Chery South Africa has unveiled its long-awaited new flagship, the Chery Tiggo 8 Pro MAX with all-wheel drive.

The new model joins the growing Tiggo Pro line-up as the top of the range model and promises to welcome even more customers to this fast-growing family. The Awd model will be the third model in the lineup – Starting with T8 Pro Executive 1.6 FWD and the T8 Pro Max 2.0 FWD.

At the heart of the Chery Tiggo 8 Pro MAX AWD is the platform and specification of its two-wheel drive sibling. This means that the new flagship lacks for nothing in terms of performance, specification, or luxury fitment.

What is new, is the proprietary Chery all-wheel drive system. The system has a front-wheel drive bias during normal driving. This benefits the vehicle’s average fuel consumption and everyday driveability, while also offering a familiar driving experience to existing Tiggo 8 Pro MAX owners.

When drivers shift from everyday commuting to more spirited driving, or finds themselves in slippery and wet conditions, the all-wheel drive system comes into play.

“Our engineers have spent a considerable amount of development and testing hours with the all-wheel drive system to ensure that it is robust enough to work in the blink of an eye, but that it also offers a long operational life,” says Tony Liu, Deputy General Manager of Chery South Africa.

The result of all this development is an all-wheel drive system that can switch from two- to four-wheel drive in 100 milliseconds. This means the operation is imperceptible to the driver, while providing additional grip and stability on slippery surfaces or during high-speed dynamic driving.

During its development, Chery repeatedly pushed up to ten times the expected vehicle torque through the all-wheel drive system to ensure that its operation remains faultless and fast, regardless of the conditions or the workload.

“Chery completed another round of extreme weather testing in 2023. The results of these tests have been incorporated in the design of the all-wheel drive system. It means that whether the driver finds him/herself in snowy or desert conditions, the Tiggo 8 Pro MAX AWD will deliver,” says Liu.

The wheels are driven by Chery’s award-winning 2.0 TDGI turbo-petrol engine. The engine has been programmed to deliver 187 kW at 5 500 rpm and 390 Nm from 2 000 rpm to 4 000 rpm, while the 7DCT dual-clutch self-shifting transmission has been mapped to smoothly deliver this power to two- or four wheels as required.

As with the Tiggo 8 Pro MAX, the MAX AWD model is built on Chery’s flagship platform that uses ultra-high tensile steel in over 60% of the body construction. Add to this a complete list of Autonomous Driver Assistant Systems (ADAS) and no-less than nine airbags (10 airbags for AWD) and you have one of the safest vehicles in its class.

The ADAS systems that come standard in this flagship model include autonomous emergency braking (AEV), adaptive cruise control with radar controls, lane keep assistance (LKA), rear cross traffic alert (RTCA), traffic congestion assistance (TJA) and even a driving view recorder (DVR) as standard . the Advance ADSA feature for the AWD are as follows, DMS (Driver Monitoring System), Emergency Lane Keeping & Lane Departure Prevention & Intelligent Evasion System.

Move to luxury and the Chery is peerless. The new flagship offers quilted leather upholstery on all seven seats, the door bolsters and on the dashboard. There is ambient lighting with over 64 hues that can be matched to the music from the premium SONY sound system(10 speakers (power amplifier)), the driving style or the driver’s mood. {please mention 10 speakers (power amplifier)

Add to this a fully digital cockpit with two large 12.3” screens for a large super screen that is 24.7” long. The infotainment section of the screen has full Apple CarPlay and Android Auto (wireless contact) functionality, and it will show a full panoramic view of the vehicle thanks to the 360-degree camera (use upgraded AVM SYSTEM) array.

The flagship Tiggo 8 Pro MAX AWD has a superior air conditioning system with two independent zones and an upgraded air quality sensor (AQS) that ensures that the air is N95 certified clean. In addition, there is a Fragrance System with 3 different scents, Updated Suspension for AWD System with 6 Drive models, and an increase fuel tank (51L to 57L)

A host of other features too long to mention are included in the Tiggo 8 Pro MAX, including a super-fast wireless charger, electric memory seats for the front passengers that are both heated and cooled, multiple Type A and Type C chargers and a large panoramic sunroof.

Lastly, the Tiggo 8 Pro MAX AWD offers a true first-class experience after purchase.

As with all other Chery models, the Tiggo 8 Pro MAX AWD is sold with a comprehensive 7-year / 90 000 km service plan, a 5-year / 150 000 km warranty, a full 10-year / 1-million-kilometre engine warranty (linked to the first owner), Plus 5-year unlimited Km Roadside assistance, and Chery’s range of Value-added Services (My Chery Care). These include free roadside assistance, scratch and dent repair, rim repair, a courtesy Chery when a vehicle is booked for service and even a free take-me-home service.

The new Chery Tiggo 8 Pro MAX AWD is available immediately from Chery dealers across South Africa. It retails for R 731 900, 00.