Last year was a good year for Zeekr. Despite the anti-Chinese tensions, the soft Chinese economy, and the overall oddity of the EV market, it was primarily online for Chinese-Swedish brands. They don’t even sell cars in the US, but they stole the show at CES, but announced they have sold over 15,000 units since they began selling cars outside of China.
That’s not bad. That’s not bad considering the fact that it’s a new brand with a strangely named model that has been shaped like hellishly to span over traditional sedans and crossover segments. It’s like the non-subcompact Zeekr X and the Polestar-4-with-a-rear-Window Zeekr 001 “Shooting Brake” are generally good cars, but it doesn’t point your competitors directly to the model YS or BMW X3S . world.
But this is true. Meet Zeekr 7X, and it could be a poster boy for Geely Group’s World Domination Plan.
That plan means that we need to create something that ordinary people can hope for and identify. The look of the Zeekr 7X may be the brand’s most traditional product.
When I was in China late last year, a representative from Zeekr took seven times the base model from dealers in the Shanghai area, captivating the town in just over an hour. My time may have been short, but I can’t be wrong.
(Full disclosure: Zeekr gave me seven times the keys during a trip to China from a random Shanghai Zeekr dealer.)
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What is Zeekr 7x?
Now, with the dozens of articles we wrote here (many of me) I hope you’re quite familiar with Zeekr. Zeekr is another Chinese brand with deep European roots under Geely Umbrella.
We have a lot of technology developments for all Geely brands, including platform sharing with Volvo and Polestar. Zeekr is a premium brand with a luxurious aspiration, adjacent to Tesla, sometimes slightly above it. Currently, the brand is creating gags for full EV models, including luxury vans, compact crossovers, sporty sedans and station wagons (aka shooting brakes).
Photo: InsideEvs
The 7x is Zeekr’s first attempt at a traditional upright SUV or crossover in one of the most popular segments around the world. Below that it is closely associated with the very excellent Zeekr 007 sedan. Both use the same variant of the Volvo GLeC chassis. Both cars have a 75 kWh golden battery from Zeekr, allowing you to sprint to 80% in just 10 and a half minutes, and both are suited to the same single or dual motor setup. To 636 horsepower.
It is the cutting edge of modern EVs with an 800 volt electric architecture that boasts a maximum charging speed of over 500 kW in China. Charging time increases slightly to 10-80% sprint in 13 minutes at 360 kW, Europe’s fastest DC fast charger.
Ah, like the Mix and 007 sedan, the 7X has the same optional “Stargate” panel that lets you display custom messages and greetings on the front of the car. Zeekr itself resisted the urge to align the roofline with the coupe in the name of aesthetics, as it states that 7x is family-friendly. This is intended to be a practical, luxurious crossover.
Photo: InsideEvs
Photo: InsideEvs
Photo: InsideEvs
Overall, the Zeekr 7x is handsome, even though it looks perhaps the most interesting vehicle from the brand. It’s a well-balanced car, with very few front overhangs and the glass is upright. It also prevents it from falling into traps like the coupes of other crossover SUVs. .
It definitely feels like an SUV, but the clean styling and elegant side of it doesn’t make it feel like something huge and bulky. Technically, it’s 190 inches (4860 mm) long and is bigger than cars like the Mercedes-Benz GLC and BMW X3, but like the NIO ES6, most Americans make this an entry-level compact cross I think I’ll consider it over. That’s great, but compared to the out-design of X, Mix, 001, the 7X is like a pedestrian. That’s not a bad thing, but it’s just.
Inside, the interior of the Zeekr 7X is incredibly luxurious. Maybe it’s an ivory and gold interior and has a lot of heavy lifting, I love the cream leather interior, but it’s very nice. Like other Zeekr products, the brand shows attention to details that have not been seen in a very long time from so-called premium manufacturers. All ingredients are pure white. All touchpoints have soft touch leather surfaces, and the headliner has Alcantara, and a wealth of rooms for both passengers.
Photo: InsideEvs
Photo: InsideEvs
Photo: InsideEvs
With some modern Audi or BMW products, you can easily find incredible materials and trim pieces that feel a bit good for the price of your car. With Zeekr 7X you actually need to search for those pieces. Q6 E-Tron interiors may have some distinctive inexpensive materials that are inexpensive for MSRP, but the 7X stylish interior and lightning quick infotainment screen are a great way to get rid of highway robbery It feels like you’re running away.
How does the Zeekr 7x drive?
I drive so many sea platform cars and may be the only person who is not an employee of Geely or Volvo. They are all generally these cars. I’m not on the wheel of something dynamically poor yet. Even if some of them have a bit of weight issues, they are all generally well resolved.
7x is no exception to this rule. Like 007, it feels like it’s most relevant, at least seven times better sorted, from what I can tell on busy roads in Shanghai. It’s comfortable, comfortable and whispering. It is all important qualities for Chinese buyers. On its face it is a very mediocre read of seven times, and plenty of cars are comfortable and compliant. However, there is one thing that stands out most to me about the Zeekr 7x. It’s really agile.
Photo: InsideEvs
When I drove the NIO ES6 and ONVO L60, I was a bit offensive how lightly the driving experience was cut off. The suspension was soft and the steering was light. There wasn’t much calibration, but the engineers at Nio and Onvo clearly had targets in mind for those who didn’t want to feel the road at all. Zeekr customers are different because the 7X steering is relatively communicative.
The crossover would require a bit of market-specific tuning for NIO and ONVO to be attractive to Western audiences, but I think Zeekr’s7X feels very good . You can see why Ethan Robertson, owner of YouTube Wheelsboy, called the 7x “still still dealing with Chinese EVs.” That’s a bit.
And this was all standard range, without the actual options for the 416 HP RWD unit. I’m not sure if you really need a larger battery or extra traction and power from the 637 hp AWD model.
So, what does this mean to us?
I am not going to give hope to our American audience here. The idea that Zeekr will miraculously come to the US in some way in the near future, even considering Zeekr’s new Arizona office and (anyway) non-charrant attitude towards the growth of anti-Chinese sentiment that has grown under US law It’s quite slim.
Since I went to China to talk to NIO and drove some Zeekrs, the geopolitical tensions between the US and China have deteriorated significantly. It is not clear what will happen with EV subsidies and development during the Trump administration.
Photo: InsideEvs
However, 7x is still important for several reasons. For one, for non-US audiences with access to Zeekr, the next model may solidify the brand as a true competitor in markets outside of China. The Zeekr X and 001 are generally known to be good cars, but they are not strange vehicles. The Zeekr 7x is excellent and comes in a size and shape that is familiar to consumers. This is a friendly model that can really put a dent in sales from brands that are truly established in the sale of EVS of this size and class, if the price is abundant. Especially if this is billed as fast and fast as some experience.
Secondly, it portends a good for the Geely brand that is being sold towards us. 7x will never reach the US or Canada, but this car’s visceral pole star or Volvo could potentially jump the EV effort of a major brand that doesn’t seem to understand it .
In any case, the Zeekr 7x proves that China has what it takes to compete on the global stage. And I thought you should look at your back.
Please contact the author: kevin.williams@insideevs.com
