Lepas L4 electric SUV previewed ahead of planned December Australian launch

L4 joins Lepas’s Australian launch plan

Chery’s new Lepas brand has previewed the L4 electric small SUV to media in Sydney and set out a broader Australian launch schedule. The L4 is planned to follow the mid-size L6 electric SUV, which is due to introduce the brand locally in October 2026. CarExpert and GoAuto both report a December 2026 launch target for the smaller model. ¹⁴

The L4 shown at the media preview was a pre-production vehicle, according to CarExpert. Lepas said specifications could change before launch, so the figures released with the preview should not be treated as final Australian showroom specifications. CarExpert reported that the L4 display vehicle was white, alongside examples of the larger L6 and L8. ¹⁷

Separately, zecar reported ahead of Everything Electric Australia, held in Sydney from 18 to 20 September, that Chery Group planned to display the L4 and L6 battery-electric SUVs there as Australian public debuts. The event plan placed Lepas alongside Chery, Omoda, Jaecoo and another incoming Chery Group brand, iCAUR. ³

Pre-production L4 specifications

CarExpert reports that the pre-production L4 EV and L6 EV share a 65kWh lithium iron phosphate battery, a front-mounted electric motor rated at 160kW and 275Nm, and a 2700mm wheelbase. The reported L4 driving range is 450km on the WLTP test cycle, against 440km for the L6. These are Lepas preview figures, not independently measured driving results. ¹

The L4 is listed by CarExpert at 4420mm long and 1817mm wide, compared with 4570mm and 1852mm for the L6. GoAuto also reported the 65kWh battery, 160kW output and 450km WLTP figure for the L4, but its 15 September article listed torque at 25Nm rather than CarExpert’s 275Nm. The accounts do not resolve that torque discrepancy; Lepas has said the preview vehicles’ specifications may change. ¹⁴

Lepas calls the vehicles’ architecture LEX. Chery Motor Australia chief operating officer Lucas Harris described the platform to GoAuto as a way of differentiating Lepas from other group brands. CarExpert notes that the extent of any shared architecture with existing Chery Group vehicles is unclear. In an earlier CarExpert interview, Harris said Australian pre-launch work on the L6 had focused particularly on electronic driver-assistance systems; that was a company account of its testing, not an independent assessment of the finished vehicle. ¹⁴⁶

Five models planned through 2028

The L4 is one of five nameplates in Lepas’s stated Australian roadmap: the L2 hatchback and L4, L6, L8 and L9 SUVs. After the two electric SUV launches planned for 2026, the current schedule reported by CarExpert and GoAuto puts an L6 plug-in hybrid in March 2027, an L4 plug-in hybrid in June and an L8 plug-in hybrid in September. The larger L9 plug-in hybrid is slated for the second half of 2027. ¹⁴

CarExpert reports electric L8 and L9 versions for 2028, while GoAuto puts both in early 2028. The L2 is now listed for 2028 with electric and conventional hybrid options, with GoAuto specifying early 2028. That is later than Harris indicated in an August interview with CarExpert, when he discussed a small hatchback by the end of 2027. The September roadmap is the more recent schedule, but all of these dates remain plans rather than delivery records. ¹⁴⁶⁸

Pricing and retail arrangements

Lepas had not announced Australian prices for its models in the September reports. GoAuto said L6 pricing was expected closer to its official launch. Neither publication provided an L4 list price or a drive-away offer, leaving no supported Australian price comparison between the two SUVs. ¹⁴

Lepas plans a sales network separate from Chery and Omoda Jaecoo. CarExpert reports 40 Lepas dealerships planned for launch and a target of 50 by the end of 2027. Harris told the publication that the brand could use some existing Chery Group outlets as service agents and draw on the group’s established warranty, parts and technical systems. Those are the company’s intended arrangements, not a count of operating Lepas sites. ¹²⁵

Where the new SUV fits

The L4 will enter the small electric SUV class. CarExpert identifies overlap within Chery Group’s own Australian range, including the Chery E5 and Jaecoo J5 EV. Lepas is not being positioned by Harris as a premium tier above Chery or Omoda Jaecoo; he describes it as a differently styled brand within the group. Its planned L4 plug-in hybrid would also broaden the nameplate beyond the electric version previewed in Sydney. ³⁵⁷