As the new flagship model of the Tiggo family, Chery Tiggo 8 was born in the T1X platform, which is fully developed with Jaguar Land Rover technology. It is equipped with an intelligent vehicle system based on the “Chery Lion” technology platform. It is the latest flagship model of the Chery brand. The price of Chery Tiggo 8 ranges from 88,800 yuan to 159,900 yuan (~US$12,897 – US$23,223) in China.
Appearance Design: a matter of preference
The new generation Tiggo 8 was designed by Chery’s international design team led by former BMW car designer Kevin Rice. The shape of the Tiggo 8 is officially known as “Tiger” face. The so-called tiger-face refers to a squatted tiger. As for this “tiger” face, it is a matter of opinion.
The far and near light of the mid-high trim level models are equipped with LED light source, and it is matrix headlight with automatic headlight function. The high trim level model also has an adaptive high beam, while the base model is a halogen light source.
The overall size is 4700x1860x1746 mm and the wheelbase is 2710 mm. From the visual point of view, the car’s is not small.
The storage capacity of the trunk is quite good, it is more than enough for a family to travel long distances. In addition, there is reserved space near the rear D-pillar, the 6-seat or 7-seat versions are available.
The spare tire is placed on the bottom of the car, there is considerable cargo space under the 5-seat trunk floor.
Interior design: “Learnt” a lot
The interior design is fine, it looks like a “luxury car”, many soft materials are used.
The mid or high trim level models are featured with leather steering wheel, while base model is plastic. The steering wheel of base model can only be adjusted up and down, and it does not support multi-function buttons, the other models support four-way adjustment and multi-function buttons.
The size of the LCD instrument is different depending on trim level. Our test model comes with a 7-inch LCD instrument panel, while the two top trim level models are equipped with a 12.3-inch LCD meter.
The center console is equipped with a 10.25-inch floating LCD screen, which is quite similar to BMW.
The infotainment system is based on the Android platform and supports CarPlay and CarLife functions. It also supports 360-degree panoramic image. (China Spec)
There is a set of the physical button for multimedia at the bottom of the central screen, which is quite similar to Mercedes-Benz.
Next is the air conditioning control panel. Is this design a bit familiar and looks like Land Rover Velar? However, the Velar is a color touch LCD screen, Tiggo 8 is a single touch plus a small monochrome LCD screen.
Isn’t this the electronic gear the one on the Lynk & Co and Volvo XC40? Not only the shape, but the shifting logic is almost exactly the same, the forward and reverse switching is also to be pushed twice, but the position of P gear and the manual mode are not the same.
It is the vehicle travel mode switch button behind the gear lever. These buttons can only be pushed backwards and cannot be forwarded. The panel is made of high-gloss material, which looks like quite high grade, but it easily becomes a fingerprint collector.
Seat & Room: Superior in Chinese brand
All models are leather-wrapped seats except the base model, the overall softness and comfort are quite good. This comfortable level seat is really rare in the Chinese independent brands.
Although the wheelbase is only 2710 mm, the room in the back row is not bad. Both the legs and the head room are abundant.
The comfort of the rear seats is equivalent to that of the front row. It supports multi-angle adjustment and 40/60 split folding, trunk floor will be flat after folded down .
Summary: Really fine, but also a lot of imitation.
This Tiggo 8 is very comfortable, and interior materials are quite good, it can be seen that Chery made their best to develop this car. It is no wonder that many fans strongly urge us to take a test of this car. From the static view, there is indeed a superior car.
However, like some other Chinese independent car brands, Tiggo 8 still has many traces of imitation and reference. The dashboard interface, the floating central control panel, the air conditioning control panel and the electronic shift lever, all seem familiar. Of course, it is not completely negated of “learning”, anyway it is still a test whether consumers are willing to buy.
How is the driving quality of the all-new Chery Tiggo 8? How is the feeling of the dual clutch gearbox? Please continue to pay attention to the subsequent test drive and car teardown content.
Note: The test vehicle is the 2019 Model Year Chery Tiggo 8 China Spec.
