GWM Jolion Pro review

At first glance the cabin doesn’t look too bad, especially for an SUV placed at the affordable end of the spectrum. The layout is conventional, there’s a mix of switchgear and screens… what’s not to like?

Er, quite a lot actually. The materials all feel cheap, and everything from the carbon fibre-effect dash to the I Can’t Believe It’s Not Leather adds up to a sea of boring monochrome. Yawn. Desirability is severely lacking, and that’s bad news for a brand that has no reputation to lean on.

Then there’s the touchscreen. Hoo boy. We could write a thesis on its failings, but in short it’s a real mess: hard to read and hard to navigate. Everything’s too busy and nothing really stands out. All of the icons – including the home button – are on the furthest side away from the driver. Wait there while we dig out a slow clap gif…

There’s no native nav, but judging by the rest of it you’d never trust it anyway. Luckily Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard – chances are you’ll set those up and never use the main OS again.

You’re being a fun sponge. Can’t you pick out one thing you like?

There’s a slot that’ll hold your smartphone, toaster style. Means it doesn’t move around and you’re never tempted to look down at it. We like that.

Is that it?

Yep. Practically comes across as an afterthought in here: there’s plenty of space for people front and back, but it’s like the designers forgot that people come with... stuff. There’s not much storage and even the ‘big’ cubby up top isn’t very big. Oops. And the cupholders are odd sizes, so if your passenger gets a large flat white, you’re making do with an espresso.

The rear bench is roomy but the cushioning isn't very deep, so expect Numb Bum Syndrome to kick in sooner rather than later. With the seats up the boot offers just 255 litres of space, with no extra room under the floor. That’s pants: a Renault 5 is more generous and that’s half a metre shorter than this. Fell ‘em and 916 litres might be enough to get a washing machine home from Currys.