iCAUR 03

Highly anticipated, iCaur Malaysia’s (Chery sub-brand) first local release, the all-new iCaur 03, officially launched in Malaysia.

The C-segment (mid-size off-road SUV) Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV) underpins an Aluminium Monocoque chassis (single shell structure).

Fully imported (CBU – China), available via iCaur Auto Malaysia are two variants (03 2WD – RM119,800, 03 iWD – RM129,800).

Prices (OTR, w/o insurance) include vehicle (seven years/150,000 km), EV battery (eight years/160,000 km – 1-to-1 battery replacement: <70% health) and drive unit (eight years/160,000 km) warranties.

Exterior (dual-tone: Black roof) colours (Grey, Black, Silver, Green, White). Interior (single-tone) colour (Black).

The all-new 03 gets a rectangular dashboard (buttonless), linked to a wide-floating centre console (armrest, grab handles, wireless charger, upper-lower storage, gear selector-omitted).

Soft-/hard-touched (dash, steering wheel, centre console, doors), it sees leatherette upholstery in one colour scheme (single-tone: Black) with contrast trims (Aluminium, Gloss Black) and stitching (White).

Equipped are the driver/central displays (instrument cluster, infotainment), air-conditioning vents (rectangular: vertical corners, horizontal centres – controls: infotainment) and an ‘Atmosphere’ ambient light system (rhythmic, customisable).

Inclusively, the layout is modern and straight-forward with accessibilities purposefully arranged (driver-centric, passenger-oriented). 

Installed is a 9.2-inch colour TFT LCD fully digital (Multi-Information Display – MID) driver display (instrument cluster).

Features are vehicle telematics, Bluetooth, navigation, Intelligent Voice Assistant and customisable interface (drive mode dependent).

Comfortable, the interior sees leatherette (03 2WD, 03 iWD) upholstery in one colour scheme (single-tone: Black) with contrast stitching (White).

The front gets electric-powered (driver/passenger: multi-way-adjust, driver-lumbar-welcome-memory-one-touch-flat, ventilation, massage – 03 iWD) bolstered seats.

The rear gets a manual-operated (60:40 split-fold-stowable, backrest-recline-adjust, ventilation) bolstered bench (three-seater).

Included are headrests (front, rear), armrests (front: centre console – rear: centre seat fold-out) and a panoramic glass sunroof (electric: open/tilt/slide, sunshade).

A five-seater (mid-size off-road e-SUV), the cabin offers generous space, providing comfortable seatings with ample interior mobility for the occupants (front, rear).

Sufficient head, shoulder and leg rooms.

Practical storage spaces. E.g., glove box, dash storage (passenger side), centre console compartments (armrest/partitioned/caverned/upper-lower stowage) and seat back/side door pockets.

Provided are four cup holders (two: front, rear) and four bottle holders (one: side doors).

Equipped are four USB ports (two: front, rear), two 12 V sockets (one: front, boot) and one wireless charger (centre console: vented).

Accessing its side-hinged tailgate (manual operation, electric suction close – 03 iWD) opens to 450 litres (rear seats up) and 1,238 litres (rear seats down) of load capacities.

Included is a tailgate mounted rear storage box (40 litres).

Weighing in at 1,775 kg (03 2WD) and 1,874 kg (03 iWD), the all-new 03 stands at 4,406 mm long, 1,910 mm wide, 1,715 mm tall and with a wheelbase spanning 2,715 mm.

Solidly sporty and ruggedly robust, it exudes a modern outlook, emphasised by angularly boxy and dynamic proportions.

The front-end sees a formed bonnet (centre raised), angular quarter panels (flared fenders) and a square bumper (grille-omitted, upper bar insert, bumper guard: lower-centre vented, iCaur emblem).

Accentuations, body clad (Black: bumper guard, fenders, side sills), body trims (Black: upper bar insert, vent, side mirrors, window/light surrounds – Black-White: iCaur emblem) and roof rails (Black).

Solidly athletic and ruggedly tapered, it continues the contemporary aesthetic, emphasised by angularly symmetrical and chiselled surfaces.

The rear-end sees a straight cut roofline, angular quarter panels (flared fenders), a flat tailgate (side-hinged: electric soft-close, mounted storage box, tailgate handle, iCaur emblem/script) and a square bumper (bumper guard, exhaust-omitted).

