The Road Transport Department (JPJ) has announced that it will temporarily suspend the Vehicle Type Approval (VTA) for the Chery Omoda 5 following another incident where the SUV’s rear axle detached from the vehicle.
In a statement dated 11 October 2026, JPJ said it views the recent incident in Johor Bahru seriously as it raises public concerns over the safety of the vehicle.
This is the second reported rear axle incident involving the Chery Omoda 5 in Malaysia, following a similar case in April 2024 which prompted a safety recall involving 600 vehicles.
JPJ suspends Chery Omoda 5 VTA and new registrations
According to JPJ, the temporary suspension of the Chery Omoda 5’s Vehicle Type Approval (VTA) will also put a hold on new vehicle registrations until its technical investigation is completed and the potential safety risks are identified.
The department said the action will be targeted at specific models and variants that could potentially be affected.
As part of its investigation, JPJ has instructed Chery Malaysia to identify all potentially affected vehicles based on component part numbers, production batches, Vehicle Identification Numbers (VIN) and other relevant technical parameters.
Chery Malaysia is also required to conduct a recall involving all vehicles identified as potentially at risk for inspection and the necessary corrective measures.
In addition, JPJ will conduct a technical audit of Chery Omoda 5’s production and assembly processes, as well as the relevant rear axle component suppliers.
The audit will cover compliance with Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP), quality control systems, welding inspection procedures and the safety standards of the components used.
JPJ stressed that there will be no compromise on non-compliance that could jeopardise road user safety.
The suspension will only be lifted once all corrective and preventive measures have been fully implemented and JPJ has provided technical confirmation that the safety risks have been adequately addressed.
Chery Omoda 5 had a similar rear axle issue in 2024
This is not the first time the Chery Omoda 5 has faced scrutiny over its rear axle in Malaysia.
In April 2024, an Omoda 5 owner reported that the vehicle’s rear axle had broken while driving. The incident prompted Chery Malaysia to launch a precautionary safety campaign involving 600 vehicles.
Following its investigation, Chery Malaysia said the issue was traced to an equipment calibration problem at its component supplier. A worn-out welding tip had been replaced, but the welding equipment was not properly recalibrated.
According to Chery, 60 vehicles in Malaysia were fitted with the affected components produced on 15 August 2023. As a precaution, the company expanded its inspection campaign to cover 600 Omoda 5 vehicles with rear axle components produced between 14 and 17 August 2023.
Facelifted Chery O5 and fully electric Omoda E5 use different rear suspension
It is worth highlighting that the rear axle issue involves the original petrol-powered Chery Omoda 5, which uses a torsion beam rear suspension.
The Omoda 5 has since received a facelift and is now marketed as the Chery O5 in Malaysia. The updated model is locally assembled (CKD) by Inokom at its manufacturing facility in Kulim, Kedah.
Unlike the original Omoda 5, the facelifted Chery O5 comes with a multi-link rear suspension setup instead of a torsion beam.
Meanwhile, the fully electric Chery Omoda E5 also uses a multi-link rear suspension, which is different from the setup found on the original petrol-powered Omoda 5.
As we highlighted previously, the original petrol-powered Omoda 5 and the fully electric Omoda E5 may look similar on the outside, but they use different rear suspension configurations.
