ORA Funky Cat 2023 Review

Last updated on January 31st, 2023 at 12:59 pm

Intro, Price, Options and Verdict

Introduction

We know what your first question is. What on earth is a Funky Cat?

It will be no surprise that the aptly funky name is from the Far East, namely a Chinese manufacturer called Great Wall Motors, which is badged under its brand ORA.

The feline theme seems to appeal to ORA, as it offers other similarly-named cars – the Black Cat, Punk Cat and White Cat – back home. But only the ‘Funky’ variant is heading to these shores so far.

We shouldn't be too surprised to see it here, as many new manufacturers are arriving on the scene with all-electric cars.

You might assume that the vehicle will probably be as hilariously comical as its name. You might think it's got stupid looks and a terrible interior. You might imagine it's got an awful powertrain, and it will end up being laughed at all the way back to China. But you’d be wrong.

In fact, at first glance, it looks impressively credible, and when you see the equipment list, you'll probably raise your eyebrows. ORA sold 185,000 Funky Cats last year, so it must be doing something right.

So, is it as sleepy as a cat, or does it dart like Garfield to a plate of lasagne? We will give it a fair assessment here and find out.

Price and Options

The asking price is £31,995. That sounds expensive, but for an electric car, it's not bad. Plus, cheaper versions will likely be released before long, bringing the entry-level price down.

However, at launch, only one trim is being offered, which is ‘First Edition’ and, notably, it’s very well equipped.

It includes 18in alloys, a 10.25in infotainment touchscreen with SatNav, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and a 10.25in digital instrument display. It also boasts keyless entry and start, LED headlights, leatherette seats, adaptive cruise control, 360-degree cameras, a wireless phone charger, electric front seats, and rear parking sensors.

Additionally, the Funky Cat comes with face recognition and a host of safety features, which we’ll cover later.

Longer term, three trims will be offered, possibly called Pro, Pro+ and GT, which may result in some of the items in the list above being re-distributed across the range.

You can buy the Funky Cat online, and ORA says it will also take up stands in shopping centres to market itself. The automaker will be operating in a limited number of dealerships, too.

Design, Comfort and Storage

Exterior Design

You first notice the resemblance to a Porsche at the front. Yes, ORA looks like it’s taken inspiration from the 911, with its bug-eyed headlights. This creates two bulges at either side of the bonnet, which also features a couple of smaller bumps towards the centre.

The rest of the front end is uncluttered, with a compact lower grille that has silver-bordered air intakes at either end.

Around the sides, there isn't much to see, although a nice crease in the lower part of the doors and a modest roof spoiler give the hatchback some personality.

The taillights are mainly built into the black frame at the bottom of the rear window. Meanwhile, the lower portion of the Cat’s posterior sticks out, resulting in an unusual shape, with smaller lights on either side of the number plate and a clean, minimalist design.

The electric car is cutesy and looks like it would give you a big hug. Yet it's stylish and a far cry from some disastrously ugly vehicles produced in China over the years.

Interior Comfort, Storage and Load Carrying

The interior looks inviting, classy – and comes with a premium feel. Indeed, the cabin was designed in Germany, so its success may come as little surprise.

It has a clean appearance, with a dual-shaded colour scheme of grey-blue covering the top half of the interior and creamy beige on the bottom half. Even the steering wheel gets in on a double-hued act.

As small cars go, the Funky Cat has a fair amount of space in the front. In the rear, legroom is reasonably good, although taller passengers will brush their heads against the roof.

It feels wider than your average small EV, too, so you'll only be rubbing shoulders with the person next to you if you're trying to fit three adults in the back. If you are attempting to do just that, then it’s doable, helped by the flat floor, which makes it easier for three pairs of feet to be accommodated.

Overall, the interior can genuinely be described as funky, so the cabin lives up to the car’s name.

You only get 228 litres of cargo capacity with the rear seats up, which is smaller than most of its rivals, although it’s slightly more than you get in a three-door Mini Electric.

Available space expands to 858 litres with the rear seats folded down in a 60/40 split. This acceptable for a hatchback, but still low for its class. The venerable Nissan Leaf, for example, exceeds this capacity seats up or down.

In-Car Entertainment and Controls

The 10.25in infotainment system sits next to the 10.25in digital instrument display, all housed in one unit like one ultra-wide screen.

It is embedded within a chunk cut out of the upholstery behind the steering wheel, causing the unit to extend above the dashboard.

The infotainment system is crystal clear, sharp, highly responsive, colourful, and relatively easy to use. However, some of the icons and buttons on the screen are small, and the menus could be more intuitive.

Nevertheless, it easily rivals competitors’ systems, and is head and shoulders above what you find in a Volkswagen ID.3.

