Tiggo 7 Pro Max has benefitted from a number of small but easy-to-spot exterior changes at the front.
Taking-up station as the middle model in its South African model range, Chery provided the first official glimpse of the upgraded Tiggo 7 Pro Max at the Kyalami Festival of Motoring (F.o.M) on Thursday evening (24 August).
Previewed in April this year as part of its future model exhibition on the back of the Shanghai Auto Show, the Max will become a reality before year-end in both front-wheel-drive and newly introduced all-wheel-drive guises.
The second upgraded Chery to debut in South Africa after the facelift Tiggo 8 Pro Max earlier this month, the Tiggo 7 Pro Max’s visual difference from the regular Tiggo 7 Pro, although small, are easy to spot and comprise restyled LED headlights, model specific 18-inch alloy wheels and a new front bumper with chrome accents plus blue detailing on the flanks that usually house the LED fog lamps.
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In complete contrast to the aesthetic revisions applied to the Chinese market Tiggo 7 Pro in October last year, the Max’s interior differences are, however, similar and involves the lower touch-sensitive climate control panel being dropped in favour of a series of “buttons” below the redesigned air vents.
Also gone is the blocky gear lever replaced by the same touchpad-like item as on the Tiggo 8 Pro Max, while the steering wheel is also new and the centre console restyled to accommodate the gear lever and switchgear, the latter including a new drive model selector for the all-wheel-drive model.
In terms of specification, the Max will slot-in above the existing Tiggo 7 Pro in a line-up spanning three derivatives; Distinction and Executive, the latter available in front-wheel-drive or with all-wheel-drive.
Notable items on the former include leather sport seats, a faster 50-watt wireless smartphone charger, upgraded voice command as well as a revised 360-degree surround-view camera system.
New on the Executive are two additional airbags for a total of eight, an electric tailgate and an expanded array of undisclosed safety and driver assistance systems.
Reserved for the all-wheel-drive are 19-inch alloy wheels, ventilated front seats with memory function for the driver’s chair and as mentioned, a drive mode selector with six settings.
Standard on all three Tiggo 7 Pro Max models is a new dual 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster and infotainment system in place of the pair of 10.25-inch displays that continue on the Tiggo 7 Pro.
As evident by the 290T badge on the tailgate, the Tiggo 7 Pro Max swaps-out its sibling’s 1.5 T-GDI engine for the Tiggo 8 Pro’s 1.6 T-GDI that delivers 145kW/290Nm instead of 108kW/210Nm.
Also gone is the much criticism CVT replaced by a new seven-speed dual-clutch.
Set to arrive on dealership floors before year-end as mentioned, pricing for the Tiggo 7 Pro Max wasn’t disclosed, but expect the Distinction to slot-in between the comparable 1.5 T-GDI (R442 900) and Executive (R477 900), while the Executive AWD will plug the gap between the latter and the Tiggo 8 Pro Executive that retails from R609 900.
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