It’s holiday time. You have a full-house SUV at your disposal. There is a beach 1 250km away with your name on it. And because the SUV in question is none other than Chery’s, 455kW / 920Nm, plug-in hybrid Tiggo 9 CSH Vanguard there is only one thing to do, and that’s hit the open road.
What more could you ask for
The Chery Tiggo 9 is the company’s largest full seven-seater model. Offering 2+3+2 seating with up to a full 2 065 litres of cargo space. So, if it’s space you want, then its space you will have. We loaded up his and hers suitcases, cooler boxes, beach bags, a tent, an umbrella, the dogs and cats, and we still had space for the kids.
From a comfort and luxury point of view, there is absolutely nothing more you could ask for. Everything from full leather, a panoramic sunroof, dual-zone automatic climate control, to six-way power adjustable, heated and ventilated seats can be found.
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But what about the more exciting stuff like the electromechanical heart of the Chery Tiggo 9 CSH. Well, under the hood you have a compact 1.5 litre, four-cylinder, turbocharged petrol engine that only produces 115kW of power and 220Nm of torque. Not enough to pull a large SUV around with.
455kW of electrical assisted power
But because the Tiggo 9 comes with Chery’s advanced CSH (Chery Super Hybrid) technology that adds a 34.4kWh battery into the mix, the picture dramatically changes. Now you have substantially more power and torque at 455kW and 920Nm. And with an electric motor on each axle, you also have the benefit of intelligent All Wheel Drive.
This makes for a SUV that is not only good around the suburbs, but one that is also an absolute pleasure on the open road. The suspension soaks up anything the road can throw at it and overtaking, which as you know is a massive problem when the roads are jam packed with traffic, is a non-issue. See a gap, take a gap, it’s that easy.
But one of the biggest benefits of the Chery Tiggo 9 CSH being plug-in hybrid, is brilliant fuel consumption. But I must warn you, the car has a bit of a Jekyll and Hyde personality when it comes to using electricity and fuel. Allow me to explain.
Charging at home for savings
Chery claims a combined driving range of up to 1 400km on a 70 litre tank of fuel and a fully charged battery, and a combined 6.2 litres per 100 km. Immediately I decided I was going to have a go at getting down to Knysna on one tank of fuel. Why not? It would make for some entertainment on the long road down.
In the time leading up to our trip down to the coast, I ran the Chery Tiggo 9 CSH on battery power and my cost for fuel was zero. While electricity at R4 per kWh charging at home meant I paid only R120 to do 120km. This translates into a mere 5.0 litres per 100 km.
But there is another side to electrically powered vehicles as I have already said and that is they don’t like long open roads at higher than urban speeds. Or running up mountain passes like a wannabe hill climb race car. To maintain speed or regain momentum after you have come off the gas for corner after corner, which means you really burn through electricity.
The best I got was 1 160 km
Doing real world stuff like using the active speed control, driving at the national speed limit, using the aircon and infotainment system, I quickly realised that I was not going to make Knysna on one tank of fuel. The 1 175km combined range shown on the instrument cluster turned out to be the magic number and the best I was going to get.
I ran the car till it showed zero on the fuel range and zero on the battery range, and I had done exactly 1 160km with the addition of some battery charge when we stopped for coffee and breakfast. I wasn’t keen to see what happens when the car physically runs out of fuel and charge, so I gave in and filled up.
The car never hit 1 400 km, but I was more than happy with what I had achieved, and while the claim of 6.2 litres per 100km is not going to happen on the open road at pace, you are still going to be using half the fuel you would in any other high-performance SUV that offers similar power and torque.
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Solid value for money offering
The Chery Tiggo 9 CSH AWD Vanguard retails for R989 900 and I know this is a lot of money in any man’s books, but you would have to spend around double this to get the overall package that is on offer here.
Don’t dismiss this vehicle without maybe just taking it for a drive. Even if it’s only to experience some of the performance and tech being brought to market by Chery.
The Chery Tiggo 9 comes standard with Chery’s comprehensive after-sales package, which includes a 7-year / 90 000km service plan, and a 7-year / 200 000 km warranty. There is also Chery’s 10-year / 1-million km engine warranty (for 1st owner but can be transferred to a second owner if vehicle is purchased from a Cherished pre-owned dealership), and a 10-year / unlimited km battery warranty is also included.
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