The world's biggest EV maker. It makes its own batteries and chips, which is why its prices are so sharp.
Who owns which car brand?
Most car brands belong to a bigger group, and knowing the parent tells you a lot: who engineers the car, what it shares with others, and how established the brand really is. Volkswagen owns Audi, Skoda, Cupra and Porsche. Hyundai owns Kia and Genesis, and Toyota owns Lexus. Stellantis runs Fiat, Jeep, Alfa Romeo and Peugeot. Among the newer Chinese brands, Chery owns Omoda, Jaecoo and four more, Geely controls Zeekr, Volvo, Polestar and Lotus, and SAIC owns MG, IM and LDV.
Each box is a parent company. Tap a brand to see what it is and its models.
China
A private group that has bought up famous European names. Volvo, Polestar and Lotus are all Geely-controlled, and it owns half of Smart with Mercedes-Benz.
GeelyValue
Geely's own-name cars, pitched on value with plenty of equipment.
On EV Pick: EX2, Starray EM-i, EX5
LotusLuxury and performance
The British sports car maker, majority-owned by Geely, now making electric luxury cars built in China.
On EV Pick: Emeya
PolestarPremium
Started as Volvo's performance arm, now a design-led EV brand controlled by Geely.
On EV Pick: Polestar 2, Polestar 4, 3
SmartPremium compact
VolvoPremium
China's biggest car exporter, running a string of separate brands so each can have its own dealers and style.
CheryValue
Chery's own-name cars, pitched on price and equipment.
On EV Pick: C5 Hybrid, E5, Tiggo 7 Super Hybrid, Tiggo 8 Super Hybrid, Tiggo 9 Super Hybrid
Coming: KP31 ute
JaecooValue
A Chery brand with rugged, Range Rover-inspired styling. Sold alongside Omoda.
On EV Pick: J5 Hybrid, J5 EV, J7 Super Hybrid
OmodaValue
A Chery brand with sharper, youth-oriented styling. Sold alongside Jaecoo.
On EV Pick: 9 Super Hybrid
ExlantixPremium · coming
FreelanderPremium · coming
A joint venture between Chery and Jaguar Land Rover, reviving the Freelander name on Chery-built cars.
Coming: 8
iCaurMainstream · coming
Shanghai's state-owned giant. It revived the British MG name and also owns LDV (Maxus in China).
IMPremium
MGBudget
The old British sports car name, now SAIC's value brand and one of Australia's top sellers. The MG U9 ute is the LDV/Maxus Terron 9 with an MG badge.
On EV Pick: ZS, MG3 Hybrid+, ZS Hybrid+, MG4, S5 EV, HS Super Hybrid, S6 EV, U9, U9 EV, Cyberster
LDVVans and utes
SAIC's commercial brand, called Maxus in China. It sells diesel and electric vans (eDeliver), the T60 and Terron 9 utes and the MIFA people mover. We don't list vans, and the Terron 9 is sold here in MG form as the MG U9 (diesel and electric).
A private maker best known here for utes and SUVs, sold under the GWM, Haval, Ora, Tank and Cannon names.
GWMValue
GWM's own name, also used for the Haval, Ora, Tank and Cannon ranges in Australia.
On EV Pick: Haval Jolion Hybrid, Ora 5, Ora, Haval H6 Hybrid, Haval H6 PHEV, Haval H7 Hybrid, Haval H6 GT PHEV, Tank 300 Hybrid, Cannon Alpha PHEV
Coming: Tank 700
WeyPremium · coming
GWM's upmarket brand, starting with plug-in hybrids.
Coming: G9
A big state-owned maker that builds Mazda's EVs for Australia in a joint venture, and has several electric brands of its own.
DeepalMainstream
AvatrLuxury · coming
Changan's luxury EV brand, developed with Huawei and battery maker CATL.
Coming: 07L
Guangzhou's state-owned maker, which also builds Toyotas and Hondas for China.
One of China's oldest state-owned makers.
ForthingValue
A Dongfeng brand making SUVs and people movers, sold here through Ateco.
