2026 Chery Tiggo 9 review: Quick drive

Chery is about to burst into new territory with its flagship Tiggo 9 Super Hybrid.

Now available to order, the seven-seat plug-in hybrid (PHEV) large SUV is set to arrive in Australia showrooms soon as the most expensive model yet from the Chinese brand.

However, it still promises to maintain the company’s value-focused philosophy by offering top-spec features for the same price as entry-level competitors.

Before it lands locally later this month, we got to sample the Tiggo 9 Super Hybrid during an exclusive flying visit to Chery’s global headquarters in Wuhu, China, last week. So, let’s check it out.

How much does the Chery Tiggo 9 cost?

The Chery Tiggo 9 Super Hybrid arrives in local showrooms in one model grade, the fully equipped Ultimate that costs $59,990 plus on-roads.

While that positions it below the related Omoda 9 (from $61,990), it also puts it in direct competition with entry-level versions of large seven-seat SUV rivals such as the popular Kia Sorento S AWD (from $54,380), Hyundai Santa Fe AWD (from $56,650), and the hybrid Toyota Kluger GX (from $62,410) – all prices exclude on-road costs.

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What is the Chery Tiggo 9 like on the inside?

The Chery Tiggo 9 Super Hybrid ushers in a new era of interior design from the Chinese brand with a modern, clean and classy aesthetic to its cabin.

While the overall dashboard layout is a simple two-piece T-shaped configuration, there’s more interesting textures, shapes and highlights throughout the cabin, such as the upswept stitching in the door cards, ambient interior lighting strips, and a mix of black and charcoal trim.

Chery has also moved away from sandwiching two same-sized screens together for the instrument cluster and infotainment touchscreen like it does in smaller SUVs such as the Tiggo 4 and Tiggo 7.

Instead, the Tiggo 9 features a 10.25-inch display in front of the driver that is easier to read through the steering wheel, and a large 15.6-inch floating table-style multimedia display on the centre console.

The infotainment screen is huge and high-resolution, yet it doesn’t feel like Chery has jammed a big screen TV into a tiny lounge room just for the sake of it.

Instead, it offers an intuitive menu structure to access its myriad of functions with customisable widgets and shortcuts for the ventilation controls across the bottom.

The centre console section is defined by a chrome ring that surrounds the middle air vents, with matching highlights around the cupholders and the bank of physical controls next to them, which includes a rotary dial for the multi-mode drive settings, electric handbrake, windscreen demisters and one-touch buttons to activate hybrid or full EV modes.

Both front seats have a business-class feel about them, with extendable leg rests, and offer a good balance of lateral support and overall comfort.

The massage function is particularly welcoming on a long holiday road trip, as is the heating and cooling depending on the seasons.

And those in the middle row are treated to generous legroom, and rear air vents and USB power outlets on the back of the centre console.

The third row, however, isn’t as accommodating as some other seven-seat rivals, and is best reserved for small kids or occasional use only.

What’s under the bonnet?

The Chery Tiggo 9 Super Hybrid is powered by the company’s most advanced – and complex – plug-in hybrid powertrain so far.

It combines a 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine with three electric motors that generate some impressive results, such as combined maximum outputs of 315kW of power and 580Nm of torque, 170km of electric-only range, and the ability to travel up to 1250km before needing to refuel or replenish the battery.

Power is sent to all four wheels via a 175kW electric motor on the rear axle and two additional electric motors – one on the front axle that produces 75kW and another that makes 90kW and is sandwiched in the world-first three-speed dedicated hybrid automatic transmission.

The 34kWh lithium-ion battery can be replenished at up to 71kW using a DC fast-charger.

How does the Chery Tiggo 9 drive?

Even if you subscribe to the saying ‘you only get what you pay for’ then the Chery Tiggo 9 Super Hybrid will surprise you with more than you expected.

