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It looks like Chery and its portfolio of sub-brands is launching one thing new each week.
To make issues extra complicated, most fashions bought throughout the Chery and Omoda Jaecoo manufacturers in Australia are marketed beneath completely different nameplates abroad, typically crossing over with their sister-brand nameplates.
For instance, the 2026 Chery Tiggo 9 you see right here is completely different to the Chery Tiggo 9 bought within the Chinese home market, and whereas the worldwide export technique was to market this mannequin because the Jaecoo J8, the identical primary design is bought right here by each the Chery and Omoda-Jaecoo manufacturers in markets like Australia.
Yep, the Australian-market Tiggo 9 is a calmly restyled Jaecoo J8 with a unique inside, and as of a few month in the past you may have each massive SUVs with a plug-in ‘Super Hybrid’ powertrain and as much as three rows of seating.
To attempt to differentiate the 2 SUVs somewhat extra, the Chery-badged model just lately launched a extra reasonably priced Elite variant, dropping the entry worth to $52,990 earlier than on-road prices – $7000 lower than the higher-spec Ultimate in addition to the Jaecoo J8 SHS.
The sharply-priced seven-seat PHEV SUV loses some efficiency and tools in comparison with its Ultimate-badged sibling, in addition to its Jaecoo-branded stablemate, however on paper it shapes up because the potential sweetspot.
To discover out if it is the one to purchase, or whether or not you need to look elsewhere, learn on…
How a lot does the Chery Tiggo 9 price?
As famous earlier, the introduction of the Elite FWD drops the Tiggo 9’s worth of entry to a fairly sharp $52,990 plus on-road prices – or simply over $58,000 drive-away relying in your postcode.
| Model | Price earlier than on-road prices |
|---|---|
| 2026 Chery Tiggo 9 Super Hybrid Elite FWD | $52,990 |
| 2026 Chery Tiggo 9 Super Hybrid Ultimate AWD | $59,990 |
While the Tiggo 9 vary is firmly the Chery model’s most costly providing, the brand new entry level into the PHEV SUV vary is extremely sharp in comparison with equally sized SUVs from rival manufacturers.
The most reasonably priced Kia Sorento, for instance, begins from just below $55,000, however that is with a 2.2-litre turbo-diesel engine. If you need a plug-in hybrid, essentially the most reasonably priced model begins from $71,175 plus ORCs, although it is presently being supplied from $69,990 drive-away.
Even the smaller Mitsubishi Outlander Plug-in Hybrid EV (PHEV) prices $58,990 plus ORCs, and for an equal specification to even the bottom Chery you may be spending much more than that.
The solely different three-row PHEV SUVs within the mainstream segments come from inside Chery’s personal secure. The Jaecoo J8 SHS shares the Tiggo 9 Ultimate’s extra highly effective AWD powertrain and is priced from $59,990, whereas the smaller Tiggo 8 SHS could be had for as little as $45,990 drive-away.
If you may dwell with out a third row of seating, Volkswagen will promote you the Tayron 150TSI eHybrid with extra EV vary from $61,990 drive-away, whereas sister model Skoda has the Kodiaq iV Plug-in Hybrid presently on supply from $59,990 drive-away.
To see how the Chery Tiggo 9 lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool
What is the Chery Tiggo 9 like on the within?
One of essentially the most conspicuous variations between the Tiggo 9 and the J8 is their cabin design.
Where the Jaecoo has clearly been impressed by the earlier technology of Mercedes-Benz interiors, the Chery goes for a extra restrained cockpit.
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Key variations embrace the person tablet-style driver’s instrument cluster and central infotainment shows, a novel centre console design, and dashboard remedies. The trimmings are extra mainstream, however that is additionally partly because of this being the lower-spec Elite.
Ahead of the motive force is a ten.25-inch digital instrument cluster operating the identical pores and skin because the Jaecoo, and there is a huge 15.6-inch infotainment touchscreen sitting proudly within the centre of the dashboard. Both supply fairly crisp graphics and fairly fast response instances, and the native interface is primary however easy to make use of.
