Hyundai Kona vs Chery Tiggo 8 PRO MAX

What's the difference?

The Hyundai Kona is the Korean car giant’s best-selling model in Australia, by a reasonably comfortable margin. And in 2025 it managed to battle its way to the top of the ludicrously competitive ‘Small SUV under $45K’ new-vehicle sales category.

Chery’s breakthrough Tiggo 4 Pro, GWM’s Haval Jolion, the MG ZS and close to 20 other well-credited segment rivals can all dream on because currently the Kona has their measure.

So, what’s all that about? Why are so many Aussie SUV buyers choosing to put a Kona in the driveway?

In an attempt to answer that question we slotted a Kona Hybrid into the CarsGuide garage, in this case a new mid-spec Elite version, to explore its relative strengths and weaknesses.

So, if you’re in the market for a compact SUV, with the Kona on your shortlist (and odds are it already is) stay with us for a detailed examination.

If you’re in the market for a seven-seat SUV these days, you really are spoiled for choice.

Of course, you always have your obvious options like the Nissan X-Trail, Mitsubishi Outlander, and Honda CR-V, but what if you’re a big family on a relatively small budget.

Well, Chinese player Chery has just introduced its Tiggo 8 Pro Max into the seven-seat mid-size SUV space. I’m guessing the name means if you’re a professional, maximum-sized family, then it’s designed to be the best option for you.

But does it have what it takes to challenge such established seven-seat rivals? We tested one at its Australian launch to find out.