Its $60k asking price is a big leap for the brand on paper but, after a couple of hours behind the wheel on Chinese public roads and at Chery’s test track, it clearly maintains the brand’s value-focused ethos.

Actually, compared to its rivals, it’s a bargain. And yet it never feels cheap and cheerful.

Instead, it can be many more things – an ultra-efficient long-distance cruiser, a guilt-free, electric-only city commuter, and a surprisingly quick brute when you ask for all of its electro-petrol wizardry.

First and foremost, though, it’s a solid suburban family runabout. It’s comfortable, quiet, and delivers effortless acceleration when using battery power alone, and it has a natural feel to its regenerative braking when slowing down.

The three-speed gearbox is seamless and largely invisible when it changes gears, and the 1.5-litre petrol engine only chimes in either when the battery falls below 25 per cent state of charge or when you ask for maximum power.

It’s a big car, however, both physically and in terms of mass (tipping the scales at over 2.2 tonnes), which it cannot mask when cornering due to slow, lifeless steering and a tendency to bodyroll when asking too much of its tyres.

But our test car was a Chinese-specification model, which has a softer and more comfort-oriented chassis tune than Australian versions will come with.

So we’ll reserve final judgement on its dynamic character until we get the chance to test drive it locally in the next few weeks.

What do you get?

Chery has fully loaded the Tiggo 9 with everyone it can.

2026 Chery Tiggo 9 Super Hybrid Ultimate equipment highlights:

• 20-inch alloy wheels
• Tyre repair kit
• Panoramic sunroof (tilt/slide) with powered sunshade
• Power tailgate
• Heated, power-folding exterior mirrors
• Automatic LED headlights – projector-type
• Automatic high-beam
• LED tail-lights
• Acoustic glass (windscreen, front door)
• Puddle lights
• Proximity entry and start
• Automatic Parking Assist (APA)
• 360-degree surround view camera
• Leather upholstery
• 6-way power front seats
  • Thigh support extension
  • Heating
  • Ventilation
  • Massage
• Heated and ventilated outboard second-row seats
• Premium heated steering wheel
• Power tilt and telescopic steering wheel adjustment
• 10.25-inch driver instrument cluster
• 15.6-inch infotainment touchscreen
• 14 Speaker Sony Sound System incl. 2 speakers in driver’s headrest
• Satellite navigation
• Head-up display (HUD)
• Apple CarPlay and Android Auto (wired + wireless)
• 50W wireless phone charger
• Intelligent Voice Command (Hello Chery)
• Colour-selectable ambient lighting
• Dual-zone climate control with second-row air vents
• Power windows with auto up/down function

Is the Chery Tiggo 9 safe?

The Tiggo 9 is yet to be tested by ANCAP or Euro NCAP.

Standard safety equipment includes:

• Autonomous emergency braking
• Adaptive cruise control
• Blind-spot monitoring
• Driver monitoring system
• Lane-keep assist
• Emergency lane-keep assist
• Rear cross-traffic assist
• Safe exit warning
• Traffic Jam Assist
• 10 airbags incl. front-centre, driver’s knee airbags
• Surround-view camera
• Front, rear and side parking sensors

How much does the Chery Tiggo 9 cost to run?

The Tiggo 9 is covered by a seven-year, unlimited-kilometre vehicle warranty and an eight-year, unlimited-kilometre guarantee for the high-voltage battery.

Chery also includes up to seven years of roadside assistance, as well as seven years of capped-price servicing.

Servicing is required every 12 months or 15,000km, with pricing as follows:

CarExpert’s Take on the Chery Tiggo 9

The Chery Tiggo 9 Super Hybrid might be the most expensive model from the Chinese brand yet, but it’s also the most convincing.

It’s big and spacious, loaded with creature comforts and the latest in advanced safety systems, and delivers more than you expect in terms of performance and efficiency.

It certainly asks the question why you’d pay more for less, as with some of its seven-seat SUV rivals.

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MORE:Explore the Chery showroom