Chery Tiggo 8 Pro Max 2025: Should You Buy?

The Tiggo 8 Pro Max is one of your affordable three-row, seven-seater SUVs on the market right now. At a starting price of AED 98,500 in the UAE, it is a spacious family option for buyers looking for an alternative to the more established cars in the segment. Part of the leading Chinese brand Chery, which entered the Emirate in late 2023. Since then the brand has made aggressive expansion with key product introductions across various categories. So, could the Tiggo 8 Pro Max be your next brand-new SUV? We try to answer it by offering all the key details to help you make an informed decision.

Exterior Design

The Tiggo 8 Pro Max is 4,722 mm in length, 1,860 mm in width, and 1,705 mm in height. That's big enough to feel adequate without being too big for city driving. The 2,710 mm wheelbase offers decent space inside, especially for that third row. The front end gets what Chery calls Leopard Eye LED headlights, the narrow lights with integrated daytime running lights. 

The diamond-pattern front row dominates the face and gives the SUV an aggressive look. LED tail lights wrap around the rear, which makes a distinctive light signature at night. Electric folding mirrors come standard, useful for tight parking spots. The body rides on alloy wheels that fill the arches well. The overall design feels contemporary without being too adventurous, which should help it age reasonably well.

Interior Space and Features

This is where the Tiggo 8 Pro Max makes its strongest case. You get three rows of seating with enough room for adults in the second row and kids in the third. The cabin uses soft-touch materials and leather upholstery that feel premium for the price point.

The center of the attraction is the giant 15.6-inch HD touchscreen angled toward the driver. It gets infotainment, navigation, and vehicle settings. The digital instrument cluster is a separate 10.25-inch display. Both screens are clear and responsive. An eight-speaker sound system is your entertainment hub with great audio quality. The climate control is automatic with rear vents to keep passengers comfortable in all three rows. There's 50W wireless charging for phones on the center console. The panoramic sunroof gives an airy feel to the cabin.

When it comes to storage inside the cabin, you find quite enough with cupholders throughout and door pockets. The seats fold in various configurations to maximize cargo space when you need to haul larger items. 

Safety 

The Tiggo 8 Pro Max has secured a five-star safety rating in C-NCAP. Passenger safety is covered by 8 airbags across all three rows. In the event of a crash, the body has been built with 85% high-strength steel.

Standard driver assistance features include adaptive cruise control, forward collision warning, autonomous emergency braking, lane keeping assist, lane departure warning, blind spot detection, and rear cross-traffic alert. There's also a 540-degree camera system that combines multiple views to make parking easier. Hill hold assist and hill descent control help during driving on inclines. The chassis tuning is more focused on comfort than sporty handling, considering family preferences.  An advanced intelligent AWD system is available on certain variants for better traction.

Powertrain Performance

The 2.0-liter turbocharged engine is the main offering; with 254 hp and 390 Nm of torque, it moves the big SUV with ease. The 7-speed dual-clutch transmission is known for its smooth operation, though DCTs can be a little jerky, especially during slow traffic or on crowded roads. The mileage is close to 12–15 km/L, depending on road conditions and driving habits. But the real deal is the 1.5T plug-in hybrid variant, which comes with a promise of superior efficiency with its combined output of 310 hp and 510 Nm. It's worth considering if you want lower running costs and can charge early.

What You Should Know

The Tiggo 8 Pro Max has a lot on offer in terms of superior build quality and spaciousness and enticing features at an attractive price of AED 98,500. That sets it apart from its rivals in the segment. You're getting seven proper seats, a huge infotainment screen, comprehensive safety tech, and a powerful engine, all for less than what many five-seater SUVs cost. But like everything else, there may be some trade. One is that the brand is relatively new in the UAE. You need to consider the resale value for obvious reasons. 

Chery has been growing its presence, but its service network will take time to reach some of the most well-known brands. Regarding the product, the Tiaggo 8 Pro Max is well built, featuring a strong steel structure and comprehensive safety measures. But long-term reliability data for this specific model in UAE conditions is limited; however, the 7-year warranty helps address some concerns about durability.

The Competition

The Tiggo 8 Pro Max takes on the MG RX9 (AED 99,000-121,000), Geely Okavango (AED 99,000-110,000), Mitsubishi Montero Sport (AED 89,900), and Nissan X-Terra (AED 104,000-143,000). The Montero Sport is cheaper and comes with a proven reputation for reliability and strong resale value. The Xterra offers similar space with Nissan's proven durability. The MG RX9 is the newest competitor with aggressive features and a similar value proposition.

The Geely Okavango is perhaps the closest match, a Chinese brand with seven seats and similar pricing. It comes with a mild-hybrid system and comparable tech. Between these two, it comes down to which dealer network you trust more and which cabin you prefer.

Should You Buy?

If you need seven seats and your budget caps around AED 100,000, the Tiggo 8 Pro Max deserves consideration. The space is genuine, the features are generous, and the safety equipment is comprehensive. The warranty coverage provides some peace of mind.

But there are things you should look into carefully before proceeding with your decision. Aspects like value and long-term ownership are real concerns, which you don't find with brands like Mitsubishi and Nissan. However, experimenting with a new Chinese brand is not a big deal with you, and you are going to keep the car for the longer term; with a longer warranty period, the Tiggo 8 Pro Max is everything considered.

It is worth taking it for a test drive alongside the Montero Sport, X-Terra, and Geely Okavango. This should give you a perfect judgement about the car's capability before you make a decision.