New Player in Town. The Chery Tiggo 7 Pro previewed in Malaysia!

March 27, 2024 benautobahn Off Chery,

Chery Malaysia is on full offensive recently, launching multiple models just within the past year, with the most recent one being the Omoda E5 EV just last month. And before they could take a breather, just a few days ago Chery organized a preview of the Tiggo 7 Pro to enter the highly competitive SUV/crossover market currently dominated by the Proton X70, in locally assembled guise no less.

Chery called this a preview, as the car shown in these live photos was a pre-production CBU unit which may not be representative of our locally assembled variant. Nevertheless, Chery Malaysia confirmed the general specs and an indicative price of below RM130k for the sole variant. So let’s get into the juicy details.

This C-Segment SUV is positioned above Chery’s own Omoda 5 and just under the 3-row Tiggo 8 Pro. Part of the Tiggo family lineup which includes the smaller Tiggo 4 and flagship Tiggo 8 Pro, the Tiggo 7 Pro features more traditional SUV proportions as compared to the futuristic and sleeker Omoda 5. Besides the huge blinged-up front grille taken from the larger Tiggo 8 Pro, the exterior design is largely inoffensive, not head turning but a touch more modern than the aging Proton X70 which is overdue for a facelift.

Overall the design can be seen as premium, even the hood/bonnet is supported hydraulically while the engine bay is all covered up to hide anything unsightly. Some details do betray its premium look however, such as the decision to use old school bulbs for the rear indicators when the cheaper Omoda 5 has rear sequential indicators (to be fair Proton X70 also uses bulbs).

The red brake calipers on all four wheels also look out of place on this family oriented vehicle. We are also not sure about the blue highlights on the lower front bumpers and in the rear spoiler. Maybe those will work better with other exterior paint colors which are red, black, blue, and white. Every paint option will come with a black roof.

Under the engine bay cover houses a 1.6 turbocharged engine making nearly 200hp and 290Nm of torque, paired to a 7-speed DCT providing motion to the front wheels. 0-100kph can be done in 9.5 seconds until it achieves a top speed of 205kph. Acceleration figures are also practically identical to the Proton X70 despite having more power on paper, but the Chery’s higher torque might be more noticeable in everyday driving.

Step inside the Tiggo 7 Pro driver’s seat and you won’t be wrong in thinking you’ve entered the Tiggo 8 Pro. Compare both dash side by side and most will struggle to see the difference, which is not necessarily a bad thing. At first glance, perceived quality is good and first impressions are generally positive.

The front seats are comfortable and even ventilated, but Chery curiously went with the sporty bucket design with fixed headrest instead of the more traditional and plushier ones found on the Tiggo 8 Pro. BYD also went with a similar direction with their front seats but at least they were consistent and used it across their current lineup.

The dual front screens are also taken directly from the Tiggo 8 Pro. Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are included which is a huge advantage over the Proton. We did find the touchscreen not as responsive as we’d like in the preview car, so hopefully the final locally assembled production car would be improved. Elsewhere you’ll find a 50W wireless phone charger with cooling, and a Sony branded 8-speaker sound system, plus 64 different ambient light colors to choose from.

Chery generously included a full panoramic glass roof which is uncommon in this segment. Thankfully, rear headroom remains adequate despite the roof which also can be opened. Rear legroom is also plenty, with center rear air vents plus one USB-A port. All the seats are wrapped in black leatherette upholstery. Again, the final locally assembled production car may differ from the photos you see here. Even so, there’s little to complain about the interior without nitpicking.

Finally, safety is also not sacrificed as it comes with the full suite of active safety system and even scored a full 5 stars ANCAP rating. While the final price is yet to be revealed, Chery Malaysia has opened the order books for the Tiggo 7 Pro with showroom units available for viewing nationwide starting April 2024, and customer deliveries happening as soon as the end of May.

I know we mentioned the Proton X70 multiple times here, but as we wait for the Tiggo 7 Pro price reveal, another Chinese brand potentially worth looking into would be the incoming GAC Emkoo, which is also within the same segment and going to be locally assembled as well later this year. Towards the end of the year, Malaysians will be spoilt for choice when it comes to car shopping within this segment, which can only be a good thing.

What do you think?