The 7 seater family SUV is a great value

Thursday 01 January 2026 06:18
| Updated:

Monday 22 December 2025 18:51

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Chery is the biggest car company you’ve never heard of. The company has been China’s largest automotive exporter for the past 22 years, selling vehicles in countries as far-flung as Australia, Brazil, Malaysia, Israel and Turkey. Now, Chery has finally planted its flag on British soil – and its progress so far suggests that its numbers won’t last long in the UK.

Progress, you say? Yep, the Chery Tiggo 7 and Tiggo 8 won’t go on sale until September 2025, but by November – according to official SMMT figures – the pair of SUVs already controlled 0.9 percent of the UK car market. And Chery’s new arrival pushes the brand up into premium territory, albeit with a price that still beats its rivals by at least £10,000.

Meet the Chery Tiggo 9 CSH: a seven-seater SUV on par with the Peugeot 5008, Skoda Kodiaq, Kia Sorento, Vauxhall Frontera, Hyundai Santa Fe and Volkswagen Tayron. While others have multi-model ranges and extensive option lists, Chery keeps it simple; there’s one plug-in hybrid powertrain and one fully loaded ‘Summit’ spec. The price is £43,105, or £499 per month for PCP finance.

SUV for the suburbs

Chery may be new to the UK, but it is already present here under the Omoda and Jaecoo banners. If you’ve just left the house, you’ve likely seen the Jaecoo 7: a mid-size SUV that looks like an AI rendering of the Range Rover Evoque. Suddenly, these cars were everywhere.

So what differentiates these three brands from each other? According to Farrell Hsu, Chery Country Director in the UK, the most important thing is attitude. “Omoda is Shoreditch, urban and fashionable,” he explains. “Jaecoo is more like Wimbledon: upscale, stylish and lifestyle-oriented. And Chery embodies suburban living: a smart choice that will bring happiness to everyone.”

Whatever the marketing theory, the scale of Chery’s ambitions is beyond doubt (Hsu compares it to the Volkswagen Group). The company has 35 dealers in the UK at the time of writing, and plans to have 100 dealers by the end of 2026. Notable dealer groups that have signed up so far include Sytner, Arnold Clark, Hendy and Evans Halshaw.

Invisible touch

The Tiggo 9 CSH (short for ‘Chery Super Hybrid’) isn’t unattractive, but it’s also hardly a style statement. Like most family SUVs, it seems to blend into the background.

Standout design details include a large Audi-style front grille, a larger window line and a wide rear light bar. The rims are made of 20 inch alloy with the words ‘LUXURY TECHNOLOGY’ emblazoned on the center cap.

The Tiggo 9 measures 4,810mm long and 2,223mm wide, which isn’t much different from a Land Rover Defender 110. However, it has seven seats inside, not to mention a 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol engine and three electric motors, as well as a hefty 34.4kWh battery under the floor.

Won’t get any more fuel

The drivetrain’s combined output is 428hp and 428lb-ft of torque – enough to propel the 2.2 tonne SUV from 0-100km/h in 5.4 seconds and on to a top speed of 112mph. However, as we will find out, Chery prefers to take it easy.

More importantly, it can travel 91 miles in EV mode before the petrol engine joins the party. If you can recharge the battery at home, it may be enough to cover your daily commute without having to go near a gas station. Unlike some plug-in hybrids, the Chery battery can also be charged quickly using DC current of up to 71kW. Doing so means a 30-80 percent recharge in 18 minutes.

Combine a full battery with a full fuel tank and the Tiggo 9 will travel 650 miles (almost the distance from London to Berlin) before having to stop. That’s assuming your bladder doesn’t need to be stopped first.

The electric-only mileage also results in official fuel economy and CO2 emissions of 470.8mpg and 14g/km respectively. Achieving those figures will be a challenge (plug-in hybrids can drive most of the relatively short WLTP test cycle in EV mode), but the low CO2 figures are a real money-saver in terms of tax – especially for company car drivers.

Kitchen sink not included

Inside, the Tiggo 9’s wood grain effect trim and ‘eco leather’ upholstery look luxurious enough to justify the asking price. However, the full-spec Summit comes standard, meaning the only choice is paint color. free Arctic White Mist; all other colors will cost between £500 and £750.

