South Africa-bound Chery Tiggo 9 PHEV makes debut in Beijing

There was a flurry of activity on the Chery International stand at the Beijing Auto Show 2024 this week with 2 000 invited guests from 80 countries in attendance.

The Chinese carmaker took the covers off the Chery Tiggo 9 PHEV (plug-in hybrid electric vehicle) under their theme “New Energy, New Eco, New Era”. Seen as one the bigger announcements at the show, the Tiggo 9 PHEV will be introduced locally in South Africa by the end of the year or early in 2025. It will become the new flagship model in an ever-growing SUV line-up for the Chery brand.

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Chery Tiggo 9 looks the part

The Chery Tiggo 9 PHEV offers an octagonal grille with the illuminated Chery logo up front, full LED headlights and 20-inch multi-spoke wheels. At the rear is full-width LED light band, twin tail pipes and a somewhat larger than normal PHEV emblem. This will ensure that nobody will mistake this Tiggo for anything but a PHEV.

The Chery Tiggo 9 PHEV is slightly longer, wider, and taller than the Tiggo 8 Pro. The large, seven-seater interior showcases specially crafted 3D stitched seats. And an equally large 15.6-inch 2.5K HD screen to go with an integrated multifunctional console.

Details were not made available at the unveiling. The Citizen Motoring has no doubt that all the current technology and safety systems found on existing Chery Tiggo variants will be found in the 9 PHEV.

Petrol and electricity

Then, as given away in the title and Chery’s drive to new energy vehicles, the important technical changes happen under the bonnet. PHEV you have a normal combustion engine and an electric motor powering the vehicle. The vehicle can run off either individually, or a combination of both as required. The battery that powers the electric motor does get some of its charge regenerated by the vehicle itself while driving. But to be fully recharged, the vehicle must be plugged it into a wall socket or a public charging station.

The Chery Tiggo 9 PHEV features a high performance 1.5-litre turbocharged engine, mated to an eight-speed automatic transmission. It makes 175kW of power and a peak torque of 385Nm. Fuel consumption is said to be only 5.2 litres per 100km.

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Packs a punch

We don’t know the kWh capacity of the battery yet, or what the claimed electric only range is. But we do know that the 3DHT electric motor packs a substantial 165 kW punch. This will significantly enhance the Chery Tiggo 9 PHEV’s all-round performance.

What is possibly of even greater importance, especially when it comes to range anxiety, and your pocket, the hybrid combination is claimed to extend the range of the Chery Tiggo 9 PHEV to over 1 400 km when filled up with juice and power.

Full details will be provided as they come to hand in the coming months