OVERSEAS and local road tests, crash tests posted on YouTube and general public opinion of “made in China” products have generally not painted a pretty picture of Chinese cars. Google the crash tests and you’ll find posted comments such as “fails miserably”, “flunks test”, or “not so good”. So the arrival of a Chinese vehicle in our garage is often met with a bit of apprehension and the Chery Tiggo 1,6 TX was no exception.
Purely from an exterior finish point of view, there is no indication of the iffy build quality and cheapness that we have come to expect from Chinese vehicles. Borrowing a few styling cues from SUVs already available, the Tiggo has a modern and fairly sophisticated look with its large headlamps and a split grille with the Chery badge mounted prominently in the centre. The side-opening tailgate, upon which the spare is mounted, screams previousgeneration Toyota RAV4, but this is not necessarily a bad thing because funky looks contributed to the Japanese model’s sales success. Adding to the surprisingly classy Tiggo package are colour-coded bumpers, door handles and side mirrors, while standard foglamps and proper roof racks that adjust to suit your load – something seldom seen on more upmarket and expensive vehicles – are just two of the many features that that give the Tiggo an advantage over competitors in its segment.
The 235/60 R16 Kumho tyres give the Tiggo reasonable ride and grip, but this is more of a soft-roader than a serious offroader. Even with its good ground clearance of 205 mm and approach and departure angles of 33 and 27 degrees respectively, the Tiggo is a doubtful off-road contender, thanks in part to the vulnerable looking exhaust outlet.
Adorned with lots of hard plastics and cloth, the cabin feels and looks rather rudimentary, but the first impression it gave most testers was that it was well put together and that it could possibly be one of the best we’ve seen from China. In TX guise, this vehicle is highly specced, has a lot of space, and feels quite airy.
A generous range of adjustment is available on the driver’s seat, and even though the steering wheel is only rake and not reach adjustable, it’s easy to find a comfortable driving position. Rear passengers benefit from reclining backrests. There are storage compartments throughout the cabin and an MP3-compatible audio system with an auxiliary input will appeal to younger buyers.
Making up the high standard spec levels are convenient autolocking doors, park distance sensors, headlamp levelling, electric windows all round, airconditioning, power steering, electric mirrors, and a single drinkholder.
The Tiggo is 4 285 mm long, 1 765 mm wide, and 1 705 mm high and considering that it weighs 1 352 kg, it’s no surprise that the 80 kW 1,6-litre four-cylinder, fuel injected petrol engine struggles to accelerate the vehicle with any briskness. The power delivery is really fl at and made a lot of the testers apprehensive about overtaking. Equipped with a fi ve-speed manual gearbox, the test vehicle managed a zero to 100 km/h sprint time of 15,98 seconds. Top speed is 176 km/h.
Humps, bumps and uneven surfaces were admirably absorbed thanks to the MacPherson struts up front and trailing arms with coil springs set-up at the rear. Handling was satisfactory, with some testers commenting that, while the slight body roll under brisk cornering was expected, the Tiggo felt composed at cruising speeds. Wind and engine noise becomes a bit intrusive at high speeds, and some noises come from the cabin trim, which suggested that some panels may have been loose or improperly fi tted. There was also a lingering chemical odour (adhesive liquid?) that gave a few testers a headache.
On the safety front, Chery claims that it has applied a philosophy of “safety for everyone” by equipping this vehicle with dual SRS front airbags, an energy- absorbing steering column and side impact door beams for all four doors. The ABS with EBD brake system recorded an average stopping time of 3,61 seconds in our ten-stop 100 km/hto- standstill test, which is just short of an “average” rating for SUVs, according to CAR’s subjective scale.
The 8,4 litres/100 km fuel index gives the Chery an impressive range of 679 km from a 57-litre tankful. With the rear seat backrest fully in place, this SUV is capable of swallowing 320 dm³ of luggage which increases to 440 with the seats’ backrests angled and a full 1 214 dm³ of utility space when they are folded down. A 3 years/100 000 km warranty is standard on all Chery Tiggo models.
TEST SUMMARY
Even though the Tiggo is a practical vehicle that comes equipped with a wide range of features – surpassing many of our expectations – and offers value for money, we can’t yet vouch for the the durability of the materials in the cabin, or the long-term reliability. At R164 900 with all that it has to offer, the Chery Tiggo is defi nitely worth a look… And could be the vehicle that helps change people’s preconceived ideas about the brand and its products.
