Chery South Africa has unveiled its long-awaited new flagship, the Chery Tiggo 8 Pro MAX with all-wheel drive. The new model joins the growing Tiggo Pro line-up as the top of the range model and promises to welcome even more customers to this fast-growing family.
With the addition of this model, the Tiggo 8 Pro range grows to three models, the Tiggo 8 Pro Executive with a turbocharged 1.6 litre petrol engine, the Tiggo 8 Pro MAX with a turbocharged 2.0 litre petrol engine and the new all wheel drive model.
At the heart of the Chery Tiggo 8 Pro MAX AWD is the platform and specification of its two-wheel drive sibling. This means that the new flagship lacks for nothing in terms of performance, specification, or luxury fitment.
What is new, is the proprietary Chery all-wheel drive system. The system has a front-wheel drive bias during normal driving. This benefits the vehicle’s average fuel consumption and everyday driveability, while also offering a familiar driving experience to existing Tiggo 8 Pro MAX owners.
When drivers shift from everyday commuting to more spirited driving, or finds themselves in slippery and wet conditions, the all-wheel drive system comes into play.
“Our engineers have spent a considerable amount of development and testing hours with the all-wheel drive system to ensure that it is robust enough to work in the blink of an eye, but that it also offers a long operational life,” says Tony Liu, Executive Deputy General Manager of Chery South Africa.
The result of all this development is an all-wheel drive system that can switch from two- to four-wheel drive in 100 milliseconds. This means the operation is imperceptible to the driver, while providing additional grip and stability on slippery surfaces or during high-speed dynamic driving.
During its development, Chery repeatedly pushed up to ten times the expected vehicle torque through the all-wheel drive system to ensure that its operation remains faultless and fast, regardless of the conditions or the workload.
“Chery completed another round of extreme weather testing in 2023. The results of these tests have been incorporated in the design of the all-wheel drive system. It means that whether the driver finds him/herself in snowy or desert conditions, the Tiggo 8 Pro MAX AWD will deliver,” says Liu.
The wheels are driven by Chery’s award-winning 2.0 TDGI turbo-petrol engine. The engine has been programmed to deliver 187 kW at 5 500 rpm and 390 Nm from 2 000 rpm to 4 000 rpm, while the 7DCT dual-clutch self-shifting transmission has been mapped to smoothly deliver this power to two- or four wheels as required.
For this model, Chery has increased the fuel tank size to 57 litres (from 51 litres on the 2WD model) to allow for greater range.
As with the Tiggo 8 Pro MAX, the MAX AWD model is built on Chery’s flagship platform that uses ultra-high tensile steel in over 60% of the body construction.
In the Tiggo 8 Pro MAX AWD the suspension has been upgraded and tuned to fit the fact that power is delivered to all four wheels and there is a unique drive mode select system to adapt the power delivery and vehicle characteristics to the environment.
Add to this a complete list of Autonomous Driver Assistant Systems (ADAS) and no-less than ten airbags and you have one of the safest vehicles in its class.
The ADAS systems that come standard in this flagship model include autonomous emergency braking (AEV), adaptive cruise control with radar controls, lane keep assistance (LKA), rear cross traffic alert (RTCA), traffic congestion assistance (TJA) and even a driving view recorder (DVR) as standard.
The MAX AWD model steps up the level of driver assistance further with a smart driver monitoring system (DMS), Emergency Lane Keeping and Lane Departure Prevention and a segment leading Intelligent Evasion System as standard.
Move to luxury and the Chery is peerless. The new flagship offers quilted leather upholstery on all seven seats, the door bolsters and on the dashboard.
There is ambient lighting with over 64 hues that can be matched to the music from the premium SONY sound system, the driving style or the driver’s mood. On the topic of the SONY sound system, it offers 10 speakers and a power amplifier for a truly immersive audio experience.
Add to this a fully digital cockpit with two large 12.3” screens for a large super screen that is 24.7” long. The infotainment section of the screen has full wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto functionality, and it will show a full panoramic view of the vehicle thanks to the 360-degree camera array. The latter offers the best possible view of the vehicle in its surroundings thanks to an upgraded Around View Monitor system.
The flagship Tiggo 8 Pro MAX AWD has a superior air conditioning system with two independent zones and an upgraded air quality sensor (AQS) that ensures that the air is N95 certified clean. In addition, there is a Fragrance System with 3 different scents.
A host of other features too long to mention are included in the Tiggo 8 Pro MAX, including a super-fast wireless charger, electric memory seats for the front passengers that are both heated and cooled, multiple Type A and Type C chargers and a large panoramic sunroof.
Lastly, the Tiggo 8 Pro MAX AWD offers a true first-class experience after purchase.
As with all other Chery models, the Tiggo 8 Pro MAX AWD is sold with a comprehensive 7-year / 90 000 km service plan, a 5-year / 150 000 km warranty, a full 10-year / 1-million-kilometre engine warranty (linked to the first owner), 5-year unlimited distance Roadside Assistance, and Chery’s range of Value-added Services under My Chery Care. These include a range of services including scratch and dent repair, rim repair, a courtesy Chery when a vehicle is booked for service and even a free take-me-home service.
The new Chery Tiggo 8 Pro MAX AWD is available immediately from Chery dealers across South Africa. It retails for R 731 900, 00.
Chery continues to outperform market
Chery celebrated another exceptional sales month in South Africa and globally at the launch of the new Tiggo 8 Pro MAX AWD.
In South Africa, the brand increased its sales over the same month last year with 9% to 1 504 units, giving it the ninth position overall in the local market. This was done despite a general decline in new vehicle sales.
In China, Chery celebrated a record 143 155 sales across the world. This is up by 37.88% over the same month in 2023 and it adds up to a record 348 019 units sold in the first two months of the year.
“Chery is almost 70% ahead of its total sales for the first two months of last year and there is no indication of slowing down. The brand will continue to introduce new models and upgrades to existing models to support its sales drive, while also investing in its dealer network to expand its reach in South and Southern Africa,” says Jay Jay Botes, General Manager: Chery Brand at Chery South Africa.
Chery is not only investing in its South African infrastructure.
In the Middle East, Chery recently opened a new Spare Parts Warehouse. The warehouse was necessitated by the rapid growth of the Chery brand in the region and it promised even better support to customers and dealers through state of the art technology and a 24/7 operating model.
