GWM Ora Funky Cat review
Cute retro looks, lots of safety kit and a crazy name help the Ora Funky Cat stand out from rival electric vehicles
The Ora Funky Cat is a small electric car aimed to challenge the likes of the MG4. It’s a little pricer than the MG, but this is mostly due to it only being available in fully loaded, First Edition form. Forthcoming models should bring that price down.
Like the popular MG4, interior quality could be better, and while it does come in five-door form Funky Cat’s practicality is hampered by a small boot. The Funky Cat isn’t all that much fun to drive, with a fidgety ride and uninvolving steering. It is very safe according to Euro NCAP, though, so it should be a reassuring place to put your children. And they’ll probably like its cute looks.
About the GWM Ora Funky Cat
It may have retro styling cues from cars of old, and its name may sound like the long-anticipated follow-up to The Goodies 1975 classic, The Funky Gibbon, but the GWM Ora Funky Cat is in the vanguard of a wave of new metal to emerge from China.
To most UK buyers, the car manufacturer Ora will seem unfamiliar. It is, in fact, a sub-brand of Great Wall Motors, a company that brought us the Great Wall Steed pick-up truck back in 2013. Since then, it has diversified from simply being a leading manufacturer of pick-ups and SUVs in China to include Ora, a specialist in making only fully electric cars. The Funky Cat (also known as the Ora Good Cat in other markets) is Ora’s debut model in the UK.
Quirky naming aside, the Funky Cat is a five-door, five-seat small electric car that looks set to challenge the likes of the BYD Dolphin, MG4, and MINI Electric.
Like those rivals, the Funky Cat will be available in different trim and battery sizes, but at the time of writing, just one battery size and trim level has arrived on our shores. That’s okay because it makes this review easier to write, and the First Edition trim comes fully loaded with all the equipment and safety tech you could ask for (the latter contributes to the car’s high Euro NCAP safety score).
Its battery size might pose a problem against those rivals because both have far larger battery packs capable of 250 miles or more on a full charge. The Funky Cat only has a 48kWh (45.4kWh useable) battery and manages less than 200 miles between top ups. A larger pack with 260 miles of range is coming in the future, along with other trim levels to keep the Funky Cat competitive on price with its rivals.
For an alternative review of the GWM Ora Funky Cat, visit our sister site drivingelectric.com
