Chery Malaysia holds first Super Hybrid Battery Safety Challenge, Tiggo 7 PHEV and Tiggo 8 PHEV battery put through live fire test

KUALA LUMPUR: Chery Malaysia has held its first Chery Super Hybrid Battery Safety Challenge in Malaysia, using a live fire test to show how its plug-in hybrid battery pack holds up under extreme heat.

The exercise was attended by more than 100 people, including government officials and members of the media, allowing the test to be observed openly rather than behind closed doors.

The session was meant to highlight the brand’s continued focus on battery safety through real-world demonstrations, instead of relying solely on laboratory claims.

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“Safety is at the core of our development process. Beyond meeting regulatory requirements, we conduct rigorous and extreme validation tests, and we demonstrate these tests publicly to help people understand the technology, the standards behind it, and why we are confident in its safety,” said Men Lin Bo, Executive Vice President of Chery Corporate Malaysia.

He added that with every Safety Challenge conducted, Chery continues to strengthen its consumer confidence, improve engineering processes and set higher benchmarks for the automotive industry.

Before the live demonstration began, attendees were given a technical briefing by Chery battery expert Zhang Wei Bo, aimed at giving more context on the battery system and the test itself.

For the Malaysian challenge, the battery pack used in the Chery Tiggo 7 PHEV and Chery Tiggo 8 PHEV was put through a high-temperature fire test. This involved a preheating phase followed by 1 minute and 20 seconds of direct flame exposure.

Chery said the battery remained stable throughout the test, with no fire escalation, no electrical failure and no uncontrolled deformation, allowing it to complete the challenge under severe heat.

Because the demonstration was carried out outdoors, members of the media were able to inspect the battery’s condition before, during and after the fire exposure.

Chery said this reflects its approach of showing safety performance in a visible, real-world environment instead of limiting such demonstrations to controlled lab conditions.

The Malaysia event is part of Chery’s wider global battery safety programme, which has seen the company run a string of battery abuse and durability tests in different markets.

In China, Chery previously carried out head-on collision and spiral rollover tests to evaluate battery stability under heavy structural impact. In Indonesia, its battery pack was immersed in seawater for 53 hours to test corrosion resistance and electrical isolation in humid, high-salinity conditions.

Other global tests included an offset frontal collision test at 50 km/h in South Africa, a live-fire test in Ecuador where the battery pack was penetrated by six rounds of ammunition, and environmental durability tests in the Middle East. These included 48 hours of 60-degree seawater immersion in Qatar, as well as 48 hours buried beneath desert sand in Kuwait. In Mexico, Chery also ran a battery scraping test to simulate abrasion and underbody damage risks.

Beyond the safety challenge itself, Chery Malaysia also used the event to underline the safety credentials of its plug-in hybrid line-up.

The Tiggo 7 PHEV currently holds a 5-Star ASEAN NCAP rating, with Chery noting that it scored 94.68 points. The company also said the model achieved full marks in both Adult Occupant Protection and Safety Assist, making it the only plug-in hybrid model so far to record what it describes as a double perfect score.

On ownership, Chery Malaysia said it provides a battery warranty of up to 10 years or 200,000 km. The coverage includes the battery power pack, drive motor and vehicle control unit, which should at least help address one of the more common concerns among buyers considering electrified vehicles for the long term.

“When we look at our PHEV offering today, it reflects a very complete and thoughtful approach to safety and ownership confidence. From conducting rigorous and extreme safety tests, to providing long-term battery warranty support, and achieving a 5-Star ASEAN NCAP rating with an all-time high score for the TIGGO 7 PHEV, each element builds on our long-standing commitment to protecting our customers.

These achievements are about delivering a well-rounded Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) that customers can trust. One that combines proven safety performance, dependable technology, and assurance throughout their ownership journey,” said Lee Wen Hsiang, Vice President of Chery Malaysia.

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