Zeekr X 2023 Review – International

If not marking it out as a crossover, the ‘X’ in the 2023 Zeekr X could be the Roman numeral for 10, following on from the fledgling Geely-owned brand’s two other EVs – the 001 shooting brake and 009 people-mover.

Whatever the motivation behind the moniker, the X factor is real in Zeekr’s latest model, which has only just launched in China and is already confirmed for Europe later this year.

Geely is also planning a broad attack on the Aussie market, expanding beyond Volvo and Polestar with a variety of other electrified cars cherrypicked from its broad stable.

Hot prospects include the Radar RD6 ute (which we reviewed earlier this year), a variety of Lynk & Co models and, yes, EVs in popular segments from Zeekr.

The new Zeekr X is one of these, closely related to the Smart #1 and Volvo EX30 small SUVs. All are built using Geely’s SEA platform.

In China, the Zeekr X line-up uses the familiar Me and You trim levels, with You being the higher spec and the one driven here.

The Me and You both offer a single-motor/rear-wheel drive powertrain, while the You also offers a dual-motor/AWD layout in both five-seater and four-seater configuration. We’re testing the latter, with AWD.

In China, prices range from RMB189,800 ($A39,250) to RMB229,800 ($A47,520) for the top-spec car tested. We’d expect pricing in Australia to stay clear of the incoming Volvo EX30 – which ranges from $59,990 to $69,990 plus on-road costs – with more affordable, though not budget, positioning.

Naturally, the main differences between the five-seater and four-seater versions of the 2023 Zeekr X You are seat-related, but it goes much further than that.

At first glance, you might not even realise you’re in a four-seater – the rear bench seat looks basically the same on both. But there’s a large fold-down centre arm rest and the cushion underneath not only has storage space inside but can be removed and both the remaining cushions can pop up.

The front passenger gains a far more luxurious ‘zero gravity’ seat which can recline and has a footrest. There’s a maximum 101-degree angle between the seat cushion and footrest and 124 degrees between it and the backrest.

Four-seaters also gain an electrically movable centre console which can include an optional fridge compartment (RMB1999, $A415). All models have heating and ventilation on the front seats, but in the four-seater the front passenger gains a massage function. Curiously, the driver misses out on the latter.

All models get Nappa leather upholstery and there is a panoramic roof. You models get a 13-speaker Yamaha sound system while this is an RMB6000 ($A1240) upgrade on the Me version.

Doors are frameless and there is an induction button to press to open them.

Our test model came with the RMB16,000 ($3300) optional 20-inch wheels complete with Akebono brake callipers. As standard, the You versions get 19-inch wheels whereas the Me makes do with 18-inch rims.

In China, cars come with a four-year/100,000km warranty along with a first-owner six-year/150,000km warranty for the electrical system.

Although the 2023 Zeekr X has yet to go through any official independent safety tests, we’d expect it to score well.

The related Smart #1 achieved a maximum five-star rating from Euro NCAP, including a very impressive 96 per cent score for adult occupant protection.

All versions of the Zeekr X come with the same safety specification. In terms of advanced driver assist systems, this includes lane keeping assistance and lane departure warning, alerts for front and rear collisions and door opening, plus driver fatigue monitoring and traffic sign recognition.

The Zeekr X also comes with six airbags and a built-in dashcam.

The biggest party trick on the 2023 Zeekr X is that the 14.6-inch infotainment screen can move across from the centre of the dash to the passenger side on the four-seater version by swiping the screen with four fingers or touching a button on the steering wheel.

Thankfully, the driver also gets both an 8.8-inch instrument screen and a head-up display.

On the exterior B-pillar is a small LCD display for info about the car such as when it is in Pet Mode. And before you ask, Pet Mode is designed to keep the cabin at an optimum temperature if you walk away from the vehicle, leaving the pet inside.

This small display is also where the button to electrically open the door is situated.

Surrounding the car is a suite of sensors which interface through a Snapdragon 8155 chip. As standard, these consist of six exterior cameras, 12 ultrasonic sensors and 5mm wavelength radars.

There is an option to add an additional camera and two radars.

These give the car adaptive cruise control and a degree of self-driving ability including lane changing assistance and automatic parking.

Single-motor/rear-wheel drive versions of the 2023 Zeekr X use a permanent magnet synchronous e-motor delivering 200kW and 343Nm of torque.

