The new Chery Tiggo 7 Pro has all the specs (and the price!) to compete directly with Proton’s X70.
For a good couple of years now since its initial introduction back in late 2018, Proton has pretty much ruled the roost over here in the mid-sized SUV market with its X70. Coming with a boatload of kit and wearing a price tag that undercuts its Japanese rivals by a significant margin, this premiere Geely-based offering by the Malaysian automaker has consistently been ranked the best-selling in its segment since first landed locally.
Having said that however, this once new-kid-on-the-block is starting to show its age after having been out for nearly 6 years already. And while there is a facelift set for sometime this year, this refreshed X70 will likely need to really step up its game, especially in order to fend off yet another rather impressive new challenger from Chery, in the form of its soon-to-launch Tiggo 7 Pro.
Previewed recently before its supposedly local debut sometime later in May, the Tiggo 7 Pro has quite the drum to beat in its attempt to coax prospective buyers away from the X70. The loudest note of which being for this mid-sized Chery SUV to cost below RM 130k, which is of course right where what this particular Proton currently retails for.
Being a Chery too of course, this Tiggo 7 Pro is slated to arrive with an absolute cornucopia of standard kit. This long list begins within with its rather (prior-gen) Mercedes-esque dashboard incorporating twin 12.3-inch displays for its digital instrument cluster and central infotainment screen, with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto integration.
Similarly wireless too is to be its the 50 W ultra-fast charging pad with built-in active cooling system. The Tiggo 7 Pro further features dual-zone climate control, ventilation for its electrically adjustable front seats, a panoramic sunroof, as well as a configurable 64 colour ambient lighting system that even has a mode that responds to the music being played from the 8-speaker Sony sound system.
Moving onto what lies under the hood meanwhile, driving the front wheels of the Tiggo 7 Pro through a 7-speed wet dual clutch transmission is a new (for Malaysia at least) 1.6-litre turbocharged four-pot, that outputs 197 PS and 290 Nm of torque. Chery is touting for this mid-sized SUV to sprint from 0 to 100 km/h in a reasonable 9.5 seconds, before eventually topping out at 205 km/h.
Though perhaps the more pertinent information regarding its powertrain is for it to be claimed in achieving a more-than-decent fuel efficiency rating of 7 litres/100 km (14.3 km/l). Likewise, most buyers of this Tiggo 7 Pro will likely be more interested in knowing that this mid-sized SUV comes jam-packed with no less than 16 active driver aids as part of Chery’s ADAS 2.5 suite, which includes: Front Collision Warning (FCW), Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB), Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC), Lane Departure Warning (LDW), Multi Collision Brake (MCB), Traffic Jam Assistant (TJA), Door Open Warning (DOW), Rear Cross Traffic Braking (RCTB), Integrated Cruise Assist (ICA), Rear Cross Traffic Alert (RCTA), Rear Collision Warning (RCW), Lane Change Assist (LCA), Lane Departure Prevention (LDP), Lane Departure Reminder (LDR), Blind-spot Detection (BSD), Emergency Lane Keeping (ELK).
Turning towards the exterior of the Chery now, up front on the Tiggo 7 Pro are slim LED headlights with sequential indicators flanking a large hexagonal chromed grille, while its daytime running lights are found further down below those striking blue strakes that mimic air inlets. Its admittedly X70-esque profile in turn is highlighted by red brake calipers behind its shiny alloys, as well as a floating roof that is accentuated by an upswept kink aft of its C-pillar, with its rump then finished off by a full width LED light bar (that is not too dissimilar to the one on its larger SUV sibling).
Finishing off with the dimensions now for those who want to geek out, the Tiggo 7 Pro measures a 4,513 mm in length, 1,862 in width, 1,696 mm in height, with a wheelbase of 2,670 mm and a ground clearance of 175 mm. Its boot can hold a decent 475 litres, with it being expandable to 1,672 litres with the rear seats folded.
The Tiggo 7 Pro will be offered in four colours; Bloodstone Red with Black Roof, Carbon Black, Vanilla Blue and Khaki White with Black Roof. Order books for this particular Chery is already open, with those interested in a preview for themselves being able to do so at all of its dealerships nationwide from next month onwards.
