New BYD beating brand incoming: Zeekr will likely launch Lynk & Co soon to bring plug-in hybrid power to its range and take on the 2026 BYD Sealion 6 and Geely Starray

If you thought that there was no way more Chinese car brands could come to Australia, think again. Waiting in the wings is Lynk & Co, which is poised for exactly the right moment to enter the country.

Lynk & Co sits under the direction of Zeekr, which is in turn owned by the Chinese auto giant Geely. Zeekr only sells electric cars, but Lynk & Co has a range of hybrid petrol-electric vehicles waiting to be unleashed on the Australia market.

CarsGuide understands that Zeekr has directed Lynk & Co to wait before entering the Australian market to allow Zeekr to gain a considerable foothold.  It will then be up to Zeekr to decide how Lynk & Co will be presented to Australian consumers and the vehicles may even be rebadged as Zeekrs.

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That decision whether to bring Lynk & Co to Australia as its own entity or as a Zeekr still hasn't been made, according to Zeekr Australia Head of Product, Melvin Low.

“It’s too early to say,” Low said. 

“We need to look at it as a whole — whether it's a single entity or two entities, what’s better for us. So that’s yet to be determined."

Whether Lynk & Co is sold as a Zeekr or not is yet to be seen, but that could be as early as next year. The model the brand will most likely lead with will be the Lynk & Co 08, a plug-in hybrid version of Zeekr’s 7X electric SUV.

Lynk & Co 08

Lynk & Co 08

Zeekr 7X (Image: Tom White)

Zeekr 7X (Image: Tom White)

Zeekr 009

First Zeekr will want to launch its 7X in Australia, which is slated for this year . The 7X will join the two other Zeekr models currently on the market: the X small SUV and 009 people mover.

Compared to other new Chinese brands such as BYD, Zeekr’s expansion into Australia has been slow, but that could change once the brand starts to bring plug-in hybrid vehicles into the country.