Steve Eum, Chery's global design director, was asked whether the boxy SUV look sweeping through Chinese brands is a passing trend. He said it's an enduring, iconic format, and that the box visually conveys toughness, storage and safety to buyers who know their vehicles. Chery Australia's Tim Krieger said the first announcement on the iCaur brand drew what he called an unbelievable level of interest here.
The list of square Chinese off-roaders is long now: GWM's Tank 300, Haval H7 and H10, Wey Lanshan, BYD's Denza B5 and Yangwang U8, Geely's Battleship 700 and the Rox Adamas. Chery's own entries include the Jetour T2, launched in 2023, and the four-model iCaur range. Almost all are expected in Australia from early 2027, along with Freelander, a Chery joint venture with Jaguar Land Rover whose first model is, predictably, a box.
What changes
Nothing about the 70 Series changes. What changes is the showroom around it. For most of the 70's life the upright, flat-sided four-wheel drive was a small club, and Eum named the company it keeps: the Suzuki Jimny, the Mercedes-Benz G-Class and the LandCruiser 70 Series. By 2027 an Australian buyer walking a strip of dealerships will see a dozen vehicles wearing that shape, most of them cheaper, most of them electrified in some form, and several of them very good at the job they were designed for.
Eum's point about design freedom is worth taking seriously. A two-box body packs the most interior space into a given footprint, which is why the template keeps getting reused, and why he argues the differentiation now happens in the face, the rear and the detailing rather than the profile.
Pricing and availability in Australia
Chery has confirmed the iCaur brand for Australia early in 2027, with the Freelander brand also due here in 2027. No Australian pricing, variant split or specification has been announced for either. The boxy models from the other Chinese brands listed above are expected here from early 2027 as well, and that timing is an expectation rather than a confirmed launch schedule.
What it means if you run a 70 Series
Give the new arrivals their genuine wins first. A hybrid or extended-range drivetrain makes torque from zero, which is exactly what you want at low speed on a rocky climb. Running costs on a plug-in that does the weekday commute on battery are a fraction of a 2.8 diesel's. They're quiet, they're comfortable on a long highway stint, and the ones with vehicle-to-load outlets will run a compressor, a welder or a site fridge off the car without a second battery.
Then be straight about the rest. The argument for the 70 isn't the shape, it's what you're allowed to do to the thing afterwards. A 4 inch lift on 35s, a GVM upgrade with engineering that a state authority recognises, a steel tray or a canopy, a snorkel, long range tanks, dual batteries, a full interior rebuild. Thirty years of aftermarket support behind all of it, and parts availability in towns where the nearest dealership is several hundred kilometres away. That last one decides more remote-area purchases than any spec sheet.
The 4.5 V8 is out of production, which has sharpened the argument rather than ended it. The 2.8 four-cylinder with AdBlue is the 70 you can buy new, and it's the one being cross-shopped now. Anyone comparing a 79 against a boxy PHEV on price alone is comparing the wrong things: one is a platform you build over ten years, the other is a finished vehicle. Both are legitimate purchases. They're not the same purchase.
What isn't confirmed yet
No local pricing, specification or drivetrain detail has been confirmed for the iCaur or Freelander models. Nothing has been announced about towing ratings, payload, aftermarket accessory programmes or GVM upgrade paths for any of them in Australia.
If you're keeping a 70 rather than trading it, the cabin is where the years show first. We build steering wheel upgrade kits and wireless control modules for the 70 Series.
