“We want to invest more in Super Hybrid and build a family,” said Hsu. The Tiggo 4 small SUV is a full hybrid with a 1.8kWh battery and 53.2mpg fuel economy, while the larger SUVs – the 7, 8 and 9 – plug in to charge their 18.4 or 34.4kWh batteries. Hsu’s vision is that buying a Super Hybrid becomes like selecting the amount of storage for a new smartphone, with a wider selection of battery sizes for a greater spread of electric range and fuel economy.
As part of the four new and refreshed cars, Hsu also promised an additional Tiggo model, which he coyly referred to as the Tiggo X. “The name is not decided but we will have a Tigo ‘X’ series next year. We will introduce a different shape and target different family customers.”
The most obvious gap in the Tiggo portfolio is at the bottom end, with a baby SUV measuring between 4 and 4.2-metres. The ageing Tiggo 2 fulfils this role in some export markets; rival Leapmotor is also pushing into the Ford Puma segment with the B03X.
Tailoring its cars for UK consumer tastes
Chery is also setting up a small R&D facility at the Millbrook test centre in Bedfordshire, to optimise specifications for the UK market. “We have tried to improve ourselves based on customer feedback, and we keep trying to improve the chassis tuning,” said Hsu. Intrusive driver assistance systems and infotainment operation are also under the microscope.
Auto Express testers have found the Tiggo models typically too soft, with wallowy body control and imprecise steering. Hsu, who worked on suspension systems at Ford in China, is keen to act as the conduit to feed back British preferences and accelerate revisions.
“This R&D center’s beginning stage is to translate the customer language to the engineering language, and tell HQ ‘This is what you need to do, you need to change [these] parameters’.” Expect the first of the sharper handling Cherys to arrive with the four-model rollout in 2027.
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