Zeekr X (rwd) Reviews

People movers were never cool in Australia, but that’s changing as our evolving tastes take us out of SUVs and into little buses.

In 2025 branding means way more than a hot iron mark scorched into a steer’s backside.It’s about a brand’s personality, reputation and your interactions with it. What it says about you. What it delivers. How it makes you feel. A visual identity, a design style… and a million other things.   And there are automotive brands in the Australian new-car market that have strategically built solid brand equity over many decades.Current market leader, Toyota began dipping its corporate toe into global export waters by shipping cars here in the late 1950s. And other Japanese makers like Honda, Mazda and Nissan followed it in conquering initial hesitancy by steadily investing in strong retail networks, pushing product improvement and focusing on a positive customer experience.Ford has built its global brand around everything from the Model T and its revolutionary assembly line to pumped up muscle cars and victory at Le Mans. While here it embedded itself in the local landscape via a manufacturing presence spanning close to a century and regular victory at Mount Panorama.And more recently, relative newcomers like Hyundai and Kia have moved rapidly from cheap and (mostly) cheerful to innovators that repositioned the concept of value and quality in the local market.All of which led to large pockets of ‘rusted on’ brand loyalty. The concept of ‘Ford and Holden families’ started to diminish from the moment the latter departed the scene in 2020 (if not before), but Toyota’s reputation for value, durability and affordable ownership has seen it maintain a legion of never-say-die fans.Same for Ford, Mazda, Mitsubishi and others. But I'd argue a turning point was when, after an initial false start through a private importer in 2013, MG set up as a direct subsidiary in 2017.Great Wall had landed as the first Chinese car brand in the Aussie market in 2009, but MG 2.0 was different. Even if its ‘Since 1924’ positioning stretched credulity, its products were better than expected and pricing was ultra sharp.Sharp enough to encourage budget-focused new-car buyers, even used-car prospects, to give the brand a go.With the introduction of new-generation products in the early 2020s sales took off like a rocket, and it’s here that my ‘That’s a good idea’ theory kicks in.I reckon executives at rival Chinese car brands, keeping an eye on MG’s increasing success Down Under, all had the same ‘good idea’ at the same time. Namely, let’s get into Australia and grab a piece of that action. Hence the subsequent arrival of Chery in 2023, itself a factory-backed restart after an initial import-distribution arrangement broke down back in 2011. Followed by the flood gates opening, with BYD, Deepal, Geely, a ramped up GWM, JAC, LDV, Leapmotor, Smart, Jaecoo, XPeng and Zeekr all jumping in with Aion, Avatar, Jetour, Lynk & Co, Skyworth and others waiting in the wings.Doesn’t matter which category you’re talking about - white goods, sporting equipment, hi-fi - if one fresh competitor enters a mature market, it’s likely to be met with reluctance, even contempt by existing brand loyalists.But if near enough to 20 newcomers blaze into market at the same time, clearly something seismic is going on and it feels like you’d be missing a trick if you didn’t at least investigate the rapidly changing competitive landscape.Give them the benefit of 20/20 hindsight as well as a time machine and it’s not certain all the new brands above would currently be making an Aussie entrance.But multiple triggers have been pulled with retail network deals done, head office staff recruited, parts warehousing set up, service and sales training completed and marketing campaigns launched. So, in a mature market, early movers like MG, Chery and GWM have the advantage and more recent arrivals will need to find a way to win over buyers… fast. And it’s a fair bet the ever-impactful lever marked price will be pulled on a regular basis.Some of the newcomers as well as more than a few existing legacy brands will be forced into a price war. Like it or not, loyalty comes under pressure when the incentive is enticing enough and with a cut-price cage fight likely to take place sooner rather than later not everyone will leave the octagon alive.Stand by for new-car buyers tempted en masse into ‘unbeatable deals’ that mean brand loyalties will be stretched beyond breaking point. The shake out from this looming war of attrition will be huge. 

Race track? Check. People mover? Check. Wait, what? Yes we took a fully-electric 450kW Zeekr 009 people mover to the race track to see what would happen.