Kit list includes (deep breath) heated and ventilated front and second row seats, massage function for the front seats, 1.3 meter panoramic sunroof, 540 degree parking camera, heated steering wheel, cooled wireless phone charging pad, ‘Hello Chery’ voice control, air purification system, multi-colour ambient lighting and electric rear door. The powerful 14-speaker Sony audio system is also something Chery is proud of.

On the safety side, you get 10 airbags and no less than 19 driver assistance systems, ranging from adaptive cruise control to automatic headlights. The Tiggo 9 CSH had not yet been crash tested by Euro NCAP at the time of writing, but its smaller siblings, the Tiggo 7 and 8, both achieved a full five stars.

Like most modern cars, the Chery has a minimalist dashboard, with most functions accessed via a 15.6-inch central touchscreen. There’s also a smaller screen in front of the driver, plus a head-up display projected onto the windshield.

Inside Chery Tiggo 9 CSH

The Tiggo 9’s 2+3+2 layout offers enough space for seven adults at once, and kids can definitely get comfortable in seats six and seven (before doing an inexplicable dance at mentioning those two numbers at the same time). If you’re transporting a team of five teenagers, the middle seat can slide forward electrically to increase the limited legroom for those sitting in the back. Headroom abounds for all.

Passengers also get their own air conditioning controls, plenty of storage space and a full complement of USB charging ports. You’ll find Isofix anchors for child car seats on the outer seats in the second row.

Seventh, the Chery’s trunk can only accommodate 143 liters of luggage, although that is fairly typical for this type of car. Drop down seats six and seven (clumsily dancing) and the volume swells to a much more usable 819 litres. And folding all five rear seats flat expands space to a van-like 2,021 liters.

However, the Tiggo 9 falls short when it comes to towing capacity – its 1,500kg limit is better than most diesel-powered SUVs. Caravanners may need to shop elsewhere.

Not a Chery bomb

Click the column slider to D-for-Drive and the Tiggo 9 launches into electric silence. Even when the engine is running, the sound remains quiet, providing a quiet driving experience like an electric car.

The throttle is responsive and there’s plenty of power when you need it – more than necessary, in fact – but the abundance of electric torque means you don’t have to work the engine too hard. Chery’s relaxed attitude doesn’t encourage that either.

The throttle is certainly better calibrated than the Jaecoo 7, but the brake pedal – which also regenerates energy to replenish the battery – feels noticeably heavy at low speeds. The Chery’s over-assisted steering also feels like spinning the wheel in an arcade racing game; it responds faithfully, but fails to convey any meaningful feedback about what the front wheels are doing.

Benefits of Eurovision

Will most buyers be bothered? Perhaps not. Plus, once you trust its quiet steering, the Tiggo 9 will perform quite well. Chery said cars marketed in the UK had been optimized by its research and development center in Europe, and the efforts appeared to be paying dividends. There’s ample grip and the coil spring suspension keeps the body from drooping too much.

Ride quality is good, the Tiggo 9 filters out most of the pockmarks and potholes that blight British roads. It’s a bit busier and less isolated than equivalent SUVs on air suspension, although those features are typically found at higher price points.

Inevitably, some driver assistance technology can be annoying, especially driver-facing cameras that keep you from seeing the touchscreen. However, there are ways to disable it – including a slide-down menu from the home screen – and Chery is no worse than some of its competitors in this regard.

Verdict: Chery Tiggo 9 CSH

This is one of the best Chinese cars we’ve ever driven. And if that sounds like a backhanded compliment, it’s not meant that way. While better-known alternatives like the Hyundai Santa Fe and Skoda Kodiaq feel better overall, the gap is narrowing.

Most of the other cars you might be considering are also much more expensive. The Tiggo 9 CSH isn’t perfect, but consider the asking price, equipment level, and long warranty, and any shortcomings will be easier to overlook.

At a time when new car prices are far outstripping inflation, it’s no surprise that companies like Jaecoo, BYD and others are making noise. So, you’ve heard of Chery by now. Get ready to hear more.

Tim Pitt writes for Automotive Research

Chery Tiggo 9 CSH

PRICE: £43,105

STRENGTH: 428 hp

0-62MPH: 5.4 seconds

HIGHEST SPEED: 112mph

FUEL ECONOMY: 470.8mpg

CO2 EMISSIONS: 14g/km