Zeekr 7X Long-range 2024 review - International

Despite being all-but-confirmed for Australia in 2025, there’s no indication of local prices just yet, but with a price tag between $49,000 and $57,000 in China they could double those figures here and the flagship edition would still undercut the base GLE/EQE and X5/iX models by around $20,000.

That kind of figure would put the 7X in something of a sweet spot you might call ‘mainstream plus’, simultaneously able to attract aspirational buyers eyeing an upgrade, and perhaps traditional premium buyers who think a Mercedes or BMW is too conventional and not as well equipped.

It might be easier to state what the Zeekr 7X doesn’t come with, but we’ll give it a go, accepting the caveat that what’s offered in China might not make it to Australia for various reasons.

Of the things we’re sure we won’t get, the STARGATE LED light panel on the front, not legal in Australia, is the first casualty. And we likely won't see either the electric-powered doors or the smart B-pillar screen, which provides car status information and facial-recognition unlocking.

What we will get are 19-inch wheels as standard, with 20-inch optional extras, and probably induction pop-out door handles which let you release the door without needing to physically pull the handle.

Inside, there’s a 13-inch information display and a 36.21-inch augmented-reality head-up display, as well as a 16-inch, 3.5k central screen running the super slick Snapdragon 8295 processor.

This comes with Zeekr’s AI assistant, Eva, built-in, and given the relative lack of physical switchgear, you might want to polish up your speaking voice as she can handle a bunch of vehicle functions and much more, including answering questions in a manner akin to ChatGPT.

In addition, the 21-speaker Zeekr Sound audio system is standard, and boasts 2160W output and 7.1.4 surround sound for those who like to watch movies in the car. Two of those speakers are located in the driver’s headrest for satellite navigation instructions.

For the unsociable front seat passenger, there’s also phone screen mirroring and dual Bluetooth audio channels, enabling them to scroll through cat videos on TikTok without disturbing your driving. Device charging is covered too, with twin 50W vented wireless units in the front, and USB-A and USB-C sockets dotted all over the cabin.

A 1.35m2 panoramic roof helps make the most of sunny days, while electric sunshades for the roof and the rear doors keep the sun at bay when it gets too hot. You might even be able to store ice creams if the eight-litre heating/cooling unit in the centre console is offered here. Temperature controls range from -15C to +50C, but we suspect it won’t be offered in the short term.

Also likely to miss the first cut is the optional 13-inch, 2K LED screen on the back of the front passenger seat, complete with all the same functionality as the main screen, and an electric tray table.

Warranties for the 7X may differ in Australia, but the Chinese offer is currently six years, 150,000km on the car and a lifetime warranty on both battery options.

The Zeekr 7X hasn’t yet been tested by any safety authority but all other SEA platform products have achieved five-star ratings.

You get the requisite standard equipment, including seven airbags, the whole spectrum of three-letter active and passive safety acronyms, and automatic unlocking doors in the event of a crash. But in what might be an automotive first, there’s also a manual window-breaking mechanism built into the front door in case your car ends up in a river or lake and the doors can’t open.

An optional feature we may not get is an Intelligent Cockpit Perception system, featuring a camera and sensor unit built into the passenger side B-pillar to monitor your child visually and for heart rate and temperature.

The most advanced features of the 7X are unlikely to make it our way, including Zeekr’s fully autonomous driving system, the roof-mounted lidar, and the pair of NVIDIA Orin-X chips.

We should still get one, however, for the adaptive cruise control, stalk-activated lane changes, lane-keeping assist, and potentially the remote and automatic parking functions too. Regardless, we’ll definitely get the 360-degree camera with transparent chassis, and a V2L capability of 3.3kW.

One major inclusion we’d like to see is the V2V functionality, which enables you to charge other cars via your charging port at up to 60kW speeds. Coupled with Australia’s recent approval of vehicle-to-grid regulations, the 7X could be made compatible via OTA (Over The Air updates), enabling you to use the battery to charge your home when energy prices are highest.

Available in both rear-wheel drive and all-wheel drive, the 7X is powered by a 310kW motor on the rear axle in both, with the dual-motor version adding a 165kW motor at the front.

