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Chery’s range of family-friendly SUVs is growing faster than a family of rabbits.
The Chinese auto brand has launched a new soft-roader, either under its own namesake brand or through its Jaecoo and Omoda sister brands, almost every month so far this year.
And the latest to arrive is arguably its most compelling: a plug-in hybrid variant of the popular mid-size, five-seat Tiggo 7 that not only delivers excellent value for money but the potential to slash your fuel bill by providing a no-compromise mix of decent zero-emission driving around town and long-distance range.
Here are seven things we like about the Chery Tiggo 7 Super Hybrid.
1. Value for money
The Chery Tiggo 7 Super Hybrid is the new flagship variant of the Chinese automaker’s mid-size SUV, sitting above the petrol-powered Pro SE variants and below the closely related seven-seat Tiggo 8.
It is one of the most affordable plug-in hybrid family runabouts currently on sale in Australia, with the entry-level Urban variant priced at $39,990 drive-away and the higher-spec Ultimate version we’re testing here priced from $43,990 drive-away.
The Chery Tiggo 7 Super Hybrid is available in five exterior colours: Mercurial Grey, Space Black, Lunar White, Star Silver and the Turquoise Blue of our test vehicle.
2. High-tech powertrain
Both variants share the same high-tech powertrain that links a turbocharged 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine with a permanent magnet synchronous electric motor and a lithium iron phosphate battery pack with 18.3kWh of storage capacity.
The petrol engine on its own produces 105kW of power and 215Nm of torque, while the electric motor generates an additional 150kW and 310Nm for maximum combined outputs of 255kW and 525Nm, which is pretty decent for a family SUV.
The two motors are linked via a single-speed dedicated hybrid transmission that drives the front wheels only.
3. Long-distance driving range
What all that means is the Chery Tiggo 7 Super Hybrid combines the best attributes of an electric car around town with the long-distance driving range of a diesel-powered soft-roader.
Chery claims the Tiggo 7 Super Hybrid can drive up to 93km on battery power alone, meaning that urban owners can complete most of their normal weekday driving tasks – such as commuting to work and back, dropping off and picking up the kids from school, or grocery shopping – without using a drop of fuel.
But with a 60-litre petrol tank, and a claimed average fuel consumption of just 1.4L/100km on the WLTP cycle, it also has the theoretical ability to cover up to 1200km.
We tested both of these claims during a drive from Sydney to Brisbane, utilising the four driving modes – pure electric, series, parallel and energy recovery – to see how it performs in the real world. And the results weren’t too far off.
Starting from the south-western suburbs of Sydney, we activated pure electric mode to scramble through the peak-hour rat race in near silence and with effortless acceleration, recording just over 60km of travel through stop-start traffic before switching to the series hybrid mode (with 26km of EV range still on the clock) when we hit the M1 freeway to head north.
In this setting, the electronic brain does all the thinking to manage the balance between petrol and electric power or a combination of both when required, such as overtaking or maintaining speed up steep inclines.
And it’s a smooth and seamless system, delivering decent power when you need it while feeling refined when cruising.
When crossing the border, and returning to heavier traffic conditions, we activated the energy recovery mode to fill up the battery by leveraging more opportunities to take advantage of its regenerative braking capabilities, which topped-up the battery to just over half its capacity.
And, upon reaching Brisbane without stopping for fuel or recharging, we turned around and headed home to see how far we could go. The end result? We record just over 1100km before needing to stop at the Chinderah service centre just after crossing back into NSW. Not quite the estimated figure, but not far off it!
4. Spacious interior
Thankfully, the Chery Tiggo 7 is a pleasant place to spend a day behind the wheel thanks to its comfortable and spacious cabin.
With supple synthetic leather trim, the seats are supportive and offer plenty of adjustment to suit a myriad of drivers. They also have both heating and ventilation in the range-topping Ultimate grade, which makes long-distance driving even more enjoyable.
And there’s plenty of thoughtful storage spaces throughout the cabin too, with decent-sized door bins that are big enough for large water bottles, plus cupholders and a wireless phone charging pad under a lidded tray at the front of the centre console.
