'It's very dangerous': Chery's design boss thinks lots of digital screens in cars are here to stay but need to be done in the right way

Gone are the days when digital gauge clusters and sweeping panoramic touchscreens were reserved for the owners of prestigious European cars like a Mercedes-Benz S-Class or a BMW 7 Series.

In 2025, the screen revolution has met price parity. Step into Australia’s cheapest small SUV, the Chery Tiggo 4 (which retails for just $23,990 drive-away) and you’re greeted by a symphony of them.

For some customers it's a symbol of sophistication and modernity; for others, it's a source of frustration.

Steve Eum, the Vice President and General Manager of Design at Chery, knows this contention all too well and admits it's an increasingly difficult one to navigate.

“The screen technology is evolving quite fast. Once one vehicle comes out with two screens everybody wants three screens,” said Eum.

“Having said that, I think it’s very dangerous for us to really just keep putting in more features that distract you from the real driving part of owning a vehicle.”

"For us, the big challenge is: how do we design around that technology to make it as simple, natural and holistic as much as possible?”

It was only a mere six or seven years ago that the majority of cars on sale still maintained physical controls for most pivotal functions like multimedia, air-conditioning and even gear shifting.

But the minimalist revolution, largely popularised by the Tesla Model 3 and Tesla Model Y in the early 2020s, has seen the rulebook ripped apart when it comes to user-engagement in modern cars.

Practically all of a Tesla’s integral functions – including gear shifting – are navigated through the central screen.

New Chinese EV brands that have arrived on our shores in the last few years have doubled down on this trend further. Geely, Zeekr, BYD, XPeng and Leapmotor all live and die by their central touchscreens, some of which admittedly do the technology better than others.

The Jaecoo J8, a new Chery sub-branded SUV that Eum was in Australia to promote, is no different.

While not going to the extreme lengths of Tesla or some of its Chinese rivals in abandoning a physical gear stalk, the J8 and its smaller J7 sibling still require the driver to navigate climate controls, media and steering wheel adjustment settings through the central screen.

“For us, we want to keep it as visually minimal as possible but still offer that high technical and functional content,” said Eum.

Some will inevitably recoil at the technology, but Eum believes there is no going back as brands increasingly cater to a younger, tech-savvy demographic.

“It all depends on the demographic and the age factor. Especially for me, the older crowd, we’re still maybe used to the older parts of technology where you need to have physical buttons to have that engagement.”

“I think the younger crowd definitely is a little more adaptive to what I call this transitory or migratory technology that is happening, whether it be physical buttons and flush buttons…yoke steering wheels and steer-by-wire.”

Eum conceded that the technology needs to be done right, warranting continuous improvements of its screen technology and cabin design to make sure its cars are as distraction-free and as user-friendly as possible.

“I think we need to somehow naturally engage [cabin design] with the customer to make sure they adapt to it in a natural and holistic way.”

“These kinds of technologies still need some time to get adjusted to, for the customers to get familiar with, but it's coming.”