That stated, my string of annoying bugs and glitches with Chinese infotainment programs continued with my iPhone 17 Pro Max’s wi-fi connection to Apple CarPlay.
After working completely the primary time the telephone was related, subsequent drives left me unable to correctly use Siri to dictate messages and use voice prompts to request issues, because the microphone would seem to hearken to my telephone’s response and dictate on loop.
Not solely was this annoying however it principally rendered me unable to answer to texts with out it bulk texting “here’s what I heard” a number of instances in and round what I truly stated. Everyone that spoke to me on the telephone additionally stated the decision high quality was poor – my girlfriend described it particularly as “you sound like you’re underwater”.
Anyway, past that, the show responded to the touch inputs effectively and performed music via the usual eight-speaker Sony-branded sound system (down from the Ultimate’s 12-speaker system) with first rate if not fairly spectacular high quality.
The local weather controls are embedded in a toolbar on the base of the display screen, although this disappears whenever you’re utilizing smartphone mirroring. You can, nonetheless, swipe up from the bottom of the display screen and have it reveal itself once more.
But it does not come with out its quibbles both. You can hit the recirculation button with out diving via menus, and the digital temperature controls are small and fiddly to make use of in the event you’re on the transfer.
On event the feminine digital assistant would fairly instantly yell at me saying the home windows had been liable to fogging up and he or she could be turning the demisters on. A enjoyable little Easter egg, I assume?
I used to be much less irked by the performance of the remainder of the inside, as a result of frankly it is one of many cleaner designs I’ve skilled from a mainstream Chinese model of late, and the Tiggo 9 has loads of considerate practicality and storage options dotted in regards to the place.
A pair of slots for telephones sit beneath the show on the centre console, with one providing wi-fi charging and an air vent to forestall your telephone from overheating. The massive, toothed cupholders are additionally a lot sufficiently big to accommodate bigger espresso cups and bottles, which is a pleasant contact.
The bridge-type centre console design additionally provides up a good hideaway house beneath, and it is also the place the USB-A, USB-C and 12V retailers are situated.
In a Mercedes-Benz-esque means, the electrical seat controls are positioned on the higher door panel, whereas the door bins beneath can accommodate average-sized bottles and different unfastened gadgets.
The double-lidded centre console bin is deep and provides good house to cover massive gadgets away, which rounds out the first-row practicality highlights.
Perceived high quality as a complete can be fairly good, with the Tiggo 9’s extra restrained strategy to cabin supplies and detailing coming off classier and fewer chintzy than the associated Tiggo 9’s inside. It feels fairly upmarket, truly.
The Tiggo 9’s second row is fairly good with out being standout, with good room for even taller passengers (like 6’1″ me) with the seats slid back to their rearmost position. The seat base and floor are quite flat, meaning you can fit three across okay but there’s minimal lateral support and your kids might be at risk of sliding around – game of ‘corners’, anyone?
You can recline the seats fore and aft for added comfort, and there are fan controls to go with the directional air vents – but there are no additional temperature controls, sadly. A big panoramic glass sunroof is standard, and the panel stretches to just about the second-row head restraints. It lets plenty of light in and thankfully doesn’t impeded headroom with its powered shade.
USB-A and USB-C ports are located underneath the fan controls, while map pockets behind both front seats, a fold-down centre armrest with cupholders, and door-mounted bottle holders round out the second-row amenities.
As is expected, the Chery Tiggo 9 has ISOFIX child seat mounts on the outboard second-row seats, and top-tether points behind all three.
Getting into the third row is a bit of a pain, as the ‘easy access’ function is on the road side (not the kerb side; Chery hasn’t changed this over for right-hand drive markets) and there’s no similar one-touch slide function for the kerb-side portion.
Once you get the single seat on the driver’s side out of the way, the entry in is wide enough for kids, but you’ll want to ensure you slide the other seats forward quite a bit – otherwise they’ll have no room.
