Chery Tiggo 7 CSH SUmmit
By Bill McCarthy
This Chery Tiggo SUV has me scratching my head. Because it’s genuinely good. Not “good for a Chinese car” good. Just… gp.I spent a week with it, on motorways, B-roads, the Peak District, and with a house move that seemed to go on forever. It coped with all of it. And, starting at just under thirty grand, it undercuts rivals by a margin that’s hard to ignore.
A stylish SUV with an elegant profile, there are some neat curves and bulges and neat light arrays, but if very much fits the standard SUV mould.
There is a petrol version or the plug-in version driven here, with two trim levels, Aspire and Summit and a starting price of just under £25k. The plug-in starts at just under £30k, class-leading at the time of writing.
What’s under the bonnet
The 1.5-litre turbo pairs with an electric motor driving the front wheels, delivering 201bhp and 365Nm of torque.
The big sell is efficiency. Chery claims 56 miles of electric range. That’ll cover most commutes, and with a claimed total range of 745 miles, you’ll forget how to use a petrol pump.
The 18.4kWh battery charges from 30–80% in about 20 minutes using a rapid charger – handy for a quick top-up during a supermarket shop. Like many plug-in hybrids, the claimed mpg can be astronomical, but that depends on charging regularly and using electric power. Otherwise, using both, around 50mpg seems nearer the mark.
On the road
It’s quick off the mark, and I threw it at the twisting and narrow local roads where it coped admirably. The power delivery is linear, the electric motor gives instant shove when you need it and the petrol engine kicks in under hard acceleration. It hits 62mph in 8.5 seconds. Hardly supercar territory, but adequate.
Then came the Peak District – both tight and sweeping bends, plus steep climbs. The Tiggo 7 clung on like a terrier, feeling well planted. The steering gives reasonable feedback if a little on the light side – but you always know what the front wheels are doing. Suspension is firm enough to feel controlled, soft enough not to rattle your fillings. Chery says it has engineered this car with British roads in mind.
What I really liked was the refinement. Engine and motor work in harmony with little noise, and road noise is kept well at bay even at motorway speeds.
Interior and equipment
Summit is top spec, so you get the lot: panoramic sunroof, ventilated and massaging front seats, a Sony stereo, twin 12.3-inch screens – one controlling connectivity infotainfotainment and various appsm the other real time information – plus wireless charging.
However, the touchscreen is fiddly, with some settings buried under sub-menus and can be distracting,
The interior feels premium, with soft-touch plastics across the dashboard and doors, and supportive, electrically adjustable seats. Five adults fit without knee-knocking, and the boot is 565 litres with the seats up, expanding to 1,396 litres folded. Our ongoing house move benefited greatly – the boot swallowed boxes, bags, and even the tip run was painless. However the boot floor is a bit high, so loading heavy stuff is a back-ache waiting to happen.
Safety kit is comprehensive and autonomous braking, lane assist, a 360-degree camera, and Euro NCAP gave it four stars – a solid score .
Warranty
There’s great peace of mind with seven years, 100,000 miles, and roadside assistance thrown in. Chery says, “Not that you should need it,” but we’ll see.
The Verdict
At under thirty grand, the Tiggo 7 plug-in offers genuine electric range, generous kit, and a class-leading warranty. It’s not perfect, but for most buyers, that trade-off makes perfect sense.
Factfile
- Chery Tiggo 7 CSH Summit
- Price: £ 32,995 OTR
- Mechanical: 201 PS, 1.5-litre turbo petrol and electric motors, driving the front wheels via an auto transmission
- Max speed: 112 mph
- 0 to 62 mph: 8.5 sec
- Combined mpg: 256.8mpg (nominal)
- Electric range: 56 miles (WLTP)
- CO2 emissions: 28 g/km
- BiK rating: 8%
- Warranty: 7 years/unlimited miles (vehicle), 8 years/100,000 miles (battery)
On the road 