Tiggo 7 PHEV hard to ignore

POWER: QUALIFIES IT AS A PERFORMANCE OFFERING

- Jaco van der Merwe

Chery made a big noise about its hybrid technology at the Shanghai Auto Show in April. After spending some quality time in two of the Chinese carmaker's new energy offerings, we understand Chery's sentiment.

Along with the Tiggo Cross self-charging hybrid, Chery last month rolled out the Tiggo 7 plug-in hybrid (PHEV) locally. Two PHEV models head the revised Tiggo 7 line-up, which has dropped the previous Pro and Pro Max monikers.

We recently had the Tiggo 7 Plus CSH, short for Chery Super Hybrid, on test.

The Plus at R619 900 slots in under the R679 900 Ultra CSH and is marked down a full R20 000 as an introductory special offer. Even better, it still includes comprehensive after-sales backing which features a 10-year/unlimited mileage battery warranty.

Apart from the price, the standout feature of the PHEV model is its power outputs. Numbers so impressive that it will qualify as a performance offering in many other stables.

The manufacturer's familiar 1.5-litre turbo petrol engine teams up with an 18.3kWh battery hooked up to a single electric motor to form the CSH setup.

Together they produce a total of 265kW of power and 530Nm of torque. This is a significant power bump from the 145kW/290Nm produced by the 1.6-litre blown mill model.