The Chery Tiggo 7 Pro has landed in South Africa to complete the Chery Pro trilogy of the 4 Pro and range topping 8 Pro. The 7 Pro sits squarely in the middle of those two models with 7-seats and two variants in the Distinctive & Executive. Judging from launch it appears that Chery have hit another home run, with very attractive exterior styling catching the eye all over Johannesburg.

 With this third model, Chery has created a complete line-up of luxury SUVs, offering customers a choice of a compact and sporty model (Tiggo 4 Pro), a larger and more luxurious five-seat SUV (Tiggo 7 Pro) and a flagship SUV with seven seats and an all-inclusive luxury interior (Tiggo 8 Pro).

Bianca  Botma, Marketing Manager at Chery says ‘’At Chery we reserve the PRO moniker for our best SUVs and the Tiggo 7 Pro is no exception’’

Styling.

Sharing many of its siblings’ design cues, the Tiggo 7 pro follows the design language  of “Life in Motion”.

As seen on the Tiggo 7 Pro, the Chery design language is seen in the hexagonal grille with its three-dimensional diamond-shaped brightwork, the elongated front lights that run from the grille to the start of the sharply creased shoulder line and the deeply scalloped lower bumper and air intakes.

Tiggo 7 Pro comes with 18” alloy wheels (with red brake callipers on the Executive model), and a concave-to-convex curve in the side profile create a uniquely sporty feeling. The glasshouse (with standard privacy glass) is framed in a black and chrome combination, which emphasises the vehicle’s sporty stance and helps to create a floating roof design.

At the rear, an edge-to-edge lightbar taillight is only interrupted by the large and bold Chery logo. The roof-mounted spoiler and dual faux exhaust surrounds are standard. Foldable & electrically adjustable, heated side mirrors with integrated LED indicators, are available on both models.

All lights are LEDs and switch on automatically. Both models have intelligent wide-angle fog lights and light-bar-type LED daytime running lights. This makes for a very attractive package.

The Cabin.

The Tiggo 7Pro has a roomy and premium cabin, with the adage “All the way with you” their models can become overwhelming with the amount of features available.

The interior is upholstered in durable black synthetic leather with contrasting stitching. The driver’s seat features six-way electric adjustment, and in the Executive model, the passenger seat has four-way electrical adjustment as well. It has a  leather-clad steering wheel has controls for the infotainment and voice command system and can be adjusted in four directions. Both models have a push-button Start/Stop system. Three large-format digital displays take pride of place in the cabin.

The first is a 7” digital centre information panel in front of the driver. This floating screen offers a host of customisation options, and it promises clear legibility of all vehicle information in light or dark conditions. A second 10.25” LCD screen crowns the centre console. This screen, as per other Chery Tiggo Pro models, forms the heart of the vehicle information and entertainment settings. As can be expected, the system has a high-output audio system with Apple CarPlay, Android Auto and Bluetooth hands-free dialling as standard. This is so necessary in today’s busy life.

As with the other Pro models, the Chery Tiggo 7 Pro comes standard with Chery’s voice command system that allows for full control of the cabin, climate control and even the one-touch electric windows and (on the Executive model) the operation of the electric panoramic sunroof.

The third screen is flush-mounted below the infotainment system. This screen features the newest technology for the integration of physical knobs (for eyes-free adjustment) and a high-resolution screen for the climate control system.

The climate control can independently cool or heat two different zones. It is fitted with surgical-level N95 air filtering, and it also powers the cooling system of the cooled central glove box. The boot has 475 litres of storage or up to 1 500 litres of storage with the 60:40 seats folded down.

All Tiggo 7 Pro models have wireless charging and multiple colour ambient lighting as standard. You really could not want anymore than this, and it all works very well indeed.

Engine.

Both versions of the Tiggo 7 Pro are fitted with Chery’s 1.5 litre turbo-petrol four-cylinder engine, which does duty for the popular 4 Pro.

The engine is equipped with multipoint direct injection and 16 valves (4 per cylinder) for an impressive 108 kW at 5 500 rpm and 210 Nm in a flat torque power band between 1 750 rpm and 4 500 rpm.

The Tiggo 7 Pro delivers its power to the front wheels through an ultra-smooth CVT transmission with nine pre-programmed “spreads”. The gear shifter is fully electronic. This CVT is pretty good and doesn’t hunt a lot, which CVT’s are reknowned for. The engine has good acceleration and torque, but fuel ecnomy as with the 4 Pro and 8 Pro might be a concern.

Safety.

The Tiggo 7 is a five-star C-NCAP vehicle, and has an array of safety features.

All models have ISOFIX child seat anchors, ABS brakes on all four disk wheels (ventilated in front) with Electronic Brakeforce Distribution (EBD), Emergency Brake Assistance (EBA), Hill Start Assistance (HSA) and Hill Descent Control (HDC). All models have Rear Traffic Alert (RTA) and Blind Spot Detection (BSD).

On the Executive model, Chery further added a comprehensive intelligent safety package, which includes Lane Departure Warning (LDW), Front Collision Warning (FCW), Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) and a 360-degree around-view monitor.

The Distinctive model has four airbags as standard, and in the Executive model there are two additional curtain airbags for a total of six.

Pricing.

As with other models, the Tiggo 7Pro is very well priced. The Distinction model comes in at R409 900, and the Executive model at R444 900.

All Chery Tiggo 7 Pro models are sold with a 5-year / 60 000 km service plan, 5-year / unlimited kilometre roadside assistance programme, a 5-year / 150 000 km general mechanical warranty and offers a comprehensive 10-year / 1-million-kilometre engine warranty.

In summation, the Chery brand is on everyone’s lips, it has worked hard to allay negative outlook to Chinese products, and have come up with a worthy trilogy of models that can offer buyers a car on various segments. All the models are attractive, and are very well specced.