessories for a couple of sub-$40k Chinese EVs for a mate recently and the gap between what's advertised as 'included' and what actually turns up in the boot was bigger than either of us expected. Get everything in writing, matches what's being said above.
Curious whether any of the three actually specify the portable charger's continuous amp rating anywhere in the delivery paperwork, or if that's another thing you only find out by asking directly.
Not in the paperwork for any of the three from what I've seen, it's on the unit itself if it's a properly certified one. Worth asking the dealer to point it out at delivery rather than assuming it's documented anywhere.
@jdubzJuly 24, 2026
Anyone actually gotten a straight answer on whether the Jaecoo J5 ships with a Type 2 cable as standard, or is that still one of those "ask the dealer" unknowns too?
Didn't check the Jaecoo specifically when I was pricing accessories for my mate, but the pattern held across every cheaper Chinese EV we looked at - base trim usually only guarantees the domestic mains lead, and the Type 2 cable either gets bundled as a paid pack or just isn't mentioned in the spec sheet, which in practice means don't assume it's standard. I'd get the dealer to confirm in writing rather than trust whatever's implied on the configurator, same advice as everyone's giving on the accessory list generally.
@just_lurking22August 04, 2026
watching this before we decide too
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