CHERY’s two EV brands in Thailand moved to local assembly, which under EV3.5 is the difference between qualifying for the ฿50,000 subsidy and not qualifying at all.
| Model | Price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| JAECOO 5 EV MAX+ (CKD) | ฿599,000 | effective 5 May – 30 June 2026, after a ฿20,000 rise from ฿579,000 |
| OMODA C5 EV (minorchange 2026, CKD) | ฿629,000 | 50.6 kWh pack |
Note the direction of travel: JAECOO ran a “last chance for best price” campaign at ฿579,000 before the ฿20,000 increase took effect. This is the same pattern that ran across the whole Thai market in 2026 — campaign price, then rise, then campaign again.
What the ownership package includes
Both models come with an unusually deep warranty offer:
- Lifetime warranty on the motor, high-voltage battery and electrical control system
- 8-year / 200,000 km vehicle warranty
- 5 years of 24-hour emergency assistance
- 1 year of class-1 vehicle insurance
- Free home charger with installation
Reading a “lifetime warranty” properly
This is where the real money is, and where the fine print lives. Three questions decide whether it is worth what it sounds like:
1. Does it transfer to the next owner? A non-transferable lifetime warranty is worth far less, because it evaporates at resale — precisely when a buyer would pay for the reassurance. MG’s Thai Lifetime Warranty, by comparison, does transfer and has no mileage cap.
2. What voids it? On MG’s terms, a single missed scheduled service voids the cover permanently. Warranties of this type are almost always conditional on a complete authorised service history. Ask for the exact wording, not the brochure summary.
3. What is excluded? In practice, always the 12V battery — the one component you are guaranteed to replace, repeatedly.
→ EV battery warranties versus reality
The practical instruction: ask to see the actual warranty booklet before you sign, not the sales sheet. Keep every service receipt. If you later sell the car, those documents are what make a transferable warranty worth real money to the next buyer.
Where these cars sit in the market
OMODA & JAECOO finished third at Bangkok Motor Show 2026 with 15,088 bookings, behind BYD’s 17,354 and Toyota’s 15,750. That is a serious result for a brand group that was barely present in Thailand two years earlier.
→ Bangkok Motor Show 2026 results
The Jaecoo 5 EV also ranked among Thailand’s best-selling individual models in the record January 2026 month.
The open question is service depth, not sales. Volume growth of this speed outpaces technician training everywhere it happens. Before buying, ask what work your nearest service point can complete in-house and what has to be sent elsewhere — that answer, not the booking chart, determines your ownership experience in years three to eight.
The one cost no warranty here covers
The 12V battery. It wakes the car, it is excluded from every lifetime warranty on the market, and in Phuket’s heat it lasts roughly 18-24 months at ฿2,500-6,500 to replace.
→ Caring for your EV’s 12V battery in Phuket
EV Phuket — mobile EV battery service
- 12V battery replacement for all EV brands, including system reset
- Free 12V health check — voltage, CCA and load test
- 24-hour emergency jump start (cars only, no motorcycles)
- 20-30 minutes anywhere in Phuket
Call 098-168-9907
→ Choosing and running an EV in Phuket
Sources: Autolife Thailand official pricing announcements for JAECOO 5 EV MAX+ CKD and OMODA C5 EV minorchange 2026, OMODA & JAECOO Thailand campaign terms, Motorist Thailand BIMS 2026 booking rankings, Thailand EV Board / BOI EV3.5 terms — verified August 2026.