Chinese carmaker Chery has come up with a very clever marketing ploy by partnering with McDonalds in the fast-food chain’s November sales campaign where the major prize is a new Tiggo 4 Pro.
So, every time you see a Maccas television commercial – and there are squillions of them – the Chery name gets the sort of exposure that emerging brands can only dream about.
Without knowing the numbers, it’s fair to assume that a large percentage of people who see the ads have never heard of Chery as a brand and even less of Tiggo specifically as a model.
Tiggo 4s major competitor is likely to be the Omoda 5 which we reviewed last year. Although both vehicles are badged here as Cherys, Omoda is actually a sub-brand of its parent company and sells in overseas markets as a separate identity.
As is the case with Korean siblings, Hyundai and Kia, most Omoda and Tiggo vehicles are built alongside each other at Chery’s Anhui factory.
We’ve just tested the Tiggo 4 Pro. It’s the smallest of the three SUVs in the Tiggo range. It sits behind the mid-sized Tiggo 7 Pro and the seven-seat Tiggo 8 Pro Max. A new hero model, Tiggo 9, will be added in 2025.
Tiggo 4 Pro comes with the choice of two variants, Urban and Ultimate, with driveaway prices of $23,990 and $26,990 respectively.
Add a seven-year unlimited kilometre warranty, seven-year / 105,000 km capped priced servicing, and seven-year roadside assistance if the vehicle is serviced at a Chery dealership, and the value for money is the best in its class.
STYLING
Overall, there’s not much to make Tiggo 4 standout from the mid-sized SUV crowd. The vertical grille and squared off rear, together with a longer than average bonnet, give it a chunky look.
The large Chery family grille combines silver diamond and piano black infill grille with the Chery badge at the top-centre. The grille is flanked by narrow wrap-around LED headlights above long narrow LED daytime running lights.
The Ultimate can be distinguished by its 18-inch alloy wheels with red trim and brake callipers. Urban has 17-inch gloss black alloys.
Five heavenly exterior colours are available: Martian Red, Lunar White, Star Silver, Mercurial Grey and Space Black. Martian Red is standard, the other four are $500 options.
INTERIOR
There’s a high-quality look and spacious feel inside the Tiggo 4. For a sub-$28,000 vehicle it could easily be for mistaken for something at least twice that price.
Entry is easy and there’s plenty of front headroom despite the sunroof in the Ultimate that we tested. The seats, cloth in the Urban and faux leather in the Ultimate, are large, supportive and comfortable.
The driver’s seat in the Ultimate has six-way power adjustment and heating, all others are manual and unheated.
All variants get an artificial leather steering wheel with tilt and reach adjustment.
Interior storage is disappointing. Apart from two cup holders and a narrow opening for the key fob there’s nothing in the central console for phone, wallets and the similar small items. Rather, the area that could be used on either side of the gear selector is just a bare piano black surface.
To compensate there is a space underneath the console where items can be kept out of sight.
In line with the growing trend most features in the Tiggo 4 are accessed through the media touchscreen meaning far too much of the driver’s time has to be spent looking there rather than the road ahead.
Fortunately, Chery has partially addressed the issue by providing two small levers on the driver’s side of the central console to allow for easy adjustment of the air conditioning. Likewise, the audio can be adjusted easily with physical buttons below the touchscreen.
Other features can be turned off through the multimedia screen but this needs to be re-done every time the engine is re-started.
Luggage capacity using the VDA criteria is 380 litres with the rear seats in place expanding to a maximum 1225 litres when folded. There’s a space-saver wheel below the boot floor.
DRIVETRAIN
Both variants are powered by the same 1.5-litre four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine. Outputs are a reasonable 108 kW and 210 Nm.
It’s front wheel-drive only and comes with continuously variable transmission.
A hybrid variant will be added to the range next year. There is also a plug-in hybrid (PHEV) available but whether it comes here has yet to be decided.
SAFETY
Tiggo 4 Pro has yet to be crash tested by ANCAP but, given its long list of active and passive safety features it’s likely that it will achieve the maximum five-star rating.
Both variants get seven airbags, rear parking sensors, reversing camera, forward collision warning, autonomous emergency braking, emergency lane keeping, lane departure warning, lane departure prevention, adaptive cruise control, traffic jam assist, integrated cruise assist, blind spot detection, lane change assist, rear cross traffic alert and braking, door opening warning, speed limit information function, speed control assist, driver monitoring system and two Isofix child seat anchors.
Ultimate adds a 360-around view camera.
INFOTAINMENT
There are two 10.25-inch colour screens at the top of the dashboard, a driver information screen behind the steering wheel and a multimedia screen in the centre.
Both variants get two USB ports in the front and a third in the rear.
Urban comes with a four-speaker sound system, Ultimate steps up to a six-speaker Sony system.
A big plus is that both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are wireless although there isn’t a smartphone wireless charger.
Voice control can be accessed by saying ‘Hello Chery’.
DRIVING
Despite its modest engine outputs Tiggo 4 provides capable if unexciting performance. Around town, which is likely to be its natural habitat, it’s easy to manoeuvre especially in the Ultimate with its 360-degree split screen monitor.
Steering is relatively heavy especially in urban conditions.
Ride is relatively firm but still comfortable enough.
There are two drive modes: Eco and Sport. Eco is the default setting and is fine for routine driving while Sport does sharpen performance
The lane correction feature is quite severe and we quickly included it in our turn-off sequence together with the speed limit and driver attention alerts before taking off.
Fuel economy isn’t great. Listed at 7.3 litres per 100 kilometres we averaged 8.7 L/100 km. If that’s a major issue then it may be worth waiting for the hybrid version although the bargain prices in place now may well have changed by then.
SUMMARY
Chery Tiggo 4 is another example of how much and how quickly the quality of Chinese vehicles have improved in recent years.
While prices have risen with the arrival of new generation models in brands such as MG and GWM they still remain cheaper than most of their competitors.
The Tiggo 4 Pro is likely to quickly become Chery’s biggest-selling vehicle. The combination of its convenient size, premium quality cabin, excellent safety features, the latest in technology, long warranty at driveaway prices starting below $24,000 is remarkable.
RATINGS
Looks: 7.5/10
Performance: 7/10
Safety: 8/10
Thirst: 7/10
Practicality: 7/10
Comfort: 8.5/10
Tech: 8/10
Value: 9/10
AT A GLANCE
MODEL LINE-UP
Tiggo 4 Pro Urban: $23,990
Tiggo 4 Pro Ultimate: $26,990
Note: These are driveaway prices.
SPECIFICATIONS (Chery Tiggo 4 Pro Ultimate)
ENGINE
Configuration: 1498 cc
Maximum Power: 108 kW @ 5500 rpm
Maximum Torque: 210 Nm @ 1750 rpm
Fuel Type: Premium petrol 95 RON
Combined Cycle Fuel Consumption (ADR 81/02): 7.3 L/100km
CO2 Emissions: 166g/100km
DRIVELINE: Seven-speed automatic, 4WD
DIMENSIONS, WEIGHT, AND CAPACITIES
Length: 4351 mm
Width: 1831 mm
Height:1662 mm
Wheelbase: 2610 mm
Kerb mass: 1388kg
Turning circle: Not supplied
Fuel tank: 51 litres
BRAKES
Front: Ventilated Disc
Rear: Solid Disc
STANDARD WARRANTY
Seven years / unlimited kilometres
