TIGGO 8 Pro MAX:  With all-wheel drive the newcomer lacks for nothing in terms of performance or luxury fitment

By Ali Mphaki

Chery South Africa has unveiled its long-awaited new flagship, the Chery Tiggo 8 Pro MAX with all-wheel drive.

The new model joins the growing Tiggo Pro line-up as the top of the range model and promises to welcome even more customers to this fast-growing family.

With the addition of this model, the Tiggo 8 Pro range grows to three models, the Tiggo 8 Pro Executive with a turbocharged 1.6 litre petrol engine, the Tiggo 8 Pro MAX with a turbocharged 2.0 litre petrol engine and the new all wheel drive model.

At the heart of the Chery Tiggo 8 Pro MAX AWD is the platform and specification of its two-wheel drive sibling. This means that the new flagship lacks for nothing in terms of performance, specification, or luxury fitment.

What is new, is the proprietary Chery all-wheel drive system. The system has a front-wheel drive bias during normal driving. This benefits the vehicle’s average fuel consumption and everyday driveability, while also offering a familiar driving experience to existing Tiggo 8 Pro MAX owners.

When drivers shift from everyday commuting to more spirited driving, or finds themselves in slippery and wet conditions, the all-wheel drive system comes into play.

The result of all this development is an all-wheel drive system that can switch from two- to four-wheel drive in 100 milliseconds. This means the operation is imperceptible to the driver, while providing additional grip and stability on slippery surfaces or during high-speed dynamic driving.

The wheels are driven by Chery’s 2.0 TDGI turbo-petrol engine. The engine has been programmed to deliver 187 kW at 5 500 rpm and 390 Nm from 2 000 rpm to 4 000 rpm, while the 7DCT dual-clutch self-shifting transmission has been mapped to smoothly deliver this power to two- or four wheels as required.

For this model, Chery has increased the fuel tank size to 57 litres (from 51 litres on the 2WD model) to allow for greater range.

As with the Tiggo 8 Pro MAX, the MAX AWD model is built on Chery’s flagship platform that uses ultra-high tensile steel in over 60% of the body construction.

In the Tiggo 8 Pro MAX AWD the suspension has been upgraded and tuned to fit the fact that power is delivered to all four wheels and there is a unique drive mode select system to adapt the power delivery and vehicle characteristics to the environment. Add to this a complete list of Autonomous Driver Assistant Systems (ADAS) and no-less than ten airbags and you have one of the safest vehicles in its class.

Move to luxury and the new flagship offers quilted leather upholstery on all seven seats, the door bolsters and on the dashboard.

There is ambient lighting with over 64 hues that can be matched to the music from the premium SONY sound system, the driving style or the driver’s mood. On the topic of the SONY sound system, it offers 10 speakers and a power amplifier for a truly immersive audio experience.

Add to this a fully digital cockpit with two large 12.3” screens for a large super screen that is 24.7” long. The infotainment section of the screen has full wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto functionality, and it will show a full panoramic view of the vehicle thanks to the 360-degree camera array.

A host of other features too long to mention are included in the Tiggo 8 Pro MAX, including a super-fast wireless charger, electric memory seats for the front passengers that are both heated and cooled, multiple Type A and Type C chargers and a large panoramic sunroof.

Lastly, the Tiggo 8 Pro MAX AWD offers a true first-class experience after purchase.

As with all other Chery models, the Tiggo 8 Pro MAX AWD is sold with a comprehensive 7-year / 90 000 km service plan, a 5-year / 150 000 km warranty, a full 10-year / 1-million-kilometre engine warranty (linked to the first owner), 5-year unlimited distance Roadside Assistance, and Chery’s range of Value-added Services under My Chery Care. These include a range of services including scratch and dent repair, rim repair, a courtesy Chery when a vehicle is booked for service and even a free take-me-home service.

The new Chery Tiggo 8 Pro MAX AWD is available immediately from Chery dealers across South Africa. It retails for R 731 900, 00.

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Briefs

GWM BRAND RENEWAL

GWM South Africa shared its vision of its future at its Brand Renewal Conference held in Johannesburg, Gauteng, on February 27.

For dealers, customers and partners who remember the first GWM Conference when it opened its doors sixteen years ago, the sight of over 600 attendees viewing four different brands and learning of a range of new technologies, products and exciting global developments was something to behold.  At the heart of the new GWM strategy is a decision to follow the global brand direction, which sees the GWM brand taking the lead, with its brands HAVAL, ORA, P-SERIES and TANK each serving its customer base under the global GWM brand.  “Our new campaign – Go With More – perfectly captures our approach as a brand,”says Conrad Groenewald, Chief Operations Officer of GWM South Africa.

A-CLASS NOT RETIRING

The Mercedes-Benz A-Class is set to be produced well into 2026, plans to retire the fourth-generation hatchback as soon as this year having been cancelled. News of the move comes after Mercedes-Benz confirmed it was abandoning its EV-only stance in favour of what its CEO Ola Källenius describes as a more “flexible” model strategy, under which it will continue to produce ICE models based on existing platforms well into the next decade.  The firm had been preparing to make its line-up fully electric by 2030, as part of a so-called “electric first” strategy. However, Källenius has now revealed that its latest studies project PHEVs and EVs will likely make up just half of its global sales by then.

AUDI Q6 e-tron COMING SOON

We saw the new all-electric Porsche Macan EV unveiled at the beginning of the year and following closely after is the sister model from Audi – the Audi Q6 e-tron. In a post on LinkedIn, Audi says its new mid-size, electric SUV will be fully revealed on  March 18.

There’s little to be learned visually from the latest teaser image, but previous teasers, spy shots and, indeed, but the Q6 e-tron is a crucial moment for Audi as it makes use of the new PPE platform – only the second model in the VW Group to do so, after the Porsche Macan EV. While an on sale date hasn’t been announced, we expect it to launch shortly after the Porsche in the second half of 2024.

CHEAPER EVs BY 2027

Electric vehicles will be less expensive to build than internal combustion cars by 2027 thanks to new manufacturing techniques and lower battery costs, said Pedro Pacheco, vice president of research at Gartner.

Battery costs are falling, but production costs will fall faster because of innovations like “gigacasting,” in which large sections of the car are cast as a single piece, rather than using dozens of welds and bonding agents. Tesla, which Pacheco and other experts cite as the innovation leader in cutting assembly costs, has been a pioneer in gigacasting.  The rate of EV adoption has slowed in a number of key markets, including the U.S. and Europe, and experts say it will be crucial for automakers to roll out lower-cost models.

FORD RALLY TO READ

PRETORIA, SOUTH AFRICA – Ford Motor Company Fund and Ford South Africa, in collaboration with READ Educational Trust (The Rally to Read Projects), have rolled out the second Pretoria-based rally, reinforcing the company’s commitment to educational literacy. As part of the three-year project, Ford Fund provides an annual grant of R1.36-million, benefiting six schools in three different areas surrounding its Silverton Assembly Plant in Pretoria. Ford’s enduring partnership with Rally to Read, which is now in its 25th year, underscores its dedication and shared commitment to improving South Africa’s educational landscape.

“Education, for us, is not merely an expenditure, it is a meaningful and long-lasting investment in the future of South Africa and our people. Ford’s commitment offers hope, not just to learners but also to the communities in which they reside. Our journey continues, one book at a time, one child at a time,” said Esther Buthelezi, Government Affairs and Transformation Director, Ford South Africa.