Tiggo 9 Review — A Seven-Seat Value Play That Thinks Premium

Let me start with the headline: Chery’s Tiggo 9 is the most convincing statement yet that “value” and “premium” don’t have to live on opposite ends of the SUV spectrum. In a segment packed with very good options—from the GAC GS8 and Exeed VX to the stalwarts like Santa Fe, Sorento, Pathfinder, and Highlander—the Tiggo 9 shows up with the right size, the right tech, and a maturity that many shoppers in our region didn’t expect from the badge a few years ago. It’s not perfect (I have three concrete wishes at the end), but it absolutely nails the everyday brief most families and executives in the GCC care about: space, comfort in real heat, quietness, straightforward tech, and an ownership package that calms the CFO side of your brain.

Below is my full take—design, cabin, tech, drive, safety/ownership, and how it stacks up in the Middle East context—written in my own voice, the way I’d say it over coffee to a friend weighing a seven-seater.

The big picture: where the Tiggo 9 fits

Think of the Tiggo 9 as Chery’s flagship family SUV. In the UAE, it’s sold by AW Rostamani (a vote of confidence in after-sales), and the model’s brief is clear: a comfortable three-row people-mover with a premium-leaning interior and an options list that reads like a class above. Basic numbers first: length about 4,810 mm, width ~1,925 mm, on a 2,800 mm wheelbase—right in the sweet spot for “proper” three-row duty without feeling like a barge in city traffic. Power comes from a 2.0-litre turbo, 8-speed automatic, and available AWD with drive modes tuned for our surfaces, including a “Sandy” program. 0–100 km/h is quoted at 8 seconds—honestly, quick enough for the school run, a full cabin, and a boot with the weekly shop. 

A few branding and tech tells matter to me. The cabin runs on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8155 (important for snappy UI), with a 15.6-inch central display, a 10.25-inch driver display, and a head-up display (HUD). You also get 50W wireless charging and a generous ADAS suite (Chery quotes 19 driver-assist functions) with a 540° panoramic camera and automated parking. All of this is mainstream-premium kit, not “budget car” marketing fluff. 

Design that reads “grown-up”

Design is subjective, but the Tiggo 9’s stance is what sells it: the grille and through-light signature give it visual width, the side profile is clean, and the tail lamp graphic is tidy rather than shouty. The proportions (length/width/wheelbase) hit that modern-Touareg-ish footprint that looks expensive without being oversized for apartment ramps and mall parking. It rides on 20-inch wheels, and the retractable panoramic roof brings light into the cabin without the creaks and groans you sometimes get when a car isn’t torsionally stiff. The spec sheet claims a high percentage of high-strength steel in the body (85%) with 21% hot-formed steel—numbers that usually correlate with good crash performance and fewer “shakes” over speed bumps. 

From the driver’s seat, the perceived quality is a step up from the last wave of Chinese SUVs: suede-trimmed instrument cowl, wood-grain panels that aren’t pretending to be real oak but feel nicely matte, and knurled metal-look controls. It’s a calm, minimal layout that avoids the “gaming PC” vibe some competitors lean into. 

Space & seating: made for real families

Seven seats only matter if rows two and three are genuinely usable. The Tiggo 9’s second row is the star: it’s wide, slides, and even offers powered adjustment in higher trims. Front seats add ventilation, heating, and—this surprised me—multi-point massage. There’s also a one-touch “lounge” recline for the front passenger seat. On long Abu Dhabi-Dubai shuttles, this is the sort of thing that becomes a lived-in luxury, not a showroom party trick. 

Row three is, as usual in this class, best for kids or short hops with adults. With all three rows up, luggage space is modest (around 200 L), but fold the third row and you’ve got the week’s groceries and sports kit handled. Fold both rows and it’ll swallow flat-packs from Jebel Ali as if it were a small van. The tri-zone climate and double-glazed side glass help with the GCC’s real-world test: keeping all three rows cool and conversations at a normal volume even when the mercury is cruel. 

One ergonomic note I appreciate: the driving position is easy to dial in with 12-way power adjustment, and the viewing angles are good. The hood isn’t overly tall, and the 540° camera (yes, under-car “transparent chassis” view) makes tight multi-storey maneuvers less stressful. 

Tech that serves, not distracts

I’m allergic to laggy infotainment, so the 8155 chip is a box I wanted ticked—and it is. Animations are fluid, responses are fast, and the split-screen layouts don’t stutter when you’re pulling maps, music, and HVAC at once. The core UI runs across a 15.6-inch center display and a 10.25-inch instrument screen, with a clear HUD for your speed/nav. A 50W wireless charger actually charges (many list the feature, few get the cooling and coil alignment right), and the audio system packs 14 speakers including headrest units—a neat trick that lets you hear prompts or calls without blasting the entire cabin. 

