Haval Jolion

The cabin of the 2024 Haval Jolion gets beige leather seats and upholstery. There are not many glossy plastics, though the cabin gets copper/bronze accents. The initial impression is of a premium cabin. The Haval logo is embroidered on four of the five seats and that seems an overdose. Access to the air-conditioning controls and other frequently used features is a little cumbersome. There aren’t enough buttons that correspond to the list of features. A lot of hard plastics have been widely used in the cabin. The dashboard gets a massive 12.35-inch touchscreen infotainment unit with great colour reproduction. It's connected to a multi-speaker audio system. The leather-wrapped multifunction steering wheel controls most of the infotainment functions but not all. The digital instrument panel is impressive but has low resolution. Some numbers are difficult to read. The 2024 Haval Jolion gets 337 litres of boot space, that's a bit narrow. The high boot lip makes loading and unloading cumbersome. Overall, the 2024 Haval Jolion's cabin is a nice place to be in. 

The 2024 Haval Jolion will raise eyebrows and turn heads with its looks. It's an immensely good-looking car, irrespective of the viewing angle. The compact SUV gets all-around LED lighting with striking daytime running lights (DRL), sleek headlights, a rear light setup and fog lights. The broad mesh grille on the front looks good, but the front Haval badge doesn't really gel with the car. The rear part of the 2024 Haval Jolion is neither striking nor boring. It sports the Haval and GM logo. The Jolion logo is spelt out. The 18-inch dual-tone alloy wheels look attractive and the car gets approximately 168mm ground clearance. Looks-wise, the 2024 Haval Jolion has better styling than the Mazda CX-30 and Guangzhou Automobile's Emzoom. The Jolion has large doors for easy entry and exit.

The 2024 Haval Joilon's seats lack curves and are quite flat. While many passengers will prefer this, the seats lack back support and longer rides will leave the occupants fatigued. But the rest of the cabin is nicely padded with all touchpoints covered. Settling into a perfect driving position is easy with the electrically adjustable seat. But the steering wheel isn't telescopic and that could be an issue with many drivers. There's sumptuous legroom and headroom in the front. The rear seat is flat too and can accommodate three passengers with the central armrest folded up. The automatic air-conditioning has dedicated rear vents. A number of storage pockets are conveniently located in the cabin. There's 337 liters of boot space which is enough for small families.

The 2024 GAC GS4 is equipped with a turbocharged, four-cylinder, 1.5-litre petrol engine that produces 140 PS/210 Nm. The motor is mated to a seven-speed dual-clutch. Handling is a bit on the harder side, though the car's performance in city traffic is impressive. Cornering is surprisingly easy. The steering wheel is light and responsive. Acceleration is smooth with the transmission seamlessly mated to the engine. 

The 2024 Haval Jolion is packed with driver-assist features that include driver fatigue monitoring, blind spot warning, automatic emergency braking, forward collision warning, lane-centre keeping, and intelligent cornering control, among others. The car gets a surround-view camera system and all-around parking sensors. The brake pedal has a spongy feel and sudden braking causes a shudder particularly at a higher speed. 

GWM is a new player in the Emirates car market and doubts about long-term viability of the 2024 Haval Jolion will remain. But it's quite an impressive car offering nice travelling comfort, besides being packed with features. Buyers looking for an affordable crossover will find the 2024 Haval Jolion worthy.