Chery Tiggo Cross makes Chinese carmaker’s stock even sweeter

It’s only taken Chery only three years since their return to South Africa to rank among the seven best-selling manufacturers. The bad news for the top six is that they are only getting started.

After the Chinese carmaker initially established an SUV line-up under the Chery marque with the Tiggo 4 Pro, Tiggo 7 Pro and Tiggo 8 Pro, they’ve been hard at work introducing three sub-brands, Omoda, Jaecoo and Jetour, over the last 18 months.

Chery Tiggo Cross joins SUV family

Now core Chery dealership floors are about to get a lot fuller with the introduction of the Tiggo Cross. Next year the Chery Tiggo 9 Pro will be unveiled alongside a host of hybrid models before the arrival of the Chery Lepas SUV range.

And in the true sense of the infomercial pay-off line, but wait there’s more… Although no date has been set for its introduction, Chery plans to bring a bakkie too… and a hatchback most likely.

But back to the Chery Tiggo Cross for the moment, which was unveiled this month. Effectively a replacement for the Chery Tiggo 4 Pro in other markets, the Cross will rather feature alongside the current Tiggo models locally, slotting in between the 4 and 7.

Attractive price

The two-model line-up consists of the Comfort and Elite derivatives, Starting at a very attractive price of R399 900, we reckon the Chery Tiggo Cross might have real potential in ousting the Tiggo 4 Pro as the brand’s best-seller.

It shares a 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol engine with the Tiggo 4 and 7 Pro which produces 108kW of power and 210Nm of torque. This gets routed to the front wheels via six-speed dual-clutch transmission with a choice of three driving modes; Eco, Normal and Sport.

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The Chery Tiggo Cross’ styling is very reminiscent of that of its SUV siblings, but with a slight twist. The technical director of the Chery Design Centre, Sajdin Osmancevic, drew inspiration from a tiger when penning the design.

The stripes in the rear LED lightbar resembling a tiger’s stripes are easy to see, but the front face said to look like a tiger’s roar at the corners is slightly tougher. Although the vertical LED foglight can be imagined as the big cat’s fang with it mouth wide open.

Plush interior

Standard on the Comfort is 17-inch alloy rims, folding electric mirrors, automatic LED head and fog lamps, illuminated LED rear light bar as well as chrome exhaust outlets.

The Comfort receives red brake callipers and 18-inch alloys.

Moving inside, the Chery Tiggo Cross is less feline and more finesse. Here you’d be forgiven for thinking you might have accidentally gotten into the Tiggo 7 or 8 Pro taken into account the plushness of it.
Standard features include a premium soft-touch dashboard, leather-trimmed steering wheel and black imitation leather upholstery.

An Apple CarPlay and Android Auto-ready 10.25-inch infotainment with voice assistant system features alongside a 10.12-inch digital instrument cluster. Other featured include wireless phone charger, dual-zone climate control, keyless entry, push-button start, cruise control, ambient lighting, front/rear armrests, automatic windscreen wipers, a reverse camera and remote start.

Safe as a house

In addition, the Elite features a panoramic sunroof, 360-degree camera and heated and electric front seats.

Standard safety features are six airbags, traction control, electronic stability programme, hill-assist, auto hold and front and rear parking sensors.

The Chery Tiggo Cross Elite gets an additional centre airbag and a comprehensive set of advanced driver-assistance systems.

The Citizen Motoring gave the Cross and overall nod of approval after spending time in during a pre-launch drive and on its official launch out in Muldersdrift. But we couldn’t help to feel that is just a touch undercooked.

Easy drive

The drive itself is solid and it has enough power to haul four adults in a hurry with ease. But our constant gripe with Chinese offerings and its throttle calibration remains. What also didn’t help, was the stalling-like shuddering at low speeds from the DCT.

Fuel consumption of mid-8s/100km was pretty much what we expected compared to what we have seen in other Chery products.

The suspension handled a gravel road with ease, despite a vacuum-like wind noise inside the cabin. Very much like when a window is slightly open a higher speeds. This also occurs on the tarmac, but is much less noticeable over smooth surfaces.

But we reckon these little annoyances will do little to detract potential buyers from the Chery Tiggo Cross. It will feel like a proper upgrade from a Tiggo 4 Pro, and a comfortable buy-down from a 7. And with a price tag that offers serious value for money, the top six best-selling manufacturers will look over their shoulder very nervously.

Chery Tiggo Cross pricing

Tiggo Cross 1.5 T-GDI Comfort DCT – R399 900
Tiggo Cross 1.5 T-GDI Elite DCT – R449 900

*Pricing includes five-year/60 000km service plan, five-year/150 000km warranty and first-owner 10-year/one million km engine warranty.