Accentuations, body clad (Black: bumper guard, fenders, side sills), body trims (Black: window/light surrounds – body-colour: tailgate handle – Black: iCaur emblem/script), storage box (body-colour) and roof rails (Black).

Seamlessly sleek, the headlamps are framed rectangularly slim with vertically separated DRLs (diagonal inserts). Installed are full LED (adaptive projectors) units.

Features are automatic On/Off/cornering, Daytime Running Lights (DRL – LED), Adaptive High-Beam Lights (AHL), welcome/leaving lights and sequential turn signals (LED).

Thickly sleek, the tail lamps are framed rectangularly large and vertical (diagonal inserts). Installed are full LED units.

Features are automatic On/Off, welcome/leaving lights and sequential turn signals (LED). Included is a high-mounted stop light (roof-edge integrated).

The side mirrors (single-tone: Black) are electric-powered (auto-fold, adjust), with turn signals (LED), blind-spot indicators (Blind Spot Detection – BSD) and heating.

Fitted are ventilated (front) and solid (rear) disc brakes. 

Drive is aided by an Electronic Parking Brake (EPB) with Auto Brake Hold system and regenerative braking (Co-operative Regenerative Braking System – CRBS).

Mounted are sets of 18-inch (03 2WD) and 19-inch (03 iWD) five-spoke (single-tone: Dark Grey – 03 2WD, dual-tone: Black-Silver – 03 iWD) alloy rims.

The sets are rubbered up in 225/60 R18 Chao Yang Radial RP76 (03 2WD) and 225/55 R19 GitiControl P10 (03 iWD) tyres.

The all-new 03 is installed with the following suite of Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS).

Grouped are Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB), Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC), Blind Spot Detection (BSD), Door Opening Warning (DOW), Driver Attention Indicator (DAI), Emergency Lane Keeping (ELK), Front Collision Warning (FCW), Rear Collision Warning (RCW), Lane Departure Warning (LDW), Lane Departure Prevention (LDP), Lane Change Warning (LCW), Rear Cross Traffic Alert (RCTA) and Traffic Jam Assist (TJA). 

Other systems include Anti-lock Braking System (ABS), Electronic Brake-Force Distribution (EBD), Brake Assist System (BAS), Emergency Brake Assist (EBA), Brake Override System (BOS), Comfort Stop Technology (CST), Co-operative Regenerative Braking System (CRBS), Traction Control System (TCS), Electronic Stability Control (ESC), Vehicle Dynamic Control (VDC), Hill Descent Control (HDC), Hill Hold Control (HHC), Adaptive High-Beam Lights (AHL), Around View Monitor (AVM – 540-degree, 3D, transparent chassis), Driving Video Recorder (DVR – 360-degree), Tyre Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS) and Electronic Parking Brake (EPB) with Auto Brake Hold.

Passive safety includes six (driver-passenger, front sides, front-rear curtains) airbags, seat belts (reminders, pre-tensioners, anchors), ISOFIX (two: outer-rear seats), parking sensors (four – front, rear), parking cameras (reverse, 540-degree, 3D, transparent chassis), rear-view mirrors (exterior: BSD – interior: automatic-dimming), automatic-door locks (speed-sensing, central-locking, walk-away-lock), automatic wipers (rain-sensing, intermittent), automatic headlamps (On/Off/cornering/low-/high-beam), automatic windows (anti-pinch, one-touch up/down), impact beams, door ajar warning and anti-theft system (security alarm, immobiliser).

Multiple drive modes enabled via the ‘iRoad’ drive program (03 2WD: ECO, NORMAL, SPORT, SNOW, MUD, SAND – 03 iWD: ECO, NORMAL, SPORT, SNOW, MUD, SAND, ALL-ROAD, SLIPPERY, BEACH, BUMPY).

Installed is a 15.6-inch HD touchscreen central display (infotainment – control unit).

Features are AM/FM radio, USB, Bluetooth, 5G/WiFi/WiFi hotspot, Apple CarPlay/Android Auto (wireless), media, live navigation, Intelligent Voice Recognition (front, rear) and vehicle telematics (drive, interior).

Entertainment is channelled via standard (eight speakers – 03 2WD) and ‘INFINITY’ (12 speakers – 03 iWD) sound systems.

The all-new 03 (03 2WD, 03 iWD) comes with variant-specific e-powertrains (BEV).

