First look at the 250 PS Chery Tiggo 8 Pro, 7-seater flagship SUV with 2.0L turbo

This is the Chery Tiggo 8 Pro, the flagship SUV in Chery Malaysia’s line-up. It is a 7-seater SUV that has its sights set on rival SUVs like the Hyundai Santa Fe, Mazda CX-8 and Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace. The Chery Tiggo 8 Pro will also go head-to-head against the soon-to-be launched Proton X90.

At the moment, the only right-hand drive (RHD) market to sell the Chery Tiggo 8 Pro is South Africa and said model is priced between ZAR 496,900 (~RM 129k) to ZAR 574,900 (~RM 149k), comfortably undercutting rivals like the Tiguan Allspace (ZAR 619,900 or ~RM 160k to ZAR 756,100 or ~RM 196k) and Hyundai Santa Fe (ZAR 839,900 or ~RM 218k to ZAR 945,900 or ~RM 245k).

Like its Tiggo 4 Pro and Tiggo 7 Pro siblings in  South Africa, the flagship Tiggo 8 Pro is imported (CBU), just like the Tiguan Allspace and Santa Fe.

Also Read: 10-year/1 million km warranty for 2022 Chery Tiggo 8 Pro, launched in South Africa

Although prices of the Chery Tiggo 8 Pro are able to undercut its core rivals in South Africa, it may not be applicable here in Malaysia as local assembly (CKD) plans for Chery is still unclear. As such, it is doubtful if the Tiggo 8 Pro can match the CX-8, Santa Fe, and Tiguan Allspace’ price in Malaysia.

Similar to the earlier mentioned Chery models, the Tiggo 8 Pro was part of a preview event held by Chery Malaysia, the new entity responsible for the brand’s revival here.

Here’s a quick run-down on Chery’s flagship SUV.

Also Read: Chery Tiggo 7 Pro and Tiggo 8 Pro confirmed for Malaysia, challenger to the X70 and X90

Being Chery’s flagship SUV, being stately is its theme, with tasteful amount of chrome applied to its exterior. There’s a rounded-off octagonal front grille, flanked by a pair of LED headlights.

Towards the rear, there’s a pair of smoked LED tail lights and Chery’s name emblazoned across the tailgate. Being the flagship model, the Tiggo 8 Pro is the only model to feature proper exhaust tips; the rest of the line-up get faux exhaust tips.

Also Read: Malaysia-bound Chery unveils new powertrains: HEV, PHEV, and EV to launch by 2024

The opulence continues inside – while the dashboard design is largely similar to the lower rung Tiggo 7 Pro, its seats are the main highlight here, being plushiest and comfiest of its line-up.

Also Read: First look at the Chery Tiggo 7 Pro, an X70 rival with a more premium interior

The easiest way to differentiate the Tiggo 7 Pro and the Tiggo 8 Pro, apart from the brown leather upholstery, is its climate control display. While both SUVs offer a digital climate control, the one on the Tiggo 7 Pro is a monochrome display, while the Tiggo 8 Pro offers a full colour display. Fancy? No doubt.

Also Read: 10-year warranty for Indonesia's Chery Tiggo 7 Pro and Tiggo 8 Pro, bookings now opened

The Chery Tiggo 8 Pro’s flagship positioning is further cemented by its powertrain. Unlike the 1.5-litre turbo and CVT-type auto transmission that powers the Tiggo 4 Pro and Tiggo 7 Pro, the larger Tiggo 8 Pro gets a turbocharged 2.0-litre unit mated to a 7-speed DCT.

Also Read: First look at the Chery Tiggo 4 Pro, a value-added B-segment SUV aimed at the HR-V, sub-RM 100k possible?

Power output is 250 PS and 390 Nm, with power routed either to the front wheels or all 4 wheels (AWD). This output figures put the Tiggo 8 Pro on par with the Mazda CX-8 (230 PS, 420 Nm) and VW Tiguan Allspace R-Line (220 PS, 350 Nm).

Also Read: Chery assures Malaysians about aftersales; to offer extensive sales and service network

Behind the wheel, it certainly behaves like a flagship model. Acceleration, be it from standstill or in-gear acceleration, is brisk and linear. There’s no hesitation when the need arises, making the Tiggo 8 Pro the most effortless of its trio to putter around.

That said, despite being Chery’s top-of-the-line model, based on out brief 10-minute drive with the SUV, we noticed that the Proton X70 may have a slight edge in terms of ride comfort and NVH levels. It’s not to say that the Tiggo 8 Pro is uncomfortable or noisy by any means, but the Proton does feel like it has a slight edge.

Also, we noticed that the rear-view mirror is of the wide angle type, which creates a nausea-inducing fish-eye effect.

Another feature worth mentioning is the Tiggo 8 Pro’s infotainment system. Like the Tiggo 7 Pro, the larger Tiggo 8 Pro features a 10.25-inch free-standing infotainment display with support for Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. Setting it apart from its siblings is the inclusion of a Sony 8-speaker sound system, which offers pretty decent audio quality.

Granted, more seat time is needed to properly assess the Tiggo 8 Pro, and that will be arranged upon the launch of the Tiggo 8 Pro in Malaysia.

Also Read: Malaysia-bound Chery Tiggo 7 Pro, Tiggo 8 Pro now CKD in Indonesia; launching there in Oct