JLR and Chery Confirm Freelander to Enter the Middle East, Ready to Debut This Year

JAKARTA - Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) and Chery confirmed that the new Freelander car brand will first enter the Middle East in 2026, marking a change in strategy in the market.

Based on a report from Carnewschina, quoted Thursday, January 22, his first car is a large SUV measuring 5.1 meters with a BEV and EREV powertrain variant. Previously, the Freelander brand was said to focus on China.

Chery and Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) established a joint venture in China in 2012. In 2014, they completed the construction of the CJLR factory in Suzhou, Jiangsu province. However, this facility will stop production of all its models by the end of 2026, including the Range Rover Evoque, Land Rover Discovery Sport, Jaguar XFL, Jaguar XEL, and Jaguar E-Pace.

Chery and JLR aim to renew their partnership by launching a new EV brand called Freelander. The project was officially announced in June 2024 with the long-term goal of improving the joint venture's position in the highly competitive Chinese market.

Last year, the first Freelander branded model was spotted in China during a road test. This month, Chery confirmed that this model will be marketed globally. On January 19, Chery Holding Group invited a public tender to create a visual identity guide for the Freelander brand. This guide includes core visual assets, personalized brand visual language, icon system design, infographic design, and illustration design.

In this announcement, the company officially confirmed that the Freelander brand will be launched in the Middle East for the first time in 2026. This is a sudden development because this new CJLR brand was originally mainly aimed at the Chinese domestic market. It seems that both parties have agreed on a major strategic shift, focusing on overseas territories.

In another tender invitation, Chery Holding Group announced a marketing procurement project. The company emphasized that successful pre-launch marketing is crucial to ensuring a high-end brand image. Therefore, Chery aims to build strong market anticipation ahead of the start of sales.

Since the Freelander brand will be launched in the Middle East in 2026, it is expected that a large-scale marketing campaign will soon begin. Chery Holding Group may arrange the debut of this brand at the Beijing Motor Show scheduled for April 2026 in China.

As is known, the first car under the Freelander brand is a large off-road SUV with a boxy style and a length of about 5.1 meters. This car uses the E0X modular architecture developed by Chery. The same platform is also used on the Exeed Exlantix ET, Exeed Exlantix ES, Luxeed S7, and Luxeed R7. Back to the Freelander SUV, this car will have three rows of seats with a 2+2+2 layout.