2026 Jetour T1 Lightning i-DM 1.5T PHEV FWD

They Got It Right

Being a motoring journalist or car reviewer is like being professional speed dater.

We get to have a new date for a week, a few days, or even 24 hours at a time for the luxury high end models.  We say hello, shake hands, get to know each other on the road, and then we go our separate ways and won’t see each other again unless I make another appointment. Don’t worry: there are no feelings or inappropriate touching in this process. Hmm. That all sounds wrong,.

Every so often, there are dates that leave a deeper mark that you can’t help but want a second outing. I can think of a few examples, like when I was handed the key to a Ferrari 488 for the weekend or the time I brought a Mitsubishi Evolution X home for a week. Such dates are often glamorous, exotic, and fun, but not everyone would take them home for a much longer relationship, or to meet your folks.

For some reason, that’s the impression left by the T1 from Jetour.

Jetour doesn’t strike me as a brand that could have made such an impression. The brand itself is a fairly new one under the Chery umbrella. As you may already know: as an OEM, Chery had a rocky start well over a decade ago. But since then, the company worked hard to improve quality, technology, design, and the distributor did more than their fair share in marketing, sales, and service in our market. And they did it while keeping prices very competitive. All those improvements are shared with Jetour, so much so that even the distributor here is now one and the same for Chery.

Initially, Jetour introduced themselves with a series of affordable small crossovers. But it was with the T2 that really captured the attention of our market. It is a well-priced, very feature packed, and enjoyable all-wheel drive crossover SUV. And it definitely helped that they *ahem* appropriated some design cues from their British joint venture partner in China.

With the T1, it doesn’t seem to be like that. Sure, we still get the classic 4x4 boxy SUV aesthetic with modern touches, but the T1 definitely looks quite good. And we’re not talking just from a distance, but even when examined up close. The paint looks good. The panels are aligned. The lines meet up nicely. The door handles feel great and chunky. The matte black bumper isn’t as aggressive as T2, but still looks robust. The LED cross motif on the headlights and taillight look really good. Heck, I even like the light ceremony the have on the grille. These are indicators that their assembly line is dialed in very nicely.

By the naming convention, you’d think that the T1 should be significantly smaller than the T2. But it isn’t. Given that the T1 doesn’t use a rear-mounted spare (because it’s a top-hinged liftgate, not a side-hinged tailgate) yet is still at 4.7 meters while the T2 is at just under 4.8 meters long is an indication that the naming isn’t about size.

When we open the doors, we’ll see that the cabin itself is definitely more midsize than compact. The almost 2 meter width is very generous for space whether you’re seated in front, and definitely in the back. A group of three in the backseat won’t be complaining much even on a long roadtrip given the width and abundance of knee room, headroom, and a feature that helps assuage claustrophobic tendencies: the panoramic glass roof.

There are three things that are clearly apparent inside the T1. The first is the design: this interior looks damn good. There seems to be a fusion of truck-like aesthetics like the short dashboard, the not-so-steep rake of the windshield, and the off-road style grab handles, along with modern touches like the digital instrument display and the massive 15.6 inch touchscreen. Yes there are some gimmicky things like the ambient lights that you can set to breathe mode or follow the music beat mode and what not, but I like the effort they made here.

The second is surprisingly unexpected: quality. I’ve knocked on many Chinese autos before for having interior panels that don’t align, plastics that have a sharp edge from the mold because they weren’t trimmed or deburred, and for just looking and feeling cheap overall. The T1 bucks all of that, as you really do feel like you’re in a quality build. I know some won’t believe it, but check and see for yourself at the nearest dealership.

The third is the obvious one: the T1 is tech-packed. It goes without saying with any China car that they shove as much technology as the 12-volt grid in the car can handle. The climate control is dual zone automatic with vents for the rear, ventilation for the two front seats, and a cooler function for the center armrest. This is equipped with wireless Android Auto, wireless Apple Carplay and a wireless phone charger that’s fast. Audio is sent to a set of Sony speakers, and I did find that once I set the correct mode and adjusted the center point, it sounded pretty awesome. Need ADAS? This comes with all the acronyms you need like AEB, FCW, and more but the one you really want to use is the ACC or adaptive cruise. And yes, they all work.

Jetour didn’t try to shoehorn a third row into this, which I think is the smarter way to go. We’ve seen and experienced the compromise of the third row as squeezed into the smaller Jetour X70; yes you can sit there and use it, but we wouldn’t recommend using it except if your kids are being naughty. I believe they are working on introducing the three-row variant of the T2 (that we saw at last year’s Shanghai auto show) if a seven seater is what you need. Think of it like a Jetour Defender 130. Insert evil grin here.