There’s also a huge cavity underneath (complete with a glass-breaking hammer in case of an emergency) that’s big enough for small handbags.
Outward vision is also excellent through the extensive glasshouse from the raised seating position, and the cabin feels light and airy thanks to the large panoramic sunroof, the muted grey colour scheme in the lower half of the cabin, and the bone-coloured upper section and headliner.
The back seat is big enough for three across, with decent legroom for all occupants due its flat floor, but it’s better suited to two either side of a flip-down centre armrest featuring extra cupholders. There are also rear air vents, a USB-C power outlet and a cubby with a non-slip surface in the back of the centre console.
And, while Chery doesn’t specify the cargo capacity for the Tiggo 7 Super Hybrid, the boot is just as cavernous as its petrol-powered sibling, which has a quoted 549 litres of space that puts it right up there with the best in class.
5. Long list of standard equipment
Amplifying the Chery Tiggo 7 Super Hybrid’s excellent value for money is a long list of standard equipment that includes:
- 18-inch dark matte alloy wheels
- Tyre repair kit
- Automatic LED projector headlights
- LED tail-lights
- Rear fog light
- Rain-sensing wipers
- Heated side mirrors
- Synthetic leather upholstery
- Leather-wrapped steering wheel
- 6-way powered driver’s seat
- 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster
- 12.3-inch touchscreen infotainment system
- Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto
- DAB+ digital radio
- Intelligent voice command
- 1 x front USB-A port
- 1 x front USB-C port
- 1 x rear USB-A port
- 6-speaker sound system
- Dual-zone climate control
Tiggo 7 Super Hybrid Ultimate adds:
- 18-inch machined alloy wheels
- Puddle lights
- Power-folding side mirrors
- Panoramic sunroof
- Auto-dimming rear-view mirror
- Driver’s seat memory function
- 4-way powered front passenger seat
- Heated and ventilated front seats
- Wireless phone charger
- 8-speaker Sony sound system
- Interior ambient lighting
6. Extensive safety features
On top of all that, the Chery Tiggo 7 Super Hybrid is equipped with an extensive array of advanced driver aids and crash avoidance features, such as:
- 8 airbags, including:
- Front side
- Side curtain
- Front centre
- Driver’s knee
- Adaptive cruise control
- Autonomous emergency braking (AEB)
- Blind-spot monitor
- Driver monitoring system
- Lane-change assist
- Lane-keep assist
- Rear cross-traffic alert
- Rear parking sensors
- Reversing camera
- Safe exit assist
- Traffic jam assist
- Tyre pressure monitor
Tiggo 7 Super Hybrid Ultimate adds:
- Front parking sensors
- Surround-view camera
For the most part all of the active systems work in the background, but we found the lane keeping assistance to be particularly fatiguing on a long distance drive, as it incessantly veered towards the right-side lane marking rather than staying in the centre of the lane. This meant I was constantly overriding its trajectory, and it would tug at the steering wheel to try and correct my inputs.
7. Long-term ownership benefits
Like all Chery models, the Tiggo 7 Super Hybrid is covered by a seven-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty, plus free roadside assistance for the first 12 months that is automatically extended (up to seven years) when the vehicle is serviced according to its prescribed 12-month or 15,000km maintenance schedule.
Chery also provides owners with a capped-price servicing scheme over that period, which is relatively affordable (between $299 and $349 per service) for the first five years, but requires an expensive major service after six years or 90,000km ($1291.31).
CarExpert’s Take
The Chery Tiggo 7 Super Hybrid is compelling family SUV for a number of reasons.
For starters, its value for money is undeniable. And yet it doesn’t compromise on equipment, while also being a stylish, comfortable and spacious soft-roader, even if it looks a bit conservative.
It could be little more polished in terms of its driving dynamics and the safety systems – especially the lane keeping assistance function – need some further refinement.
But, for the most part, the Chery Tiggo 7 Super Hybrid makes fuel-efficient motoring more accessible than ever to Australian families on a tight budget.