That means you’ll get generous torque of 440Nm and 710Nm respectively, which is enough to propel the 7X to 100km/h from a standing start in as little as 5.81 seconds, or as little as 3.81 seconds in dual-motor form.

Zeekr has gone all out when it comes to batteries for the 7X, boasting the two fastest charging units available.

The smallest, the Zeekr-developed ‘Golden Brick’ battery, is a 75kWh LFP (Lithium iron phosphate) pack offering up to 605km of range on the CLTC cycle in the single motor 7X. As the fastest charging EV battery in the world, at least with a 5.5C charger, it’ll recharge from 10-80 per cent in just ten-and-a-half minutes.

The larger battery, the NMC Qilin battery from CATL, is a hefty 100kWh and offers as much as 780km in the single motor variant, and 705km in the dual motor version, again on CLTC. This one charges 10-80 per cent in just 15 minutes.

Expect those range figures to be about 20 per cent less when tested to WLTP standards.

For a fairly large SUV, the 7X is surprisingly fun to drive and immediately impresses with its lateral stability, masking its size and weight well. It’s also fairly communicative for a Chinese car, particularly in Sport mode; the steering weight loads up nicely, and while it’s not quite as precise as something European, it will satisfy the 95 per cent of drivers who just want to feel part of the experience and not like they’ve wrestled a large dog by the end of the drive.

Ride quality in our test car, a dual-motor version with the standard Magic Carpet air suspension complete with an electromagnetic vibration damping system, was perfectly composed on choppier surfaces and a real treat on the twisting mountain roads around our test area.

Brake regen can be dialled up but is never quite as strong as that in a Tesla. You can customise settings as you like on top of the standard eco, comfort, and sport drive moves, however, and there’s also an off-road mode…

…This makes use of the 70mm of adjustment in the air suspension to hand the 7X a 230mm ground clearance, enough to make it a pretty accomplished off-roader, as our experience on a Land Rover proving ground confirmed.

While not quite able to pass the harshest breakover angles, the 7X nevertheless made light work of everything else thrown at it, including wading, river crossings, large boulders, and bumpy inclines slick with muddy rocks, and all while wearing standard road tyres.

In all honesty, it’s never likely to be called upon to any of that in the hands of customers, but it’s good to know that if you do dare venture that far, or merely find yourself facing the apocalypse, the 7X will give you more than a fighting chance.

Inside, there's a stylish interior liberally coated with soft-touch, skin-friendly leather surfaces, tasteful chrome details, and crystal pattern ambient lighting.

Leather seats and steering wheel are also standard, with Nappa an optional upgrade, while the front pews come with 14-way adjustability including base cushion extension. They’re also heated, ventilated, massaging, and memory-equipped, all as standard.

Passengers in the back aren’t left behind either. As well as class-leading leg and headroom, they get 10-degree electronic backrest angle adjustment and seat heating as well as under-seat storage drawers.

It’s unsure whether we’ll get the optional ‘sofaree’ package, which adds an electronic leg rest on the passenger side rear seat, as well as electronic 60/40 sliding and folding for the rear bench, and ventilation and massage functions, activated via a six-inch screen in the central armrest.

Zeekr claims a 616-litre trunk and either a 42- or 62-litre frunk, depending on whether you order the 7X with single or dual motors, and you can specify a 220-volt socket in the trunk for good measure.

Despite potentially losing a few features that would make it a truly standout car in these parts, the 7X remains an outstanding product in its own right, and one that might give the Germans a few headaches.

Elegantly styled inside and out, packed with premium features and technology, and boasting top notch batteries and charging, the 7X would have everything it needs to steal sales from the market-leading Tesla Model Y and, priced right, it might do just that. Good road manners and impressive off-road ability are the icing on a very tasty cake.

On this evidence, the 7X promises to be one of the most anticipated electric cars of 2025.

2025 Zeekr 7X AWD at a glance:
Price: Estimated $85,000 to $110,000
Available: Sometime in 2025
Powertrain: Two electric motors
Output: 475kW/710Nm
Transmission: Single-speed reduction gear
Battery: 100kWh NMC
Range: 705km CLTC
Energy consumption: 12.18kWh/100km CLTC
Safety rating: Not tested

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