Chery has reaffirmed its commitment to developing and improving on all types of vehicle propulsion with the recent launch of its Chery 4.0 programme.

Named Chery 4.0 Full-field Power Architecture for its reference to four distinct types of propulsion, the programme commits Chery and its thousands of research and development engineers to the development of fuel, hybrid, pure electric and hydrogen power plants. This programme will run from 2021 to 2030.

“The most important part of this new promise of technological development is our commitment to development. Put differently, we are not simply saying that we will continue to manufacture these four distinct types of propulsion, but we will improve on them at every step,” says Tony Liu, Executive Deputy General Manager of Chery South Africa.

Liu explains that, for instance, in the case of internal combustion and hybrid engines, Chery has been able to increase these engines’ thermal efficiency to 45%. Not only is this level of thermal efficiency well above the industry standard, but it also allowed Chery to offer fuel savings compared to traditional engines and first-generation hybrid systems, by up to 95%.

Chery’s single-minded commitment to developing the best possible propulsion systems was recognised at this year’s China Heart Engine Awards.

China Heart is considered one of the three most authoritative engine awards, alongside the Ward Top Ten Engine Awards and the International Engine of the Year Awards. It has been held for the past 16 years and have featured 9 of Chery’s proprietary engines in the Top 10 Awards.

This year, the awards went one step further by picking the new Chery 2.0T GDI engine as its overall winner.

This petrol engine uses Chery’s second-generation i-HEC combustion system and an ultra-high direct injection system of 350 bars to deliver an impressive 192 kW and 400 Nm of torque. Importantly, the engine has a maximum thermal efficiency of 41%, making it one of the most efficient and strongest pound-for-pound engines in the competition and arguably in the world.

The winning 2.0T GDI engine follows earlier news that Chery has set a new standard for a full hybrid system.

This new Chery Hybrid System uses three electric motors to offer full four-wheel drive, a 0-100 km acceleration in less than five seconds and an average fuel consumption figure of less than 1 litre per 100 km.

The Chery Hybrid system has nine distinct working modes and 11 combined gears for the most optimal performance in any situation.

“With so many innovations, real-world performance and fuel consumption figures that have rarely been seen before and the promise of even more innovation in the new future, Chery has earned the moniker of ‘Technological Chery’ in China. We look forward to showcasing these technologies to our South African customers,” says Liu.

A range of new internal combustion, hybrid and electric options is available on the Tiggo 8 Pro, which is also earmarked for South Africa in 2022.