Zeekr X and 009 confirmed for Australian release this year

Zeekr will become the latest premium EV brand to be launched by China’s enormous Geely Group in Australia by the end of this year.

Joining sister electric brand Polestar – as well as other more established Geely brands including Volvo and Lotus – on sale Down Under in the second half of 2024, Zeekr will launch with a small electric SUV called the Zeekr X and a large electric people-mover named the Zeekr 009.

The news was confirmed this week by Zeekr Australia and New Zealand head of marketing Andrew Haurissa, who helped re-establish China’s Chery brand in Australia and previously worked for Chinese telecoms giant Huawei.

It follows last week’s news that both the Zeekr X and 009 are now produced in right-hand drive as part of an expanded export program to Thailand.

First launched in China in March 2021, Zeekr has already released both models in Europe and first (RHD) deliveries will take place in Thailand in the third quarter of this year, followed by other southeast Asian markets “in response to growing customer demands for premium smart electric vehicles”.

Released in China in February 2023, the Zeekr X is based on the same Geely SEA EV platform as the upcoming Volvo EX30 (priced from $60,000), but will be cheaper.

Two versions are available in China, priced from under the equivalent of $40,000, but European pricing starts around $75,000 for the the Zeekr X long-range single-motor, which outputs 200kW, hits 100km/h in a claimed 5.6 seconds and offers a 440km driving range.

The Zeekr X standard-range dual-motor, meantime, costs about $82,000 in Europe, outputs 315kW, hits 100km/h in a claimed 3.8sec and has a circa-400km range.

The much larger Zeekr 009 is a six- or seven-seat electric people-mover that looks a lot like a Rolls-Royce up front but will rival some of Australia’s top-selling MPVs including the Kia Carnival.

Peak power is listed at a huge 400kW and the Zeekr 009 is claimed to hit 100km/h in just 4.5sec – despite a range of up to 822km thanks to an enormous 140kWh battery pack.

No Australian pricing or specifications have yet been announced for either model and so far there’s no word on a local release for the Tesla Model 3-rivalling Zeekr 007 electric sedan revealed in November 2023, or the brand’s inaugural model – the Zeekr 001, which was claimed to be the world’s first electric shooting brake when it was launched in February 2022.

Another Geely brand expected to come to Australia is Lynk & Co, but several new models under the Geely brand itself appear more imminent, led by the newly renamed Radar/Riddara electric ute.

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