On EV Pick: Taikon 5
China's first car maker, owned by the state, which also builds Volkswagens and Toyotas for China.
Car maker Seres builds the cars; tech giant Huawei supplies the software, driver assistance and much of the design.
AitoLuxury · coming
Huawei-designed SUVs built by Seres, among China's best-selling luxury cars.
Coming: 6, 7, 8 and 9
An independent EV maker. Stellantis (Jeep, Peugeot, Fiat) owns about a fifth of it and controls its sales outside China, which is why some Leapmotor dealers also sell Jeeps.
An independent tech-focused EV maker. Volkswagen owns a small stake and is co-developing cars with it.
XpengMainstream
A premium EV maker known for battery-swap stations in China.
Nio FireflyPremium compact · coming
Nio's small-car brand.
Coming: Firefly
The phone maker, which became one of China's best-selling EV brands within two years.
A state-backed maker of utes and commercial vehicles. Volkswagen owns half of JAC's parent company.
JACValue
Utes and vans, including the Hunter plug-in hybrid ute.
On EV Pick: Hunter PHEV
Japan
The world's biggest car maker. It also owns about a fifth of Subaru and small stakes in Mazda and Suzuki.
LexusLuxury
Toyota's luxury brand.
On EV Pick: RZ
SubaruMainstream
Toyota owns about a fifth of Subaru, and Subaru's EVs are co-developed with Toyota.
On EV Pick: Uncharted, Solterra, Trailseeker
ToyotaMainstream
Australia's biggest-selling brand, best known here for hybrids.
On EV Pick: Corolla Hybrid, Corolla Cross Hybrid, Camry Hybrid, RAV4 Hybrid, bZ4X, RAV4 Plug-in Hybrid, HiLux, Kluger Hybrid, bZ4X Touring, LandCruiser Prado, HiLux EV
Coming: C-HR electric
Not owned by another car maker.
HondaMainstream
Japanese maker best known here for hybrids.
On EV Pick: Super-ONE, CR-V e:HEV, Civic e:HEV
IsuzuUtes
Japanese truck and ute maker.
On EV Pick: D-Max
MazdaMainstream
Independent, though its 6e and CX-6e EVs are built in China by its joint venture with Changan.
On EV Pick: CX-5, 6e, CX-60 G40e, CX-60 D50e, CX-6e
SuzukiValue
Small cars and SUVs; Toyota holds a small stake.
On EV Pick: Swift Hybrid, e Vitara
South Korea
Hyundai and Kia share engineering and batteries but are sold and designed separately. Genesis is the luxury arm.
GenesisLuxury
Hyundai's luxury brand, which includes free servicing.
On EV Pick: GV60
HyundaiMainstream
Korea's biggest maker, with the Ioniq EV range.
On EV Pick: i30 Sedan, Tucson, Inster, Tucson Hybrid, Kona Electric, Santa Fe Hybrid, Elexio, Ioniq 6, Ioniq 5, Ioniq 5 N, Ioniq 9
KiaMainstream
Hyundai's sister brand, sharing EV platforms but with its own design.
On EV Pick: Sportage Hybrid, EV4, EV3, Sorento Hybrid, EV5, Niro EV, Sorento PHEV, EV6, EV9
KGM was SsangYong until the KG Group bought it in 2022.
KGMValue
Korean SUVs and utes, including the Musso EV ute.
On EV Pick: Torres EVX, Musso EV
Germany
Europe's biggest car group.
PorscheLuxury and performance
Part of the Volkswagen Group, with its own stock market listing.
On EV Pick: Macan Electric, Cayenne Electric, Taycan
SkodaValue
BMW also owns Mini and Rolls-Royce.
MiniPremium compact
BMW-owned; its electric Cooper and Aceman are built in China with Great Wall.
On EV Pick: Cooper Electric, Aceman, Countryman Electric
Mercedes also owns half of Smart, with Geely.
Rest of Europe
Formed by the merger of Fiat Chrysler and Peugeot's parent. Its 14 brands include Fiat, Abarth, Alfa Romeo, Jeep and Peugeot.