Chinese carmaker Zeekr has revealed its flagship 9X SUV at the Shanghai auto show ahead of the car’s official launch in the third quarter of this year.According to the brand’s local operations, the 5.3-metre long model is under active consideration for Australia as it looks to strengthen its two-strong line-up, currently consisting of the X electric SUV and 009 electric people mover.In terms of design, the 9X strongly resembles luxury SUV staples, such as the Rolls-Royce Cullinan or Toyota Century SUV. That said, it borrows its foundations from fellow Geely-owned brand Lynk & Co’s 900, which is slated for release later this month.Underneath, the 9X will carry a Xiaoyao battery pack from CATL that Zeekr claims will deliver 380km of pure-electric range, marking the furthest distance among hybrid SUVs globally.Zeekr hasn’t detailed the exact size of the battery, nor total power and torque outputs, but it will come paired to a 2.0-litre turbo-petrol engine that delivers 205kW on its own.The entire configuration will see the 9X rocket from 0-100km/h in a claimed 3.0 seconds.Ride comfort will be secured through “industry-first” dual-chamber air suspension and active stabiliser bars, the brand says.Inside, there will be Rolls-Royce-style starlight headlining, while Zeekr’s 'G-Pilot H9' autonomous driving system with five Lidar sensors will also be fitted.The 9X’s twin, the Lynk & Co 900, will launch before the 9X, which the brand says has already attracted some 40,000 pre-orders. The brand is set to launch in Australia next year.It loses the 9X’s large chrome grille and LED headlight clusters for a flat front bumper panel and dual-'fanged' headlights. There are different wheel designs in addition to the 900’s unique rear LED tail-light bar design.Zeekr says the 900’s dual-electric-motor, 2.0-litre turbo-petrol engine set-up delivers a total power output of 650kW, while the time it takes to sprint from 0-100km/h rises to 4.3 seconds.Inside, the 900 boasts twin 30-inch 6K displays and six seats with 180-degree rotating functions.Pricing for either model is unclear, although in China, the 9X is anticipated to range from approximately A$110,000 for the base-spec to A$215,000 for the top-spec ‘Grand Edition’.Full pricing and specifications for the 9X are expected to emerge ahead of the car’s official launch later this year.

It’s a name most new-car buyers are only just getting to grips with, but Chinese EV specialist Zeekr continues to make its mark with yet another new model emerging overnight.Featuring a distinctive tapering ‘shooting brake’ profile in the style of Porsche’s Taycan Sport Turismo, the Zeekr 007 GT is the brand’s second electric station wagon, following in the wheel tracks of the slightly larger Zeekr 001.With a claimed range of up to 825km, 475kW on tap in the top-spec dual-motor AWD variant and air suspension standard, it’s set to make a splash in the Chinese market, where wagons aren’t usually a mainstream choice. Despite this, the 001 wagon has proved popular.Offered in single-motor (310kW) rear-wheel drive and dual-motor (475kW) AWD form, the 007 GT wagon rides on the same modular platform as its sedan sibling, measuring just under 4.9m long, 1.9m wide and a little over 1.4m tall with a 2925mm wheelbase.Claimed 0-100km/h acceleration is a supercar-like 2.95 seconds! There are two battery options for RWD and AWD models - a 75kWh lithium iron phosphate (LFP) and 100kWh nickel manganese cobalt (NMC) pack, with (CLTC) range stretching from 585–825km. An 800V architecture means the 007 GT is claimed to charge from 10 to 80 per cent in just 10.5 minutes on a DC fast charger.The GT features a 90-inch interactive LED screen in its nose able to display text and emojis, which is unlikely to see the light of day outside the domestic market.Retractable door handles, aero roof rails and a rear spoiler enhance the car’s sleek looks, with 20-inch rims filling the wheel arches.Inside, there’s a big 15.4-inch media touchscreen and LCD digital instrument display as well as 35.5-inch augmented reality head-up display.The five seats seats are trimmed in Nappa leather with the fronts featuring 14-way power adjustment as well as heating, cooling and a massage function.Boot capacity is a healthy 645 litres, which expands to a substantial 1737 litres with the split folded second-row seats lowered. Fun fact: An optional 10.2-litre refrigerator can be fitted under the boot floor.Pricing in China starts at ¥202,900 for the RWD 75kWh entry-model, rising to ¥262,900 for the 100kWh AWD version.On a direct currency conversion that’s a spread of around $43,500 to $56,400. Add a roughly 20 per cent bump to cover import and distribution and that jumps to $52,200 to $67,680.Zeekr has confirmed the car will be exported to Europe as the Zeekr 7 GT and CarsGuide has contacted Zeekr Australia to see if it’s in line for a local launch. This story will be updated with any feedback received.

