First Drive: The Zeekr X is an electric SUV with bold ambitions

What is it?

Not a month goes by without a new Chinese car firm looking to enter Europe. Buoyed on by huge sales in their homeland (the largest car market in the world), they have the ambition to target what is considered the toughest car market in the world.

Next up is Zeekr. It’s a firm you’ve likely never heard of, but it has got some significant backing behind it, courtesy of Chinese automotive giant Geely which has already turned around Volvo, is in the process of turning around Lotus and has launched Polestar to much fanfare. It hopes to do the same with Zeekr, and despite launching just 18 months ago, it’s sold more than 150,000 cars in China alone already and looks to be one of the most promising firms coming from this part of the globe.

What’s new?

Zeekr launched initially with a flagship ‘statement’ model, the 001. But it’s now expanding with a model known as the ‘X’. It’s a compact SUV using the same underpinnings as Volvo’s new EX30, though is closer in size to the larger XC40.

It’s launching in Sweden and The Netherlands (two of Europe’s biggest EV markets) first and then will come to the UK in the near future, though Zeekr won’t say when. Packed full of cool details and innovative features, is it likely to fend off rivals like the Mercedes EQA and BMW iX1?

What’s under the bonnet?

The Zeekr X is offered in two versions, a single motor, rear-wheel-drive model and a dual-motor four-wheel-drive version. The former develops a fairly significant 268bhp on its own, but in the Dual Motor model, it takes it up to 428bhp and is exactly the same setup as the Smart #1 Brabus, which it shares a powertrain with. Accelerating to 60mph takes just 3.6 seconds, with the X maxing out at 112mph.

A 66kWh battery is also adopted, which Zeekr claims allows for 273 miles if you opt for the standard car or 248 miles in the case of this more powerful model. With 150kW DC rapid charging capability, both can be topped up from 10 to 80 per cent in under half an hour.

What’s it like to drive?

Jump inside the Zeekr X and at first it can prove a minefield. Almost everything is controlled by the main touchscreen – even the mirror adjustment and headlights. The car is covered with cameras and radars that aim to keep you safe, though some of them are more of an annoyance than a benefit – the driver attention monitor, for example, beeps every time it’s ‘obscured’, such as when you’re turning around a corner. Meanwhile, our test car bonged every time we exceeded 50km/h (31mph), regardless of whether this was the speed limit or not.

Though brutally quick if you put the throttle response to the sportiest setting, the X struggles to handle its performance and would be much better with half the power. We also found the ride to be poor, jostling all over the place and feeling unsettled on all but the smoothest of roads. Some further development is certainly needed before its introduction on the UK’s roads.

How does it look?

Zeekr’s only other model, the 001, is a cracking-looking car, so we’re not quite sure where it all went wrong with the X. Of course, design is always subjective, but to our eyes at least, this SUV is just ugly.

The rear three-quarter area especially is a mess, with just too many details being used and the sloping charging flap just looking wonky. There are some great details at play, however, such as door handles that disappear into the car to open the vehicle, along with a small screen on the B-pillar that can display charging information without having to unlock the car.

If you have ‘pet mode’ activated – essentially a feature that keeps the climate control on if you have a pet in the vehicle – a message is displayed on this screen so that passers-by know not to worry.

What’s it like inside?

There’s some clear Tesla influence on this Zeekr’s cabin, most noticeably with the large 14.6-inch touchscreen. Though it handles far too many functions for our liking, it works well, being slick to operate thanks to 5G connectivity as standard.

The rest of the cabin most certainly looks the part, from a massive glass roof that floods the cabin with light, and a seriously impressive 13-speaker Yamaha sound system. Despite these elements, we found some of the cabin quality to be poor. There were various rattles and vibrations on our test car, while the artificial leather-free seats (a great idea, we’ll add) just feel a bit cheap. It’s certainly some way off BMW or Audi standards.

Courtesy of the clever platform, the passenger area of the cabin feels very roomy, with a virtually flat floor in the front, and plenty of space in the rear seats for adults. However, the boot is compact by class standards, and at 362 litres, is smaller than that of a Volkswagen Golf.

What’s the spec like?

One area where the Zeekr X most certainly can’t be faulted is its equipment levels. Compared to German rivals, which are often sparsely equipped, these SUVs are rammed full of kit.

The large touchscreen, head-up display and digital dial strip are all included as standard, while a vast range of connected functions are included in the first year, though you’ll have to pay for some once the 12 months are up.

The top-spec Privilege model brings the four-wheel-drive setup, along with massaging seats and the top-tier Yamaha sound system. Given the X is yet to be given an on-sale date in the UK, prices are still yet to be announced. In The Netherlands, however, it’s priced from €44,990 (£39,000) for the Single Motor model and €49,490 (£42,950) for the flagship Dual Motor. At this price, it is very competitive next to rivals from Audi, BMW and Mercedes.

Verdict

Given Zeekr’s success already in its home market and the powerhouse it has behind it in Geely, this is one of those Chinese car firms that is likely to be successful and last in Europe. The 001 shows real promise, and there was hope that would carry through with the ‘X’, which will likely be its core European model.

But the X is a car that needs quite a bit of work before it can be successfully let loose in the UK, with the suspension and driver assistance features the main gremlins. It all feels a bit rough around the edges, which doesn’t cut it in the premium segment. That said, Zeekr’s technology is leaps and bounds ahead of many German rivals, and that alone could be a reason to consider the X.