Consider a Brand you Might not have Heard of for your Next Family Car – Our Omoda Review

When it comes to buying a car, with it being such a major investment to make as a family, most tend to stick to known and trusted brands. Particularly because we don’t hear of new car makes very often. Instead, it’s easier to stay loyal to the tried and tested names we’ve been surrounded by for years. Often people have car makes and models they like and aspire to, or have had before and trust – therefore when the time comes, depending on budget, we use that as our guide and then choose the range to fit what we can afford.

Yet what about if there was a new way to think about this – as we all know doing things the same way just because we always have, isn’t necessarily the best option. There happens to be a brand that has entered the UK market in 2024 from China, the Omoda. Who are not only offering a premium looking and feeling SUV at a family affordable price, but they also come with the reassurance of not actually being completely new to the global marketplace, having already been an established popular car in China.

This all leads me nicely onto why I’m talking about family cars in the first place. John Grose in Ipswich recently opened their Omoda showroom in August 2024 and invited us as a family to test drive the electric Omoda 5, so we could share what it’s like in real life.

Now, it’s one thing seeing a car looking all flash and sparkling new in a showroom, with someone on hand to explain all its fabulous features. But the real test drive for a family has to be, taking the car out all together to put it through its paces. By that I’m not simply talking about how it drives, (although clearly that is important and we will get to that) what I’m referring to is – how do all the advertised claims and features stand up when occupied by a busy noisy family, putting its functions and amenities through its paces!

We went along last Saturday to Ransomes Business Park to find out…

First impressions were good. I will confess though, I had already been doing some Instagram lurking on their page. I therefore had a good idea prior to going, that the car was impressive to look at and could see from their posts, it was situated in a fancy showroom setting, so no surprises there, that it didn’t disappoint.

But what I was impressed with straightway, is how sleek the profile is, with a high-end finish that gave a lux feel on both the exterior and interior of the car in real life. Along with the statement grill and alloy wheels, it definitely has the wow factor and looks far more high end, than the reasonably priced family car price tag.

Once we’d been talked though the car and the kids had enjoyed having a seat in all the different models, we took the car out for a spin at the seaside.  When we picked the car up, I have to confess I was a bit disappointed as the weather was grey and dreary, so my plan of getting pretty shots of the car with the winter sun over the coast, as we pulled up in Felixstowe went out the window. But in hindsight, that’s not actually what this review is for is it. It’s about driving the car in real life and it doesn’t get more real, than accepting that our backdrop is more often than not, grey and dreary in Great Britain!   

My husband was the one that drove the car and he found it very easy to drive. It was a smooth ride, comfortable and plenty of room for all four of us, with the kids taking advantage of the cup holders in the back before we’d even left the car park.  There were a lot of modern features that feel especially family friendly, including many I’d never seen or even thought of before.

Family Friendly Features we Loved about the Omoda E5

The first was the extra features coming up on the dashboard to assist when driving and lets face it, there’s no bigger distraction than babies and children in the back of the car, so any help is welcome. When turning at junctions there was imagery that came up on the screen to show the angle of the car and direction, plus lane assist, sensors to guide how close other vehicles were and many more.

After we’d dodged the rain in the arcades and played some crazy golf, we braved the cold for some fish and chips on Felixstowe Sea Front. We then headed back over Ipswich way to the Suffolk Food Hall. Having arms filled with brollies, bags and toys the children had won in the arcade, another welcome feature we noticed when arriving back at the car, was that it automatically unlocks as you get close to the vehicle without having to press anything, which is fab when you have got your arms full.

After a smooth drive to Suffolk Food Hall, we treated ourselves to some sweet treats for Saturday night on the sofa and enjoyed a look around their Christmas shop, before heading home.

It was now dark, so we were able to get the full experience of the ambient lighting. Not only can you choose the colour, you can even set it to change to the beat of the music too! Another techy benefit was being able to mirror my phone on the car screen. Meaning no faffing with an in car sat nav, we could simply use maps from phone, plus we could then use our Spotify to play music through the high spec stereo system.

If your family is anything like mine, there always seems to be someone low on phone charge. So another nice touch is that there’s a charging pad you can pop your phone on in the front seat.

Next morning, our last chance to test out its family friendliness was boot space – I remember when my children were little, the nightmares of fitting in buggies into tight car spots and even now loading up the car for holidays and a big food shop is made so much easier if you’ve got a good boot to pack it in. Well, our pram days are well and truly over, but my husband and son were going golfing on the Sunday and were pleased to report how easy it was to fit two golf bags in the boot of the Omoda E5.

All in all, we were extremely impressed with the Omada E5. From a practical perspective it drove well, has a good charge range and all the extra features made it feel good value for money. Coupled with the sleek and futurist look of the vehicle, meaning you could have functionally while not compromising on style. The cars start from £25,000 for the petrol version and £33,000 for the fully electric model.

The Omoda Garage in Ipswich has a great range of cars and in our experience a lovely group of staff, we were made to feel welcome and felt comfortable asking lots of questions that they seemed well informed to answer.

If you are interested in what a Omoda car might feel like for your family, why not get in touch with them and book a test drive at Omoda Ipswich