Chery Tiggo 9: Seven seats for nine

What is it?

Australians went from buying an electric vehicle — hybrid, plug-in hybrid, or full electric — once every 50 minutes four years ago to once every three minutes in April, according to Aussie Climate Change Minister Chris Bowen.

Needless to say, there’s a lot going on, with manufacturers, especially those from China, having a field day.

Chery, one of the biggest, not satisfied with standard petrol/electric hybrid performance has extended its super highway journey, adding to its rapidly expanding Tiggo range with a top-of-the-range CSH (for Chery Super Hybrid) ‘9’ model.

So, what’s super about this plug-in hybrid, which stands alone in the Tiggo 9 firmament?

Up to now, plug-in hybrids were hostage to limited EV range and slow ‘fast’ DC charging.

Well, the 315kW plug-in hybrid delivers 1200km total range at a combined urban/highway petrol consumption of around 1.4L/100km for less than $60,000, before on-road costs. Oh, and it has seven seats.

Tiggo 9 CSH is not the only Chery pushing the ‘super hybrid’ barrow.

The smaller Tiggo 8 CSH Ultimate has the same three rows of seats, is shorter on performance and carries less kit — but it’s $10K cheaper.

What’s it cost?

There’s two grades: front-wheel drive Elite, priced from $52,990 and all-wheel drive Ultimate, priced from $59,990.

The seven-seat utilitarian SUV speaks ‘Tiggo’, leading off with Chery brand diamond point grille, unique 19-inch alloy wheels, fiddly power retractable door handles (not a fan) and stand-out LED headlights and tail lights, plus dynamic turn signals. The headlights have ‘follow me home’ function.

A commanding centrally located 15.6-inch LCD infotainment touchscreen augments a 10.25-inch instrument cluster and satellite navigation, wired and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

Say ‘Hello Chery’ and an Intelligent Voice Command takes requests about system controls or you can rely on the touchscreen or steering wheel switches to do likewise.

Almost everything is controlled through the touchscreen and steering wheel, not to the best effect.

The touchscreen lacked intuitive leanings, steering wheel buttons all-but disappear in bright light and the voice activation, at times, made little sense.

A windscreen head-up display worked a treat, while headrest-mounted speakers, did their best with sound from the 10-speaker Sony audio with digital radio and AM/FM tuner.

Tiggo 9 CSH features an Advanced Driver Assistance System, which includes adaptive cruise control, autonomous emergency braking and lane keeping assist, as well as the ubiquitous anti-skid braking, electronic stability control, electronic brake force distribution, brake assist and hill descent control.

As well as nine airbags — driver and front passenger, double curtain side, two front side, front centre and a pair of second-row airbags — manoeuvring at low speed is aided by 360-degree around view and reversing cameras, plus four front and four rear parking sensors.

Like other Cherys, the Tiggo 9 CSH has a 7-year unlimited kilometre warranty with 8-year/160,000km battery cover and up to seven years roadside assistance.

What’s it go like?

A premium-class cabin is set off by seven synthetic (who can tell?) leather seats.

The driver gets six-way power adjustment, the front seat passenger six-way powered seat, including thigh support extension and massage function.

Both seats are heated and cooled.

Interior lighting includes front and rear, plus cargo area, accessed via a power tailgate.

Second row seats have 60:40 split fold, the third row 50:50.

Leg room is good in the former, with the third-row kiddy-friendly only cramping cargo space.

Occupants, however, are open to a light-and-airy environment through a tilt-and-slide panoramic sunroof with power shade.

Storage starts with a front centre console box topped off by a comfortable armrest.

Four cup holders serve front and back, map pockets can be found in front seat backs and coat hooks take outer spots.

Dual zone climate control air-con is automatic.

There are some buttons on the centre console, which includes a big circular control knob for things such as drive modes, EV control, hybrid operation, demisters and AC, as well as auto buttons for the HVAC system.

A volume dial is absent, which is especially annoying on the move.

The rear cargo area is limited to 143 litres of space, including the under-floor area, when folded there’s 819 litres, fold the second row and a massive 2021 litres is freed up.

The revolutionary Chery hybrid system balances power and sustainability, reducing carbon footprint without compromising on performance.

A fifth-generation 1.5-litre turbocharged engine, which produces maximum 105kW of power and 215Nm of torque, is mated with a single electric motor delivering 150kW and 310Nm.

Power is sent to the front wheels via a single-speed Dedicated Hybrid Transmission.

This Stepless Electric Hybrid System offers four driving modes – pure electric, series, parallel, and energy recovery.

A proximity key fob gets the Tiggo 9 Super Hybrid Ultimate ready for the off – unlocked and powered up by the time the driver is seated, belted up and with foot on the brake.

However, limited steering wheel adjustment made for minor test-car complaints, as did the side rear-view mirror adjustment via the control centre screen and steering wheel mounted buttons. Inconvenient on the move.

Silently getting into its stride from a standstill in full electric mode, the petrol/electric mode can intervene, offering long-range efficiency and speedy refuelling.

The stepless electric drive system offers four modes of operation – pure electric, series, parallel and energy recovery.

Pure electric ideal for low-speed city commuting and fuel efficiency at speeds above 80km/h.

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Road noise takes over from engine noise when under EV-only power.

Up to 95km without charging, the lithium-ion phosphate battery has a capacity of 18.3 kWh and, according to the maker, can be charged from 30 to 80 per cent at up to 40kW on a DC fast charger in just 20 minutes.

Above 30 per cent charge the Super Hybrid The system can run as a pure EV up to speeds of 120km/h.

In hybrid mode the two units work together to deliver a driving range of up to 1200km.

Steering is soft, ride and handling conditional, braking sharp and acceleration impressive under a soft pedal touch.

What we like?

Synthetic leather
Big and well equipped
Head-up display works a treat
Heated, cooled and massage seats
20 minutes to charge

What we don’t like?

Volume dial absent
Touchscreen not intuitive
Almost everything controlled through touchscreen
Limited steering wheel adjustment
Can’t see buttons on wheel in bright sunlight

The bottom line?

Despite some steering and software gripes, the Tiggo 9 Super Hybrid maintains the seriously ‘super’ Chery traits in many ways, starting with the appealing price of around $60K.