Chery Tiggo 4, Tiggo 9 confirmed for Australia - next Tiggo 2 possible, too

Chery Australia is ambitious, and that ambition has led the brand to all-but confirm two new models are set to join the ranks in the next 12-18 months.

First off the rank is the Chery Tiggo 4, a small crossover SUV that is set to open proceedings for the brand with an expected sub-$30k starting price.

It is due here possibly by the end of the year, and Chery Australia chief operating officer, Lucas Harris, said the Tiggo 4 compact SUV - which measures 4318mm long, about the same as the MG ZS - is expected to slot in as the entry point for Chery in Australia.

“I can't think of a really good reason why that wouldn't happen,” he said. “Tiggo 4 is fairly well progressed in its discussions and we're just working through the finer nuts and bolts of that at the moment but hopefully we will be able to share some information with you sooner rather than later.”

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The Tiggo 4 Pro is smaller than the Chery Omoda 5, but shares a powertrain similar to that model - a 1.5-litre turbo four-cylinder with 108kW/210Nm.

“The Tiggo 4 is a bit smaller than Omoda 5 - particularly boot space, it's a bit smaller. And I think the price point position of that car is also likely to be a bit different to where Omoda 5 is,” Mr Harris said. “That's me speculating a little bit at this stage, and so general logic is the smaller the car, the more affordable it becomes.”

The Omoda 5 has an official drive-away price of $34,490 drive-away for the base model BX, but the brand has been doing some sharp deals on that vehicle, including a current offer for MY23 models at $32,990 drive-away with a further $3000 ‘factory bonus’.

So, essentially, the brand is playing in the sub-$30K segment with Omoda 5, which means it stands to reason that the Tiggo 4 could well go up against the aforementioned MG ZS (or ZST) and Kia Stonic in the sub-$30K SUV segment.

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2024 Chery Tiggo 9 PHEV at Beijing

The brand also has another smaller model, the Tiggo 2 (also known as Tiggo 3x, confusingly!), which in its current-generation guise isn’t likely to make it here – but Mr Harris all-but confirmed that the brand would offer the replacement new-gen model.

“It's actually quite a small car - that model has been around for quite a while, so it's highly unlikely that we would take that version of the Tiggo 2,” he said. “But for inner-city driving and as people are looking for more and more affordable options, we certainly wouldn't say no if an option became available in right-hand drive, to look at a car like. But it's currently not in the product plan.”

The just-launched Tiggo 8 Pro Max seven-seater is currently the largest model available from the brand, but Mr Harris made it clear the company is planning to expand its line-up above the current ranks with a larger, more prestige-focused SUV in the Tiggo 9, which will in theory compete with the Kia Sorento, Skoda Kodiaq and Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace.

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“We are currently looking at some of those smaller cars and where they will fit for us, but also, you know, the new Tiggo 9 - I think it's a pretty exciting car, and fitted out really well so we certainly wouldn't turn our noses up at bringing that in as well,” Mr Harris confirmed.

Mark Vukoja, Chery Australia brand and marketing director, said the customers who buy Tiggo models are currently – and will continue to be – different to those who consider an Omoda variant.

“The Tiggo family of cars, that's a particular style. It's function, it's technology and safety. It appeals to one demographic,” he said.

“Omoda is a completely different set of vehicles, it's like its own brand - its own style, its fashion, its technology, avant-garde. So we feel the Omoda range will have a completely different appeal to the Tiggo range.”

Stay tuned for our Chery Tiggo 8 Pro Max review soon.