Despite being Chery’s flagship seven-seat SUV, the Tiggo 9 is definitely more of a 5+2-seater, and even then it’s not a standout in terms of third-row space. Luckily, you can recline the third-row pews (which split 50:50) quickly using the attached straps, and they’re supple like the ones in the second row.
That said, even with the seats fully reclined, my head hits the tailgate’s interior plastic trim or the headliner, and adults will have to slide the second row so far forward there’s almost no room left to make rows two and three usable – so best leave them for the kids.
There’s a limited 148 litres of cargo capacity with all seven seats in use, and that’s measured to the roof. The lack of underfloor storage means your charging cable and tyre repair kit also need to be left here or left behind.
Chery quotes 448L with the third row folded, measured to the cargo cover, or 819L measured to the roof. With both the second and third rows folded, there’s a quoted 2065L of capacity behind the front seats, measured to the roof.
| Dimensions | Chery Tiggo 9 CSH Elite FWD |
|---|---|
| Length | 4800mm |
| Width | 1930mm |
| Height | 1730mm |
| Wheelbase | 2750mm |
| Cargo capability | 148-2065L |
To see how the Chery Tiggo 9 lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool
What’s under the bonnet?
The Tiggo 9 ‘Super Hybrid’ Elite loses the Ultimate’s rear electric motor, and gets a smaller battery for less power and less electric driving range.
| Specifications | Chery Tiggo 9 SHS Elite FWD |
|---|---|
| Engine | 1.5L 4cyl turbo-petrol |
| Engine outputs | 105kW + 215Nm |
| Electric motor outputs | 75kW + 170Nm – Front 190kW + 220Nm – Front 2 |
| System outputs | 225kW + 450Nm |
| Battery | 19kWhLithium-ion |
| Transmission | 3DHTDedicated Hybrid Transmission |
| Drive sort | FWD |
| Weight | 1985kg – Tare |
| 0-100km/h (claimed) | – |
| Fuel financial system (claimed) | 1.5L/100km |
| Fuel financial system (as examined) | 4.6L/100km* |
| Energy consumption (claimed) | 15.6kWh/100km |
| Energy consumption (as examined)* | – |
| Electric driving vary | 90km – NEDC |
| Fuel tank capability | 70L |
| Fuel requirement | 95 RON premium unleaded |
| CO2 emissions | 35g/km |
| Emissions normal | – |
| Braked tow capability | 1500kg |
You’ll note the asterisk around our as-tested consumption figure, and that’s because the vehicle wasn’t able to give me an accurate readout – at least from what I could find – and I didn’t get time to measure it myself.
Chery’s trip computer only gives you readouts for the last 50km, with a reset only giving you total consumption metrics.
So, the indicated 4.6L/100km readout was based on driving the vehicle with minimal charge in HEV mode for the most recent 50km, while it showed under 1.0L/100km at points during the loan when it had been charged.
I drove more than 250km in the vehicle, and in that time it consumed 16.1kWh of energy and 8.3L of fuel – roughly equating to 3.2L/100km during our time with it. Not bad.
It’s also worth noting the Elite’s smaller 19kWh battery (vs 34kWh) offers a quoted 90km of NEDC range, which works out closer to 75-80km in the real world when driven in Eco mode.
Still, the Li-ion battery can be fast-charged at a rate of up to 41kW using a DC charger, or at 6.6kW with an AC connection.
Chery likes to tout the Tiggo 9 Ultimate’s 1250km combined range, which based on the 70L fuel tank would indicate a 5.6L/100km consumption figure for a full charge and full tank of fuel.
The Chinese brand doesn’t quote a combined range figure for the Tiggo 9 Elite with its smaller battery, but when we collected the car it was showing a total range of ~1150km.
To see how the Chery Tiggo 9 lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool
How does the Chery Tiggo 9 drive?
The entry-level Tiggo 9 PHEV is one of those vehicles that’s just pretty good all round, not being spectacular in any regard nor awful in any others.