Nestled (03 2WD) is a single-electric-motor (rear-mounted: Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor – PMSM) setup (135 kW/184 PS, 220 Nm).

Fused (03 iWD) is a dual-electric-motor (front-rear-mounted: Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor – PMSM) setup (front: 70 kW/95 PS, 165 Nm – rear: 135 kW/184 PS, 220 Nm). Total system output (205 kW/279 PS, 385 Nm).

Merged to the setup is a single-speed automatic transmission (steering stalk gear shifter).

Power is transmitted to the rear wheels (03 2WD) and all four wheels (03 iWD), via a Rear-Wheel Drive (RWD) and an intelligent All-Wheel Drive (iWD) system.

0 to 100 km/h is done in 10.5 secs (03 2WD) and 6.5 secs (03 iWD). Top speed is electronically capped at 150 km/h (03 2WD, 03 iWD).

Powering the e-motors is a Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) battery (03 2WD: 65.7 kWh – 03 iWD: 69.8 kWh), enabling a total driving range (NEDC) of 426 km (03 2WD) and 418 km (03 iWD).

AC charging (Type 2: 6.6 kW – 03 2WD, 03 iWD) takes 10 hours for a 0% to 100% State of Charge (SoC). DC charging (CCS2: 80 kW – 03 2WD, 03 iWD) takes 30 minutes for a 30% to 80% SoC.

Included (03 2WD, 03 iWD) is a regenerative braking system (Co-operative Regenerative Braking System – CRBS) and a Vehicle-to-Load (V2L – 3.2 KW) charging function for powering of external appliances. 

The all-new 03 features these conveniences.

E.g., Smart Entry system (keyless entry, engine Start/Stop button, remote engine start, NFC key card, flush door handles), electric doors (interior: door latch button), side-hinged tailgate (manual operation, electric suction close – 03 iWD), dual-zone automatic climate control system (rear vents, remote control, infotainment unit controls), electric-powered (driver/passenger: multi-way-adjust, driver-lumbar-welcome-memory-one-touch-flat, ventilation, massage – 03 iWD) bolstered seats (front), manual-operated (60:40 split-fold-stowable, backrest-recline-adjust, ventilation) bolstered bench (rear), headrests (front, rear), armrests (front: centre console – rear: centre seat fold-out), panoramic glass sunroof (electric: open/tilt/slide, sunshade), interior storage areas (dash storages, centre console compartments, seat/door pockets), steering wheel (multi-function, column adjustments, column gear shifter, EPS), interior illumination (cabin/boot/ambient), charging ports (USB, power sockets, wireless charger), Vehicle-to-Load (V2L – 3.2 KW) charging, parking sensors (four – front, rear), parking cameras (reverse, 540-degree, 3D, transparent chassis), rear-view mirrors (exterior: BSD – interior: automatic-dimming), automatic-door locks (speed-sensing, central-locking, walk-away-lock), automatic wipers (rain-sensing, intermittent), automatic headlamps (On/Off/cornering/low-/high-beam), automatic windows (anti-pinch, one-touch up/down), impact beams, door ajar warning, Electronic Parking Brake (EPB) with Auto Brake Hold and Tyre Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS).

Installed is a dual-zone automatic climate control system (rear vents, remote control, infotainment unit controls).

A suitable all-rounder (on-roader, off-roader), the ride comfortability feels flexible and firm at the same time, providing great power with agile handling.

Propping-up the e-chassis is a suspension setup of MacPherson strut (front) and H-arm multi-link (rear). Inside and out, performance- and comfort-wise, the ride quality is satisfactory.

Good sound insulation with the NVH (noise, vibration, harshness) aspects accounted for. The cabin is well-designed, enhancing the in-car ambience.

Overall, the cabin can suppress unwanted noises well and make them barely noticeable, even when cruising through bumpy terrains or at high speeds.

The all-new iCaur 03 is built with a robustly rugged appeal, offering appearance, space and practicality.

Solidly sculpted, its exterior is well-designed with boxy angular lines donating to a powerful overall character. 

Inside and out, the quality of the equipment installed is impressive with clean and minimalistic detailing.

Performance-wise, it offers a thrilling driving dynamic (RWD, AWD) with its on-road and off-road prowess.

Ultimately, the build quality is excellent, and with its distinctive outlook and energising powertrain, the all-new 03 is surely an e-SUV to consider.