The 2025 Chery Brand User Summit opened in Wuhu, China, marking a major milestone for Chery’s global user ecosystem. The event featured the Chery Brand Exhibition and Chery Brand Night, where the company unveiled cutting-edge products, technologies, and sustainability initiatives—all reinforcing its “Co-Create The New Move” vision. 

Of the many great showings on display at the summit there were few that caught our eye but this one was vital to be covered. Chery announced that they were working on a bake not so long ago and this left many unsure of how it would turn out, looks wise, engine wise in terms of capability and most of all whether the car would perform.

We saw it now ready for introduction in the flesh and we can positively state that it looks like a bake should, big dimensions, big grille, side steps, big wheel arches and overall a very mean asthetetic, this thing looks the business.

Some were fortunate enough to get a chance behind the wheel of this new commer especially on a rainy and muddy dirt track, the home for cars like this and from viewing, the car looked to be at home in the terrain as can be seen in the photos.

What we do know is that the car will be available in either a petrol or one of two diesel and knowing our market? the diesel engine is the only one we are most probably getting. The diesel powerplant will be a 2.3L turbodiesel engine produces 120kW and 420Nm/2.4L engine producing 118kw and 230nm and is paired to either a 8-speed automatic or six speed manual gearbox (2WD or 4WD). The petrol engine is said to be a 2.0L power plant.

The bakkie will come capable as ever with neat tricks like rear and front Diff locking, 4L, 2L and 4H, 2H settings and rides on a ladder-on frame chassis along with a leaf spring setup. The front suspension will gain from a double wishbone suspension setup.

The interior will be a alternative universe compared to the tough and rugged exterior as it has a blend of nice leathers, soft touch materials here and there as well as some nice a durable scratchy plastics where needed because this is a bake at the end of the day right?

Of course it means you also get massive screens for your display but you'll be overjoyed to learn that there are physical buttons for some important functions meaning that you will spend less time digging through menus to find or switch something off. There is a new slim dashboard integrated drivers display kind of like you would find in the latest Opel Grandland that showcases all important information that the driver needs to be aware of.

Other cabin niceties would obviously include wireless charging pads, storage spaces, seat warming and all that other good stuff.

Now the Himla does have quite the competition to unsettle when ir makes its landfall here in Mzansi and the giants in the game like your Ford Rangers, Toyota Hiluxs have gained a versatility skill set to stay above the rest but this isn't a problem for the Himla because. The Chery bakkie was shown in a couple of guises

The HIMLA Camping Conversion also made its debut at the Summit. Built on the HIMLA bakkie platform the camping conversion is designed as both a recreational camper and what Chery claim is a mobile life-support base for professionals in extreme environments.. This will use a turbocharged 2.3-litre petrol engine, eight-speed automatic transmission, 420 N.m of torque.

Also unveiled during the 2025 Chery Brand User Summit was the HIMLA EV, a high-performance electric bakkie that shares the same exterior design and dimensions as its petrol-powered counterpart but instead uses a 88 kWh battery pack that will deliver a claimed range of 510 km.

And we saw the world's first changable seven seater-bakkie? With this, Chery aim to cater to those who have a big family that usually take long commutes, camping days and outdoor sports - the vehicle adopts an innovative “6=1” concept, transforming between six configurations to meet 99% of family needs. In Large 7-Seat SUV Mode, it offers a true mobile home experience with ample interior space. Switching to Double-Cab Pickup Mode provides 600 litres of cargo capacity, while Camper Mode accommodates a full suite of outdoor accessories for exploration and leisure. 

Pricing for this here vehicle was not disclosed nor even hinted but judging by Chinese typical fashion we expect this car to have very competitive pricing that will undercut all of the rivals. Until then? we have to wait and see.