With usable charge in the battery it’ll default to EV mode on start-up, though you can use the ‘EV’ and ‘HEV’ buttons on the centre console to switch modes as you wish.
Driven as an EV, the Tiggo 9’s immediate torque delivery gets this near-2.0t SUV moving at decent pace and in relative silence. In the default Eco mode, the three-speed hybrid transmission can at times feel a touch laggy and elastic off the line, but once you’re moving it’s pretty effortless.
You occasionally feel the transmission ‘step’ as the speed climbs, but unlike the Omoda 9 I drove recently – which we confirmed with Chery suffered a power loss issue affecting a handful of units – I didn’t experience any major moments of inaction when attempting to accelerate on the boil.
If you stomp on it the Tiggo 9 will fire up its small turbo-petrol engine to give you the full whack of power it has to offer, but despite all 225kW and 450Nm being sent to the front wheels it doesn’t just light up the front-end when you need to ask more of it – it’s actually nicely linear in this respect.
And when you do awaken the full 105kW/215Nm outputs, there’s a pretty seamless shift from EV to HEV mode, with only some faint engine noise and vibration telling you the engine is running.
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Many Chinese SUVs – particularly the big ones – are a touch too soft in terms of their suspension setup, which is usually in line with domestic-market tastes. However, while the Chery Tiggo 9 is far from crashy, it’s a touch firmer than I’d like around town, despite this variant wearing smaller wheels than the Ultimate flagship.
Driving from Melbourne’s eastern suburbs into the Docklands brings many a pockmarked inner-city street as well as surface joins, potholes, tram tracks and the like. The Tiggo 9 feels somewhat terse on initial hits, yet at times can feel a bit unsettled over consecutive or high frequency imperfections and corrugations.
As I noted earlier, it’s far from brittle or uncomfortable, but it’s a slight blight on the Tiggo 9’s overall on-road refinement, and a bit of finessing could make it properly good in this respect.
The Tiggo 9 feels pretty happy and settled at freeway speeds, and left to its own devices can silently and seamlessly transition between power sources.
On the topic of refinement, while the ride could use a little more polish, general insulation from road and wind noise is pretty good, noting the general lack of powertrain noise which can sometimes amplify background noise.
Another not-so-great element of the Tiggo 9’s driving experience is the light and numb steering, which is at odds with the more taut chassis setup.
It’s relatively quick but feel and feedback can be inconsistent at times, and the lack of communication from the front wheels just doesn’t help the drive experience.
Further to that, it can require the odd mid-corner correction, which is frustrating in tight city streets with heavy traffic, and it lacks much genuine engagement or enjoyment.
Many people may not notice, but a bit more steering accuracy would inspire more confidence and reduce the need for mini-corrections as you drive, because even in a straight line its about-centre feel is quite vague and makes the Tiggo 9 feel almost… boaty.
It’s a shame, because I reckon some fine-tuning could make this a nice thing to steer.
Finally, driver-assistance systems have long been a sticking point for me with Chery products, but the Tiggo 9 is a notable step forward.
The Integrated Cruise Assist function, which combines adaptive cruise control and active lane-centring functions, is now actually usable for highways with clearly painted lane markings.
My commute to and from the CarExpert Melbourne office takes me on the M3 Eastern Freeway, which is currently littered with faded markings as the North East Link is constructed. It still confuses the system a bit, so I ended up turning it off again.
That said, the blind-spot and rear cross-traffic alerts worked well, and the Tiggo 9’s excellent surround cameras with 3D projection came in handy when trying to slot this big family bus into shopping centre carparks.
Speaking of carparks, however, the steering rack made some weird rattling noises when doing low-speed parking manoeuvres, namely little corrections as I parked. It was like someone was tapping a plastic bottle on something…
To see how the Chery Tiggo 9 lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool
What do you get?
The Elite grade forgoes some of the Ultimate’s niceties but still retains a pretty comprehensive level of standard equipment.
