What a grand paint job

GOOD SIGN: J7 HAS A DEEP LUSTRE THAT SPEAKS LUXURY AT WELL UNDER R1M

- Brendan Seery

I should be oohing and aah-ing about the "fuel tank cap" which hides a beefy electrical plug and cable... but I'm not. As I stand in my driveway looking over the Jaecoo J7 SHS, the lasting impression burned into my memory is the paintwork.

It's some of the best I have seen on any car I have driven over the past 20 years and that includes some extremely expensive and posh executive expresses. It is a shade of metallic silver which shimmers in the sunlight with microscopic flakes, but at the same time with a deep lustre that speaks luxury.

What it also indicates is that the paint section at the factory in China where the car was made must be a world-beater.

If you're prepared to put that much effort into a car which, although top of its current range is hardly in the millionaire league, then it's a good sign that the rest of the car will be as good, quality-wise.