Geely Riddara PHEV ute likely for Oz

Geely looks set to shock the Australian new car market with its own PHEV pick-up truck version of the Riddara small ute. 

More – and likely larger – utes are also under development, as the brand seeks to gain a strong foothold in mature export markets like Australia. 

Geely Australia CEO, Li Lei, implied the Riddara ute – currently available in China as a pure EV – will likely get a PHEV powertrain specifically tailored for Australian conditions. 

Because so far, EV utes are yet to find favour with Aussie buyers. 

However, Australia’s first PHEV pick-up truck, the BYD Shark 6, is on track to be one of the top-selling utes in 2025 and other brands are scrambling to get into the PHEV game. The GWM Cannon Alpha PHEV is almost here and the Ford Ranger PHEV is slated to arrive mid-year. 

“If we are going to bring the [Riddara] ute to the Australian market, of course we will bring the best solution to Australian customers,” Li said. 

“Utes are very popular and Australian customers like utes. As I mentioned before, Geely has a very wide product coverage so right now we have a ute product, pure EV, in China.” 

When pressed on a timeline and further details around the PHEV ute, Li remained tight-lipped. 

However, the senior Geely exec wouldn’t rule out more utes – specifically larger utes, given the small ‘lifestyle’ or Ford Maverick size of the Riddara – and hinted that more are in the pipeline. 

“A lot of projects are still secret, I cannot talk about that,” he said with a smile. 

Li’s response is expected to fuel speculation that Geely is preparing a comprehensive assault on Australia’s ute market. And while nothing has been officially confirmed, a Ford Ranger and Toyota HiLux-sized ute is almost certain to be under consideration by Geely, if not already in development, as that’s where the big money is. 

Roughly one in five new cars sold in Australia is a ute. 

It’s not just Geely that is keen to get in on the ute act either, as Leapmotor is keen on a pick-up truck and Chery is preparing a dual-cab ute.  

The move into the ute segment signals a direct challenge to established players like Ford and Toyota but also to relative newcomers like GWM and BYD. 

Early sales numbers suggest the addition of a PHEV option to the pick-up truck has significant appeal, serving as a stepping stone for Australian buyers hesitant about pure electric utes due to range anxiety. This is especially the case in rural areas, where charging infrastructure remains limited and longer distances are the norm. 

The Riddara, known as the Radar RD6 in China, doesn’t have a particularly long range at around 400 to 500km. A PHEV version would easily double that range and provide an alternative to diesel-powered utes. 

With Australia’s ute market accounting for three of the top 10 selling vehicles nationwide in 2024, Geely’s new move could create another disruptive factor, upsetting the status quo in what for decades has been an established and relatively stable market segment. 

Chinese automotive giant Geely already has runs on the board in Australia with its premium Polestar and Volvo brands and it has just launched its first Geely-badged vehicle, the EX5 mid-size SUV, which is priced sharply from around $40,000. 

Geely has made no secret of its plans to establish more than 100 dealerships across Australia and New Zealand and is prepping PHEV SUVs, such as the Starship 7 and Geely L7, as well as several more all-electric SUVs for local consumers. 

The addition of a new PHEV ute – or several – would certainly bolster the brand’s long-term prospects in Australia. 

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