On all-wheel drive versions like our test car, there’s an additional 115kW/200Nm permanent magnet synchronous motor on the front axle. Total output is 315kW/543Nm.

All versions of the 2023 Zeekr X come with a 66kWh NCM-type lithium-ion battery.

As tested, the four-seater dual-motor/all-wheel drive version can travel 500km before needing to recharge, based on China’s CLTC testing system that’s more generous that Europe’s WLTP as it concentrates on slow stop/start urban traffic.

The equivalent five-seater model is claimed to have a 512km range, while single-motor/rear-drive variants can manage up to 560km.

On a DC fast-charger, the Zeekr X can go from 30 to 80 per cent state of charge in half an hour, according to the car-maker.

The Zeekr X also comes with vehicle-to-load (V2L) capability, meaning you can use your car to power electrical items such as laptops.

Performance is a strong suit of the 2023 Zeekr X, which can accelerate from 0-100km/h in a blistering 3.8 seconds (claimed) in the dual-motor/AWD four-seater model you see here – or just 3.7sec in the five-seater.

Even single-motor/rear-wheel drive versions are no slouch either, with an acceleration time of 5.8sec.

There are three main drive modes – Comfort, Standard and Sport – and while there isn’t much of a difference between the first two, there is far more of a step up in performance when you select Sport, with acceleration and responsiveness noticeably quicker.

There are also three levels of braking regeneration – Low, Medium and High. While true one-pedal driving is not possible, the highest level by Chinese standards is aggressive and takes the car down to around a 7km/h coast. Low, on the other hand, is hardly detectable.

In terms of ride and handling, the car is currently geared up to Chinese tastes with an emphasis on comfort over dynamic performance. This extends to the steering, which although it does have some feedback is on the light side.

Given that the Zeekr 001 is such a good drive, this was a little surprising, but the X may well have its suspension retuned before export.

The instrument panel displays detailed navigation prompts and the head-up display has animated arrows showing where to turn.

At least in terms of positioning and considering its high waistline, the 2023 Zeekr X is supposedly an SUV but is really more of a hatchback.

Not that we tried it, but don’t expect much ability if you do take it off-road.

For starters, there are no dedicated drive modes for low-traction conditions.

By and large, the interior of the 2023 Zeekr X four-seater flagship is luxurious and well-thought-out, with the car-maker injecting a high dose of practicality.

Most of the materials are soft and they seem to really wrap around the occupants. However, the top of the dashboard does seem on the hard side and perhaps not surprisingly the removable elements such as the fridge part of the centre console and the rear seat centre cushion are very much just normal plastic.

In the back of the four-seater, not only does the seat cushion behind the front passenger fold up to create more space for the ‘zero gravity’ front seat, but the rear seat behind the driver moves in similar fashion to provide a dedicated space for a pet.

Headroom in the back is not as good as the more SUV-like Smart #1, but is still reasonable.

Although no official figure is given for boot capacity, the Zeekr X offers a small but useable space. Zeekr has designed the parcel shelf to fold neatly onto the back of the rear seat when not in use, although the shelf was absent on our test car.

Underneath the floor is a small hidden space and there is further storage in the frunk – all 21 litres of it.

As always with our first drive reviews out of China, the 2023 Zeekr X provides us with something to consider buying down the track, if indeed the car ever makes it Down Under.

But we hope it does, because the compact electric crossover is quirky in a good way, finding a neat balance between premium feel and practicality – and impressing with its strong EV performance.

Sure, on the four-seater some of the things do seem gimmicky, but these largely make life easier and allow what is by modern standards a small package to deliver features normally only reserved for much larger cars.

The single-motor powertrain will be sufficient for most, but there’s no doubting the ballistic performance on tap with the dual-motor version.

That said, for the Australian market we’d expect some extra work to go into honing the car’s chassis to create a better all-round driver’s car.

As ever, pricing will be key. If Geely gets the balance right, and Aussie buyers find value in this competent high-riding electric hatch, the Zeekr X could find plenty of homes.

Certainly in China, the X packs in amazing levels of equipment and plushness for the price.

2023 Zeekr X You 4-seater at a glance:
Price: $65,990 estimated (plus on-road costs)
Available: Late 2024 (estimated)
Powertrain: Two permanent magnet synchronous motors
Output: 315kW/543Nm
Transmission: Single-speed reduction gear
Battery: 66kWh lithium-ion
Range: 500km (CLTC)
Energy consumption: 13.2kWh/100km (CLTC)
Safety rating: Not tested