On the road, the T1 simply feels great. The unit is brand new, so the feel of the suspension seems to be on the firmer side when I was driving it solo, but settles in nicely when you’ve got company in the car. It’s also extremely smooth and stable on the highway. Not much road noise to report. Actually, there’s not much noise to report at all because this is a “Lightning i-DM” variant. That’s Jetour-speak for plug-in hybrid electric vehicle.

Under that hood is a 1.5-liter turbo gasoline engine. Nothing major to report about the engine other than it has decent power at 143 PS and decent torque at 215 Nm, but the real meat is in the DHT with its electric motor that makes 204 PS and 310 Nm of torque. The torque definitely comes in handy for a vehicle that weighs 2000 kg without passengers yet.

PHEVs tend to be heavy because it has to have two powertrains as one, plus a battery pack mounted underneath. The T1 is equipped with a 26.7 kWh LFP battery. Compared to NCM/NMC, the LFP battery may not have as much power density (if that’s the correct term), but it does offer a measure of reassurance as it is the same type of battery used by BYD; the kind that won’t combust if punctured.  

When you power up the T1, it will just go into ready mode just like any PHEV or HEV. Ideally, you will want to start with a full battery by plugging in at home using the 2 kW mobile charger overnight, or via a Type 2 home charger (usually about 7 kW), or via a DC fast charger if you have access to one to maximize the charge speed that could top up the battery in well under an hour.

Yes, it is silent and it is smooth. But what I really enjoyed was how easy it is to drive in the city. The turning radius is tight; making quick work of U-turn slots where I can exit within the left lane easily. The noise from the outside world is kept to a minimum, thanks to whatever insulation they used, including the laminated (not tempered) driver and front passenger windows. I even enjoyed the ride height of the car; granted, it’s not PPV high like an Everest, but not that far off either.

Fuel economy will be the biggest advantage here. If you are able to start your day with a full charge and if you’re able to be patient on your daily commute, I see no reason why the T1 PHEV can’t maximize the claimed 120 km range on EV mode alone. In my time with the vehicle, doing an 80 km round trip is easy with a full charge. So that makes city driving easy and extremely cost efficient because there’s a chance you won’t need fuel.

When I took it out on the expressway, I was averaging 26 kilometers per liter at a fairly high average speed on NLEX and SCTEX. Your mileage may vary based on how many of you are in the car, traffic conditions and the like, but achieving high numbers are very possible and attainable. If outright efficiency isn’t what you’re after, then you’ll enjoy the torque and power of the drivetrain. Overtaking is easy because that motor and engine combo makes quick work of passing. I really didn’t bother much with the drive modes on the vehicle; I just left it in normal and drove.

As I stopped for a charge later on in my drive, I can’t help but think of ways to know the T1 Lightning i-DM. To be honest, the things I noticed are minor. The wireless Android Auto connection does stutter from time to time, interrupting my private session of car-aoke when a good song comes up on my Spotify playlist. In Android Auto and Apple Carplay, there’s no quick way to access a control panel for some critical features by swiping from the sides of the 15.6” screen to adjust things like the fan speed or mirrors; you have to get out of the connectivity screen to do that. The thing I dislike the most is this: even with the lowest backlight setting, the screens are still too bright for my astigmatic eyes at night. If I get a T1, I’ll probably add a layer of tint on the screens to get it to my liking.

There is a missed opportunity in my opinion, and that is the lack of four-wheel drive for a car that looks as rugged and is built well like the T1 PHEV. In other markets there are Jetour T1 variants with all-wheel drive, but these are 2.0L turbo models without the plug-in hybrid system; you should see the feedback on the fuel consumption of those versions in the Middle East.

There’s also the fact that the 2.0T real time four-wheel drive that Jetour calls “XWD” isn’t particularly highly regarded. I tested the system on the T2 and found it lacking, particularly because it didn’t have a locking rear differential that would have made a big difference off road. Jetour did say they’re working on a PHEV all-wheel drive for the T1 by adding a second motor in the rear axle, but we have yet to try that out if it already exists.

Be that as it may, it doesn’t really change my opinion of the T1. It’s an SUV that I could personally consider for myself though I would probably make some changes like removing all the badges (because I don’t like emblems on vehicles) and tinting the screens for my eyes. That’s about it.

And at PHP 1.9 million, the T1 could be a vehicle that fits my needs very well. This could be a viable candidate for a longer relationship rather than just a speed date, but first I need the 1.9 million.