The GAC E9 offers the best of both worlds between petrol and electric powertrains, one captain’s chair at a time.
There was once a time when luxury MPVs in Singapore were more or less the exclusive playground of Toyota’s Alphard and Vellfire duo. One brought comfort, the other a touch of flair, and between them they monopolised the narrative of family-hauling opulence.
Since then, the Chinese marques have stormed the palace gates, armed not just with flashy styling and OLED screens, but with serious engineering and perhaps, even more importantly, a fresh perspective.
Unlike other marques who debut their latest and greatest EVs, GAC has brought in their PHEV-powered Trojan horse, the E9.
It may not shout the loudest, nor does it come with the glitz of a fold-down flatscreen or champagne chiller. But take a closer look, and you’ll find that the E9 is quietly confident in all the right places.
A Familiar Face With A Chinese Signature
At first glance, it’s easy to accuse the E9 of déjà vu. Its upright, boxy profile echoes more than a few of its Japanese rivals, while the oversized grille proudly dubbed the “Thunderous Wing” recalls the original Lexus LM’s controversial spindle snout.
Inspired by a lion’s face (or so the designers insist), the DRLs sweep dramatically from the corners of the fascia, trace the edges of the grille, and deliver a theatrical light show every time you lock or unlock the car.
The taillights jut out like architectural buttresses, embracing the tailgate in a chunky but distinctive manner.
While GAC only offers the E9 in black or white, the sheer road presence and chrome-clad aggression leave little doubt that this is business (class) on wheels.
Plush, Practical, and Purpose-Built
To sit in the driver’s seat first would be missing the point. In the E9, the throne lies in the second row, where a pair of captain’s chairs await like invitations to a spa session.
Cushioned by thick foam and wrapped in buttery-soft leather, these seats are the true stars of the show. Reclining, ventilated, massaging, and fully adjustable via their own embedded LCD touchscreens, they’re engineered for executives, not enthusiasts. You can practically feel the boardroom stress melting away with each rolling massage cycle.
That said, the E9’s creature comforts don’t reach for gimmicks. There’s no dramatic ceiling-mounted TV or pop-out minibar, but you do get heated and cooled cupholders, a household-grade power socket, and two cleverly placed 1.5-metre air vents flanking the ceiling to quietly flood the cabin with chilled air.
The panoramic sunroof sparkles with diamond-studded ambient lighting. Classy without being kitsch.
Access to the third row is refreshingly drama-free, thanks to the 2+2+3 layout, and there’s actually decent headroom and legroom for full-sized adults back there, though a slightly larger window wouldn’t go amiss. Still, the presence of dedicated speakers and armrests back here makes it feel more like business economy than cattle class.
Need space for luggage instead of legroom? Fold the third row up via a neat flip mechanism and you unlock a cavernous 1,500 litres of cargo capacity, enough to ferry an entire golf tournament’s worth of gear.
Old-School Soul, Modern-Day Mind
Step up front and you’ll find that the E9’s cockpit doesn’t scream bleeding-edge tech. The graphics on the large screens are colourful and competent, but the infotainment is a touch slower and grainier than today’s segment leaders.
Still, there’s an undeniable charm to the tactility on offer; buttons on the wheel, physical toggles on the floating centre console, and best of all, a hazard light switch that isn’t hidden in the ceiling or somewhere in an endless touchscreen submenu.
And yet, none of this is what makes the E9 truly remarkable.
What does? That would be its unique plug-in hybrid heart; a 25.7kWh battery paired with a 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine and a conventional 2-speed gearbox. It’s a formula that grants the E9 a real-world electric-only range of around 100km, which in Singapore, is practically two days of silent, emissions-free commuting.
But when the electrons run dry, the petrol engine takes over with seamless grace, ensuring you won’t ever be stuck looking for a charger in unfamiliar territory. GAC claims a WLTP-rated range of 1,032km, and while our real-world tests put that figure closer to 800km, it’s still more than enough to do a Singapore-to-KL round trip with charge to spare.
Fast, Composed, and Genuinely Fun to Drive
You wouldn’t expect a 2.2-tonne, seven-seater MPV to be sprightly. But, with a combined output of 367bhp and instantaneous electric torque from the get-go, it leaps off the line with the enthusiasm of a much smaller, lighter car.
Switch to Sport mode and the throttle sharpens, the steering gains weight, and suddenly the E9 starts feeling more wagon than van. The dual-speed gearbox also does wonders for refinement, avoiding the whiny drone of a CVT and delivering slick, confident shifts whether you’re cruising or pushing.
Ride comfort is predictably cushy, yet the dampers are well-sorted enough to prevent the E9 from wallowing through corners or feeling unsettled over imperfections. Road noise, impressively, is a non-issue even with the car’s breadbox proportions.
And in one final nod to daily usability, GAC has gifted the E9 with a full panoramic 360-degree camera system. Park assist visuals even render the car translucent, letting you see “through” it in tight carparks.
Not the Flashiest, But It’s Got Substance Where It Counts
The E9 doesn’t try to out-glitz the competition. It doesn’t have the shock factor of a ZEEKR 009 or the spaceship-like cabin of an XPENG X9. Its infotainment is dated, and its gadget list could use a few more party tricks.
But what it offers instead is something arguably more valuable: balance. Space, comfort, power, and most crucially, peace of mind. This is the only plug-in hybrid MPV in its price segment that genuinely feels like it was engineered, not just assembled. And at under three hundred thousand for this fully-specced GX trim, it even undercuts rivals like the DENZA D9 in price.
If you’re after the loudest, flashiest lounge-on-wheels, the E9 may not top your list. But if you want an MPV that can glide through town in silent EV mode one day, tackle a cross-border drive the next, and cocoon your passengers in business-class comfort throughoutit’s hard to think of a more complete package than this.
Technical Specifications
GAC E9 PHEV
Engine: 2-litre in-line 4, Turbocharged
Drivetrain: Front-Wheel Drive
Power: 367 bhp
Torque: 320 Nm
Gearbox: 2-Speed (A) DHT
0-100km/h: 8.8 seconds (claimed)
Top Speed: 175 km/h
Fuel Tank Capacity: 56 litres
Fuel Economy: 6.2 litres/100km (tested)
Price: S$290,988 (GL), S$310,988 (GX), both with COE (accurate at the time of this article)
Photo Credits: Sean Loo (@auto.driven)
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