Go back twenty years or so, in Uganda, and you would have seen the first Chinese-produced 4×4 come into our marketplace. Tales of engines falling out when going over speed bumps and the 4wd system operating itself (not on purpose) were many. They earned a poor reputation, and then simply faded away.
But things have changed since then. China is now becoming a market leader in many areas. Ling Long, for example, has made real inroads into the tyre market, and Chinese electric vehicle production and technology development continues to advance rapidly.
Which brings me to the JETOUR.
We were asked to give their 4x4s a bit of an off-road test – the JETOUR 1 and JETOUR 2 specifically.
Both models we drove had automatic gearboxes and petrol engines, and neither had a Low Range option. But we were asked to take them through our LR training area anyway, to see what happened.
Multi-terrain options coupled with automatic locking centre and rear diffs gave capability. We didn’t get stuck.
JETOUR X Button
Speed control was the issue. Having to constantly use the brakes to go as slow as possible. And using the gas to go as fast as necessary, even when the auto box was put into manual. Then we discovered the X button.
Everything changed. More control with speed but still having to use the sport mode to climb up the steep stuff to avoid the transmission temp warning light coming on.
Multi-Terrain Selection (MTS)
During the test on our high range track, it was interesting to see the systems working in real time.
The centre diff locked automatically when it thought it was needed in the normal terrain setting, but when you used the MTS in the gravel road section, the centre diff was locked all of the time. Very impressive – as we constantly have to battle with folks to lock theirs when going off road.
The Off-Road Display
The off-road display was impressive, showing in real time which diff was locking, along with gradient and traverse angles. Tyre pressure and temperature were also indicated. And there was a wading depth monitor that turned red if the depth became too great – we only reached orange at 50 cm.
Lots of electronic do-dads which means it’s necessary to read through the manual to help with programming for different terrain and conditions.
It was Fun to Drive
It was fun to drive. Would I use one to travel around East Africa and visit national parks? Absolutely. It’s a comfortable, easy drive with capability. Would I want one for going exploring in the wilds of this region or for doing work in harsh and isolated areas? Hmm, the simpler the better – but then, I don’t think that’s JETOUR’s market.
As with all the modern vehicles coming into this market, the key question is technical support – and what happens when something electronic goes wrong. Nothing did go wrong during our test. 😎