Chery has the Tiggo 9 range a nip n tuck with a cheaper front-wheel-drive Elite at $52,990 to give the SUV a touch more appeal
Big seven-seat SUVs have a nasty habit of climbing into the mid 60s before you’ve even finished flicking through the options list. This one ducks under that nonsense and keeps the flagship sheen. Chery has not built a poverty-pack special here, it has simply stopped charging family buyers for driveline theatre they probably won’t use.
The Tiggo 9 was already pitched as the posh end of Chery’s local push. Three rows, giant screens, Sony audio, powered seats, heated seats, a sunroof, and the usual electronic nanny-state in the background. The new FWD Elite keeps the bits most owners will touch every day and quietly bins the AWD tax. Sensible, as most owners will never point this thing at anything rougher than a wet Westfield ramp anyway.
That price is the story headline though. At $52,990 MSRP, the Tiggo 9 Elite FWD lands as a large plug-in hybrid SUV for the sort of money legacy brands are charging you a smaller car, no PhEV, less kit, and a lecture about badge value. It is getting harder to keep a straight face while they do this, but most motoring media still seems fairly keen to prop up the people paying their bills.
Above: Geely Starray and Which Driveline Is Best for You
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ABOVE: Chery Tiggo 9 Elite FWD and other in the range
Under the bonnet is the 1.5-litre turbo petrol engine working with front-mounted electric motors for a combined 225kW and 450Nm. Chery says the 19kWh battery gives up to 90km of EV range on NEDC, with a claimed total driving range of 1,250km from a full tank and charge. In plain English, that means school runs, shopping, and a decent weekend away without turning every drive into a a charger hunt or petrol station line-up..
The standard equipment list is stout bit of goods. Acoustic front glass, a 10.25-inch driver display, a 15.6-inch infotainment screen, wired and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, in-built navigation, 50W wireless charging, voice control, puddle lights, a powered tailgate, and 19-inch alloys all make the cut. Chery has kept the grown-up bits where buyers can see them.
Rather cleverly, this sounds like a real car, not a fake entry point dealers use to lure punters into a dearer model once you’ve sat down for the complimentary tea and biscuit. Buyers shopping this end of the market want space, ease, and tasty toys to stop the cabin feeling like a povo waiting room. On paper at least, the Elite FWD gets us over the line.
There is a broader point here too, and it is one we have been making for a while. Chinese brands are getting far too comfy in the large SUV space, while the old guard still behaves as though badge loyalty and a lounge coffee will carry the day, but they won’t. Buyers have mortgages, grocery bills, and only so much patience for inflated pricing dressed up as premium positioning.
Like the taxi industry who got kicked in the cobblers by Uber, bars who closed when those looking for love starting doing it on-line, the car industry has been growing stretch marks. Not only are those tired old tropes no longer cutting the mustard, but the end of the market most price sensitive showed the way. Make no mistake, the luxury brands are next. Will Jaguar ever come back? I doubt it.
Brands like VW, Mitsubishi and Honda are already in strife. Stellantis has a huge stable of brands but if its ranks get any thinner it will need force feeding.
The Tiggo 9 Elite FWD reaches Australian showrooms from the start of May. If it drives with the same calm confidence Chery is projecting on paper, this cheaper model may end up being the one you’d buy even if you could afford the dearer one. Me? I’d always go the AWD thanks.
What You Get
- Elite FWD from $52,990 MSRP
- 225kW and 450Nm from Chery Super Hybrid drivetrain
- 19kWh battery with up to 90km EV range on NEDC
- Claimed total driving range of 1,250km
- Three-row seven-seat layout
- 15.6-inch infotainment screen and 10.25-inch driver display
- Wired and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto
- Sony audio, panoramic sunroof, power tailgate, and 360 camera
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Alan Zurvas is the founder and editor of Gay Car Boys, Australia's leading LGBTQI+ automotive publication. Before launching GCB in 2008, Alan's automotive writing was published in SameSame.com.au and the Star Observer. With over 16 years of hands-on car reviewing experience, Alan brings an honest, irreverent voice to every review — championing value and innovation over brand loyalty.
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