Now the question everyone asks: Apple CarPlay and Android Auto? Yes—official comms and distributor social posts emphasize wireless CarPlay/Android Auto availability on the Tiggo 9 in our market, which is the right spec for 2025. If you’re like me and live off CarPlay/Android Auto, the difference between wired and wireless is the difference between “I use it every trip” and “I forget the cable half the time.” 

Driver-assist? It’s a thorough Level-2-style suite: adaptive cruise, lane centering, blind-spot intervention, traffic-jam assist, auto parking, and that multi-angle camera that’s a boon for kerbs and tight exits. The emphasis here is on taking the sting out of dull driving, not theatrics, and that’s exactly how it should be. 

Over-the-air updates and connected services (IoV) round out the tech picture—remote vehicle functions, online nav/entertainment, and OTA support to keep features fresh without living at the service center. Again, in 2025 this shouldn’t be novel—but it’s good to see it implemented. 

The drive: quiet confidence over headline drama

Powertrain first. The 2.0-litre turbo makes about 187 kW (≈ 250 hp) and 390 Nm, driving through an Aisin 8-speed automatic. The numbers are on-point for the class, but what matters is how it’s mapped: torque comes in early, so the car feels eager at city speeds, and the Aisin box does what Aisin boxes do—smooth shifts, predictable downshifts when you ask for a gap. Flat-out sprints aren’t the point; relaxed, quiet progress is. Chery quotes 0–100 km/h in 8 seconds, which matches how it feels with a couple of passengers on board. 

All-wheel drive with multiple terrain programs is available, and the mode set is tailored to our region: in addition to Eco/Standard/Sport, you get Sandy, Muddy, Off-road, Snow, and more. Let’s be honest: this is a unibody crossover, not a dune-bashing toy with locking diffs—but that “Sandy” tune plus decent ground clearance means you can comfortably handle beach parking, farm tracks, and a bit of weekend rough without anxiety. Tyres will matter more than logos here. 

Safety that reads like a checklist

Beyond the driver-assists, the passive safety story looks good on paper: up to 10 airbags (including far-side protection), an 85% high-strength steel body with significant hot-formed steel content, and Bosch’s latest IPB by-wire brake control. I want to see more independent crash data as global sales ramp up, but spec-for-spec it’s where a modern family SUV should be. 

Daily living: the little things that matter

• Cooling & airflow: Tri-zone climate is standard; vents reach the back rows quickly, and the cabin isolates heat well thanks to acoustic/double-glazed glass. On a mid-day grocery run in August, this is not a small thing. 

• Charging & ports: 50W wireless pad up front plus multiple USBs mean fewer fights over cables. The pad is placed smartly so your phone doesn’t ping-pong out in hard braking. 

• Cameras & parking: the 540° view (with an under-body perspective) is fantastic for high kerbs and tight mall exits. Auto-parking is the kind of feature you laugh at until it nails a parallel slot you weren’t sure would fit. 

• Sound: The 14-speaker system spreads sound evenly, and the headrest speakers are a clever touch for calls/navigation prompts. 

• Seats: Ventilated/heated up front, massage when you need it, and powered adjustment for the second row in some trims—a combo that reads properly premium on long days. 

Highlights: the main features that define the Tiggo 9

• Right-sized, three-row packaging (≈ 4,810 mm long, 1,925 mm wide, 2,800 mm wheelbase) with genuinely adult-friendly second row and usable third row. 

• Quiet, comfortable ride backed by double-glazed glass, ENC, and a rigid body structure using a high percentage of high-strength steel. 

• Modern, fast tech stack: Snapdragon 8155, 15.6-inch center screen + 10.25-inch cluster, HUD, 50W wireless charging, wireless CarPlay/Android Auto. 

• Comprehensive driver-assist: 19 ADAS functions, 540° camera, and automated parking. 

• Useful AWD tuning for our region with a “Sandy” program and multiple terrain modes, paired to a smooth 8-speed Aisin automatic and a torquey 2.0T (≈ 250 hp/390 Nm). 

Verdict: who should buy this?

If you want a three-row SUV that feels genuinely premium inside, stays quiet and composed at speed, and loads you up with the tech you’ll actually use, the Tiggo 9 should be on your shortlist. It doesn’t pretend to be a desert-runner; it’s engineered for the 95% of your life that happens on Sheikh Zayed Road, Al Khail, E311, or in city streets and mall ramps—with enough rough-road competence to keep life flexible. The tech is fast, the features list is generous (massage/ventilation, HUD, 540° camera, auto parking), and the ownership story in the UAE is intentionally attractive right now.

Will it outrun the established brands on resale overnight? Probably not—and I wouldn’t expect it to. But if you buy cars to use and enjoy, not to flip, the value proposition becomes hard to ignore. 

The Tiggo 9 is what happens when a brand graduates from “surprising for the money” to “simply a very good family SUV, full stop.” That’s a shift worth paying attention to.

This article was previously published on UAE Moments. To see the original article, انقر هنا