It’s indeed hard work. The Chery Tiggo 7 Pro Max isn’t just any new model in the manufacturer’s product portfolio, but a representative of a whole new era for the thriving Chinese brand. The story of the Chery brand in South Africa should be familiar by now and its subject at hand has recently been to the surgeon’s room for a subtle nip and tuck thus catching up to the winning formula of its stablemates.
To truly appreciate the transformation of the Chery Tiggo 7 Pro Max, one must embark on a road trip. For the festive break, I set our sights on Bushbuckridge, Mpumalanga, a destination approximately 400km+ from our residence. On a Thursday morning, I embarked on our journey, leaving the Gauteng province behind.
With a full tank of fuel costing approximately R1,280 to fill the 51-litre tank and eager to devour the miles ahead, I had Alzu Petro Port in our sights as a breakfast stopover.
With the Waze application projected onto the crystal-clear 24.6-inch curved hyperboloid immersive screen, I was in the know of any police roadblocks and ongoing roadworks. This advanced technology ensured our journey was as smooth and efficient as possible.
While not particularly scenic at first, this road trip offers an adventurous journey that begins on the R25 towards Bronkhorstspruit and continues onto the N4 towards Emalahleni. Despite the lack of picturesque views, this stretch of route provides an invaluable opportunity to experience the vehicle’s capabilities firsthand.
After a brief stopover at the Alzu Petro Port, I pointed the nose of the Chery Tiggo 7 Pro Max towards Nelspruit. Laden with luggage and brimming with the chatter of five passengers, the 1.6-litre turbocharged 4-cylinder engine displayed the need to get up and go with strong pulling power in all seven gears to make highway cruising aplomb.
It’s worth mentioning that the transmission isn’t the most developed in its class as it would hold on to gears for longer than it should. Also, the accelerator pedal is very sensitive and I would struggle to usually find just the right amount of pressure to apply on it especially when pulling off from a stop - something I experienced in the Tiggo 4 Pro and Tiggo 8 Pro models.
On the road, the ride quality remains in check with impressive levels of cabin damping. Despite offering six driving modes; Eco, Normal, Sport, Snow, Muddy, and Off-road, the vehicle’s performance may not fully align with the sporty or off-road capabilities suggested by these modes.
About 20km from Nelspruit, I encountered a roadblock as anticipated, thanks to the infamous Waze navigation system. The ADAS systems seamlessly took over during the slow-paced driving necessitated by the roadblock. However, I observed that the system could be somewhat intrusive at highway cruising speeds. Specifically, the adaptive cruise control tended to brake abruptly and took an extended period to regain speed once the vehicle in front had moved out of the way.
These observations highlight areas for potential refinement in the system’s responsiveness and smoothness of operation.
Upon reaching Bushbuckridge, perfectly timed for the festive celebrations, I observed an inconsistency with the fuel gauge. Despite having travelled over 400km, the gauge still indicated a full tank. This discrepancy is a matter of significant concern, warranting further investigation to ensure the vehicle’s accurate representation of fuel consumption.
Adding to the list of concerns, the sunroof exhibited a minor issue. When opened, it produced a slight cluttering noise while driving over bumps and during a 2km off-road stretch from my parent’s house. Could this be a glitch? No idea but Chery has acknowledged this issue and assured us that they will conduct an inspection and undertake necessary repairs.
Although the Tiggo 7 Pro Max is not primarily designed as an off-road SUV, it demonstrated remarkable ease and efficiency during its venture off the conventional 2km paths from my parent’s house. This can be attributed to the AWD system, which operates tirelessly to maintain optimal traction to ensure a smooth and reliable off-road experience.
If there’s one thing that Chery always gets right and worth appreciating in their Tiggo products is the standard technology systems that lurk in their cars and the Tiggo 7 Pro Max as the pinnacle of their lineup, is no exception to this trend.
It comes fitted with the likes of an 8-speaker Sony sound system, a sliding panoramic roof, an e-shifter, adaptive cruise control, dual-zone automatic climate control, a 50-watt wireless charging pad, and Intelligent Voice Commands, all as standard to make road trips so much fun. While the vehicle’s features generally enhance the driving experience, I did observe some areas for improvement. Specifically, the voice command system occasionally seemed to intrude on private conversations with passengers, which could be perceived as intrusive.
Also, the sensitivity of the driver monitoring system appeared to be set quite high. It frequently issued alerts, even during routine actions such as checking the rearview mirror, under the assumption that the driver was distracted.
A temporary solution to the system’s sensitivity was found by manually disabling it through the vehicle’s menu options. However, this solution proved to be short-lived as the system would reactivate each time the vehicle was restarted.
Glitches aside, the Tiggo 7 Pro Max makes a strong case for itself in the segment where the likes of the Haval Jolion and Toyota Corolla Cross, amongst others, live.
In consideration of its pricing and features, the Tiggo 7 Pro Max’s limitations can be viewed in a more forgiving light. Priced at R609,900, the vehicle offers a comprehensive list of standard equipment, providing substantial value for its cost as well as all the ingredients of a luxuriously appointed and comfortable family car.
It’s this cost-effectiveness, coupled with a robust feature set, that enhances the appeal of Chinese vehicles for prospective buyers.
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