It’s tempting to think of the Chery Tiggo 8 7-seater as simply a version of the Tiggo 7 with an extra row of chairs. In some respects that’s fair: same basic platform, identical “Super Hybrid” plug-in powertrain and very similar exterior styling.
Click here to read our full review of the Chery Tiggo 7
In other respects, the Tiggo 8 is surprisingly different. It’s a lot larger, longer by 189mm and with an extra 41mm in the wheelbase. The exterior is different for obvious reasons (note the flush doorhandles), but for not-so-obvious reasons, so is the interior. The dashboard moves from a “widescreen” layout to two separate displays, the infotainment unit upsizing dramatically from 12.3 to 15.6 inches. The conventional gearlever is gone, replaced by a steering column-mounted “wand”, which means the indicators move to the left. And so on.
There’s only one Tiggo 8 offered in New Zealand, the top-specification Ultimate, but the relationship between 8 and 7 is further complicated when you learn that the non-hybrid versions of the 8 sold in Australia have exactly the same interior as the 7. There are seemingly several things going on at a product/design level and it probably all makes sense… to somebody.
Let’s just focus on what we know. We’ve already been impressed by the value-for-money offered by the Tiggo 7, more so the Urban than the more lavish Ultimate.
The Tiggo 8 Ultimate represents a whole lot more SUV again for a very reasonable $5000 premium over the 7 Ultimate; not just the extra space/seats, but also the clear upgrade in cabin quality, with less shiny stuff and a lot of Alcantara-like trim. Even the seats sport a posh, tactile quilted pattern.
It’s tempting to think of the Chery Tiggo 8 as simply a version of the 7 with an extra row of chairs. In some respects that’s fair, but not all.
The interior tweaks are obviously designed to make the 8 feel more techy. It mostly all works, but there are a few things that seem like change for the sake of it, arguably for the worse. No physical mirror controls for example, so if you want to adjust them for parking you do that in the infotainment screen; to be fair, there’s a swipe-down menu for this and other functions. But it seems more complex than it need be, and there’s no setting to auto-dip them when you select reverse.
The sense of visual discombobulation is intensified by the very strange wide-angle interior rearvision mirror, which gives a good view of the rear occupants but makes the back window seem about 6km away. Luckily, the Tiggo 8 has a clever 360-degree camera system as well.
You might not just buy the 8 because you want 7 seats. It also looks tempting as a 5-seat SUV with a big boot.
That big infotainment screen gives 100% of its real estate to phone projection, which means no visible shortcuts for climate control. You can swipe up for that, though. Guess you get used to it all, but given the car requires you look away so much for simple functions, it’d be nice if it didn’t tell you off for being distracted while you’re doing it.
The 8’s instrument panel still has tiny graphics like the 7, but the white-on-blue of the cruise-control figure is much more legible than the searing green of its sister model. Again, odd that they’re so different.
If you want a true 7-seater, Chery has something else on the way: the Tiggo 9, which is even larger and promises a truly spacious third row.
You might not just buy the 8 because you want 7 seats. It also looks tempting as a 5-seat SUV with a big boot. Chery is curiously shy about quoting an official cargo volume figure for the Tiggo 8, but no need to be: it’s a big upgrade over the Tiggo 7, which is in itself pretty good.
However, that rear row. The Tiggo 8 is a spacious 5-seater with some occasional extra chairs in the back; you can fit adults in there, but it wouldn’t be for the long haul. That’s typical of most vehicles in this segment.
If you want a true 7-seater, Chery has something else on the way: the Tiggo 9, which is even larger and promises a truly spacious third row. It’s another level up again of course: triple-motor AWD, 315kW and $66,990.
Access to the third row is a little compromised in the Tiggo 8. The second row is split 60/40, left-to-right. The larger left-side portion folds and slides, so you can indeed clamber over it. It’s the smaller right-side that’s really set up for access, because the squab “kneels” as you drop the backrest, creating more room to get through; but it’s on the wrong (traffic) side for right-hand drive markets.
Our Tiggo 8 test vehicle followed straight on from the Tiggo 7. Based on our experience of those two vehicles, the 8 is indeed a better drive.
You probably don’t need us to go over the Super Hybrid tech again. The powertrain is exactly the same between the two models: big 80-90km EV range, mostly electric drive to the front wheels, with the petrol engine on duty mainly to make electricity.
The 8 still has some of the same dynamic afflictions as the 7: rattly steering in bumpy corners, understeer and a lack of traction under power.
But it’s also a much smoother, better-riding machine with more composure in the corners. That’s partly down to the improved stability from the 8’s longer wheelbase, but also a better set of Continental tyres.
We left the Tiggo 7 highly impressed by the hybrid technology and value-for-money. The same is true of the Tiggo 8, but it’s noticeably more premium-feeling inside and smoother on the road. There are some serious practicality niggles, but if the extra $5k is in the budget, the Tiggo 8 is a noticeable step up from the 7 - and worth a look even if you don’t need the extra seats.