2026 Chery Tiggo 9 Elite equipment highlights:
- 7 seats
- Auto LED projector-type headlights
- Auto high-beam
- Panoramic sunroof
- Rear privacy glass
- Power tailgate
- Rain-sensing wipers
- Proximity entry and start
- 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster
- 15.6-inch touchscreen infotainment system
- Satellite navigation
- Wireless Apple CarPlay, Android Auto
- 50W wireless phone charger
- 8-speaker Sony sound system
- Colour-adjustable ambient lighting
- Dual-zone climate control incl. 2nd- and 3rd-row air vents
- Leatherette upholstery
- Power tilt and telescopic steering wheel adjustment
- 6-way power driver’s seat with 4-way power lumbar and memory
- 6-way power passenger seat
- Heated front seats
- Massage operate – driver’s seat
2026 Chery Tiggo 9 Ultimate provides:
- Semi-autonomous parking assist
- Side parking sensors
- Head-up display
- Leather upholstery
- Ventilated front seats
- Massage function – front passenger seat
- Heated, ventilated outboard second-row seats
- Heated steering wheel
- Auto-dimming rear-view mirror
- 12-speaker Sony premium audio
To see how the Chery Tiggo 9 lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool
Is the Chery Tiggo 9 safe?
The Chery Tiggo 9 is yet to receive an ANCAP safety rating, likewise its Jaecoo J8 twin.
Standard security tools consists of:
- 10 airbags incl. driver’s knee, front-centre
- Autonomous emergency braking – AEB
- Adaptive cruise control
- Blind-spot monitoring
- Door Opening Warning – Exit warning
- Driver monitoring system
- Emergency lane-keep assist
- Forward collision warning
- Integrated Cruise Assist – ICA
-
- Adaptive cruise
- Lane centring
- Lane departure warning
- Lane-keep assist
- Parking sensors – front, rear
- Rear cross-traffic assist
- Safe exit warning
- Speed Control Assist
- Speed limit information
- Surround-view cameras
- Traffic Jam Assist
To see how the Chery Tiggo 9 lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool
How much does the Chery Tiggo 9 cost to run?
The Tiggo 9 is covered by Chery’s seven-year, unlimited-kilometre new-vehicle warranty, and its PHEV battery is covered for eight years with no mileage limit.
| Servicing and Warranty | Chery Tiggo 9 SHS Elite FWD |
|---|---|
| Warranty | 7 years, unlimited kilometres – Vehicle8 years, unlimited kilometres – HV battery |
| Roadside help | 7 years |
| Service intervals | 12 months or 15,000km |
| Capped-price servicing | 7 years or 105,000km |
| Average annual service price | $453.45 – 7 years |
| Total capped-price service price | $3174.15 – 7 years |
It’s worth noting the first five years of servicing is quite cheap, with the 72-month/90,000km visit throwing out the average a bit with its $1291.31 price.
So, it averages out at $319 annually over the first five years, then ups to $453.75 for the life of the seven-year capped-price service program. Still, not bad.
To see how the Chery Tiggo 9 lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool
CarExpert’s Take on the Chery Tiggo 9
Aside from being incredible value for money – even alongside Chinese competition – the Tiggo 9 is arguably Chery’s most complete offering yet.
Objectively it’s not quite as good as rivals from BYD and Kia, though Chery also charges much less money for a large seven-seat SIV that’s still very good.
Sure, there are several areas in need of improvement, but the Tiggo 9’s combination of value, practicality, general driving competence and real-world efficiency make it a solid alternative to large SUVs from established brands.
Chery should fine-tune the steering and continue to hone its driver-assistance systems if it want to be even more competitive in the market and not just a solid ‘cheap’ alternative, and perhaps the Tiggo 9 could use a larger third-row seat given its flagship status in the range.
But I definitely think this Elite-spec is the pick of the range, including the Jaecoo J8 as well. It’s affordable, it’s honest, and despite having less power and a smaller battery, it does a pretty good job at being a plug-in hybrid family SUV that saves you money at the dealer and the fuel pump.
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