Zeekr has cut up to $7000 off the price of its X small electric SUV as it fights off competition from fellow Chinese brands and other rivals such as Tesla and Volkswagen. 

Zeekr is teasing what will be the flagship SUV in its line-up, with a hybrid twist.

The rapid and seemingly unstoppable expansion of Chinese carmakers is something to behold.But is it too far-fetched to think all cars will be Chinese within the next 20 years? Or is it naive not to see it as a strong possibility?For a long time I’ve thought the emergence of new Chinese cars in Australia and globally was the natural progression of the car industry. New brands morph from alternative fledgling brands to mature and established ones. We saw this with Japanese brands such as Toyota, Mazda, Mitsubishi and Nissan which gained popularity in the 1960s and ’70s before becoming established go-to brands in the 1980s and ’90s as they fought homegrown heroes Ford and Holden for space in Australia's driveways. And it stayed that way until the first decade of the 2000s ticked over.Holden and Ford’s ranges and sales shrank giving way to the Koreans who filled the gap with Hyundai and Kia which have climbed high into the top 10 thanks to an excellent range of SUVs and EVs.They’re now marching towards the only brands that stand in their way - Mitsubishi, Ford, Mazda and Toyota - which, by the way, have about three EVs between them.And given another five years Kia and Hyundai may have been able to topple Toyota from number one. But it might be too late for that. The presence of a large and fast-growing force is creating major uncertainty for the established brands in the Australian market - the rise and rise of Chinese brands. At the end of 2024 there were 12 Chinese brands operating in Australia and this year we’re expecting at least another seven to arrive. To put that in perspective we currently have a total of 50 car brands in Australia and nine are Japanese. By the end of 2025 the Chinese tally could easily be 20 brands or 30 per cent of Australia's brand make up.Several Chinese brands have been in Australia for years and have already done the hard yards. It took MG a couple of attempts to find a foothold but it was the seventh best-selling brand in 2024, while GWM came in at 10th. LDV is further down but still sold more than 16,000 vehicles here last year.The newer Chinese arrivals show huge promise with most of them offering affordable electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids when the established brands have only a handful among them, usually at higher prices.BYD, Zeekr, Leapmotor, Geely, Deepal, XPeng, Smart, JAC, Aion, Chery and Jaecoo will spend 2025 launching a multitude of new vehicles here. BYD will be one to watch having sold more cars here last year than Mercedes-Benz and it will likely enter the top 10 best sellers next year. Geely, which is the ‘Volkswagen of China’ in terms of its size and how many brands it owns, is another to watch.Chinese car manufacturers' speed of production, the development of new platforms and technology, the low cost of batteries, availability of electronics and the breakthroughs being made in charging systems, plus the sheer amount of money and Chinese government support behind them make competition almost impossible for many other brands.It’s almost certain that some established brands will bow out of Australia, unable to compete with Chinese brands. It’s also feasible that within the next decade more than half the Australian market could be made up of Chinese brands. And surely some Chinese brands won’t be able to cut it here and leave, too.Who could survive? Well, time has shown that even the mighty like Holden have fallen if they don’t make the cars people want to buy. The sheer brute force of Chinese brands being able to offer what people want quickly and at a low price, and at an always improving tech level could be too difficult for many other brands to fight off.In an extreme scenario this could lead to a 100 per cent Chinese brand market within 15 years. Sounds far fetched? Well they’re a third of the way there already.  

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Lynk & Co has detailed its upcoming flagship 900 three-row SUV with previously unheard-of driving range and an all-new battery type.