AbarthPerformance
Fiat's performance brand, with the hot 500e.
On EV Pick: 500e
Alfa RomeoPremium
Italian premium brand; the Junior is its first EV.
On EV Pick: Junior Elettrica
FiatCity cars
Italian small cars. The 500e is the electric version of the classic 500.
On EV Pick: 500e
JeepMainstream
The American off-road brand; the Avenger is its small EV, built in Poland.
On EV Pick: Avenger
PeugeotMainstream
French mainstream brand.
On EV Pick: e-2008
Long-time partners that share some platforms and parts. Nissan owns about a third of Mitsubishi.
MitsubishiMainstream
Japanese maker known here for the Outlander plug-in hybrid. Nissan owns about a third of it.
On EV Pick: Outlander, Outlander PHEV, Triton
Coming: ASX VR-e
NissanMainstream
Japanese maker; the Leaf was one of the first mass-market EVs.
On EV Pick: X-Trail e-Power, Ariya
Coming: Leaf (new)
RenaultMainstream
French mainstream brand.
On EV Pick: Megane E-Tech, Scenic E-Tech
USA
America's biggest car maker, which owns Cadillac and Chevrolet.
Not owned by another car maker.
FordMainstream
The American maker of the Ranger, Australia's top-selling ute.
On EV Pick: Ranger PHEV, Ranger, Mustang Mach-E, Everest
Why so many brands?
- Separate dealers. A new brand can sign its own dealers in towns where the parent already has one.
- Different images. A budget brand and a luxury brand can share parts without sharing a badge: think Skoda and Audi, or Toyota and Lexus.
- Names that can't be used here. Exeed becomes Exlantix in Australia, and Hongqi becomes HQ.
- Testing the water. A sub-brand can launch with a couple of models and grow if it sells.
Common questions
Who owns MG?
SAIC Motor, a Shanghai state-owned car maker. MG was a British brand; SAIC bought the name in 2007. The MG U9 ute is a rebadged LDV (Maxus) Terron 9, also an SAIC brand.
Is Volvo Chinese-owned?
Yes. China's Geely has owned Volvo Cars since 2010, though Volvo is still run from Sweden. Geely also controls Polestar and Lotus.
Who owns Skoda, Cupra and Audi?
The Volkswagen Group, which also owns Porsche. They share many parts and platforms; the ID.4, Skoda Enyaq, Cupra Tavascan and Audi Q4 e-tron are closely related EVs.
Are Kia and Hyundai the same company?
They're both part of Hyundai Motor Group and share EV platforms and batteries, but they're designed and sold separately. Genesis is the group's luxury brand.
Who owns Omoda and Jaecoo?
Chery, China's biggest car exporter. Chery also owns Lepas, iCaur, Exlantix and Jetour.
Is Leapmotor part of Jeep?
Not quite. Stellantis, the company behind Jeep, Peugeot and Fiat, owns about a fifth of Leapmotor and controls Leapmotor's sales outside China. That's why some Jeep dealers sell Leapmotors.
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How we work it out, and our sources
Weekly cost = the car's energy use × 250 km × your electricity or fuel price, with 90% of charging at home. Prices are list prices at October 2026; check with the dealer.
- Electricity: 2026–27 default rates (AER, Victorian Default Offer, state retailers). Public charging: Sydney network prices, July 2026.
- Petrol and diesel: ACCC capital-city averages, 21 October 2026.
- Cars: maker figures via CarExpert, Drive, CarsGuide and EV Central. Plug-in electric range is taken as 80% of the claim.
- Servicing: published capped prices; marked as an estimate where not yet published (CarExpert comparison).
- Tyres: an EV set lasts about 35,000 km, a petrol or hybrid set 50,000 km (RACV); prices from Gridly.
- Home charger: about $2,000 installed ($1,000–$3,000). Novated leases: PwC summary.
Printed from EV Pick · evpick.com.au. Prices and costs are estimates; check with the dealer. © 2026 EV Pick (T. Crouch). For personal use only; not to be copied, republished or sold without permission.