Jetour Dashing Review: The Ultimate Family Cruiser
By: Dylan Naidoo
You may have seen Jetours on the road already, crossover SUVs with bold designs inspired by luxury cars but have wondered what the brand truly was. Jetour joins the crop of Chinese vehicles entering South Africa, except the brand is a luxury subsidiary of famous Chinese automaker, Chery. Jetour’s SUVs have sold quite well in its home country in China, and that level of success is translating well in South Africa. Last month, Jetour’s famous T2 off-roader ranked 18th in the best-selling cars in South Africa for August 2026, an impressive figure. But for this review, we are exploring the Jetour Dashing, a more cruiser focused crossover SUV that really surprised us.
Engineering & Technology
The Dashing is powered by a 1.5l, turbocharged 4-cylinder engine delivering 125kW of torque, with a top speed of 180km/h. Overall speed was a plus point, with the Dashing rather easily reaching 120km/h without much engine noise. Thanks to the Dual-Clutch Transmission (DCT), the transmission was smooth, and overall cabin noise was minimal. Fuel consumption is rated at 6.8L/100km (7.8 for the base model), and with a 57l tank, the fuel consumption is quite low. On the engine side of things, the Dashing is a very competitive package.
The car was very well-equipped on the tech side as well, featuring dual 10.25inch screens, one infotainment screen and speed-o-meter, that offers wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, which connected to our phone seamlessly. Like many Chinese cars, the infotainment system controls much of the car's extensive features, including a range of sensors and assist features, which is quite surprising for a car at this price point. One surprise for this car was an actual volume knob, and paired with the physical air-conditioning controls, at least covers the basics of what should be physical on the car, which I highly praise them for. Outside of the infotainment screen, it’s nice to see a wireless phone charging pad, as well as one USB A and C port equipped with fast charging, and the eight Sony speakers peppered around the car. This is a very well-thought-out crossover, with pretty much everything covered, which I was surprised by.
Design and Interior
Wow, now that is a design that stands out. It really does give off “look at me” vibes and really puts into perspective the two camps of people on the design. Some people will love it, and some people will think it really is there to show off. But if being noticed is what you are looking for, then this car does that very well. I do love the back might I add. Really, this crossover looks like some hybrid mix of a Lamborghini Urus and a Toyota Corolla Cross.
But what I think is completely agreeable is that the interior looks good. I’ve already touched
on how it already ticks all the boxes in the features department, and it is all packaged together nicely in beautiful synthetic leather seating and a semi-minimalist design more attractive to people like me. It's one of my favourite interiors I’ve ever seen, and I must really commend Jetour for this. It blends a great mix of minimalism and functionality, a rare sighting in modern cars.
Spacing and Practicality
The Dashing offers 165mm of ground clearance that is driven around on R19 wheels, which is quite large for a crossover SUV, but in a good way. Legroom and headroom were both great, seating front and rear passengers with ease. Along with the relatively smooth suspension, passengers feel very comfortable, especially on long trips. Boot capacity is rated at 486L, and 977l with the rear seats down. This is quite decent at the price range.
Price and Overall Thoughts
At just R429,900 for the Prestige variant and R479,900 for the Prime, the Jetour Dashing offers a highly competitive package for the price. It really is quite hard for a crossover SUV at this price point to tick as many boxes as the Jetour Dashing has good power, good ride, easy to use controls, excellent ride quality and impressive spacing!