There are plenty of useful buttons on the steering wheel and some silver garnish. At the same time, physical switches remain to control the air conditioning system, and they have a solid, premium feel.

The centre console is beautifully presented, too, with a chrome and brushed aluminium effect on the useful rotary dial, which controls the infotainment system.

You can also use a smartphone app to pre-heat or cool the cabin, control charging and lock and unlock the car, amongst other things.

Performance, Running Costs, Range, and Safety

Performance and Driving

The Funky Cat comes with 171PS, which gets it from 0-62mph in a midrange 8.3-seconds, topping out at 99mph.

It is front-wheel drive, too, so you immediately get wheel spin if you floor the throttle.

The Cat pulls away reasonably well if you're more cautious with the accelerator, however. It is not lightning quick, but it's more than adequate for a small family car. It also feels pretty punchy, still providing good acceleration at higher speeds, such as 50 to 70mph.

In terms of handling, it's not incredibly athletic, but the Funky Cat is acceptably pleasant to drive.

The steering is responsive and precise, plus the weight of the wheel can be adjusted via the infotainment system.

The Cat goes around bends nicely, with little body lean and generally feels well-planted and stable.

In truth, 18in alloys seem a little much for a car like this. The Funky Cat isn’t uncomfortable, but it could be helped more with smaller wheels.

There is wind noise at higher speeds, too – but it’s not a deal-breaker.

If you switch on the regenerative braking, one-pedal driving is almost possible. But you’ll need to give the brake pedal a final tap to bring you to a complete halt.

The downside? The Funky Cat is a little short on thrills, so it isn't massively fun to drive, and it's certainly not as refined as a Mini Electric. But it's so lovely to sit in that we're not sure you'll care.

Range and Charging

A 48kWh battery comes as standard with the ORA Funky Cat.

That is enough for a 193-mile range – and that figure should impress when you consider that a Mini Electric offers 145 miles. Mind you, a Vauxhall e-Corsa will do 217 miles.

If that’s not enough, it’s likely that the 48kWh battery will eventually be offered with the entry-level trim. The mid-range will get a 58kWh power pack capable of 209 miles, and the flagship model will be fitted with a larger 63kWh battery, which should be good for 263 miles.

If that proves to be the case, it will give the Funky Cat one of the largest ranges from a small electric car.

The maximum charging speed is 64kW, which is significantly slower than some other manufacturers, who are getting into three figures nowadays.

Nevertheless, that means the 48kWh battery will take around 45 minutes to get from 10 to 80%, and it will take approximately seven hours to achieve the same with a home wall box, which will charge at a rate of 6.6kW.

Charging at 11kW is possible, too, from a three-phase supply.

Running Costs

With no road tax to pay until 2025 and EVs falling into the bottom band for Benefit in Kind (making it attractive for company car operators), running costs should be kept as low as possible.

A 193-mile range will naturally translate to less than that in practice, so you'll need to charge the Funky Cat up frequently. However, the cost of doing this will be considerably cheaper than petrol or diesel, despite electricity prices soaring. According to the WLTP rating, you’re getting a little over 4 miles per kWh.

The big downside is that, with ORA being a new manufacturer to the UK, we can't say for sure how reliable it will be by our standards.

Still, ORA must be confident in the Funky Cat as the company is offering a five-year, unlimited mileage warranty, while the battery will get a standard eight-year, 100,000-mile guarantee.

Electric cars don't cost as much to service, and, as a bonus, the Funky Cat only needs a check-up every couple of years, or 18,000 miles, whichever comes first.

MOTs still have to be carried out every year once it’s three years old.

Safety

If you’re stereotyping and think a Chinese car will come with a one-star safety rating, then this is truly a new era. The Funky Cat has recently been put through its paces by Euro NCAP and earned a five-star safety rating.

Not only that, it scored 92% for adults, 83% for children and 93% for safety assists – all of which are superior scores to the Mini. Although, in fairness, the Mini was tested eight years ago, and technology has moved on a bit since then.

The list of safety features and driver assistance systems is seemingly endless. The Cat gets auto emergency braking with pedestrian/cyclist detection, blind spot detection, adaptive cruise control, traffic jam assist, as well as lane keep assist. It also possesses a lane centring function, a reversing camera, 360-degree cameras, high beam assist, rear traffic cross alert with braking and rear parking sensors.

Autonomous parking is also included, while the face recognition system claims to be able to tell if you’re fatigued or not paying attention to the road.

The wealth of assistance features and 12 radar sensors mean that semi-autonomous driving is possible, although it's way short of Tesla's Autopilot.

Key Specifications