Zeekr X 2024 Review

How much does the Make Model cost?

The Zeekr X is priced from $56,900 plus on-road costs for the single motor rear-wheel drive version.

The Zeekr X AWD adds a front motor for all-wheel drive as well as more equipment and is priced from $64,900 plus ORCs.

All come with a black roof (with integrated panoramic sunroof), powered driver’s seat, wireless phone charging and dual zone ventilation. There’s also an 8.8-inch digital instrument cluster and 14.6-inch central infotainment unit.

Zeekr offers a Convenience pack for $4000 which brings a power adjustable passenger seat, memory function for the driver’s seat, heated and ventilated front seats, heated steering wheel, ambient lighting and a 13-speaker Yamaha sound system to replace the unbranded seven-speaker system.

The Zeekr X AWD gets that Convenience Pack standard as well as 20-inch alloys (up from 19), a head-up display and an “intelligent B-pillar display”, which is a small circular screen that can be seen from outside the car to show what the battery charge level is at.

And, of course, the Zeekr X AWD gets that additional motor to create an all-wheel drive system that increases pace and performance.

What’s good about the Zeekr X?

The Zeekr X packs plenty in for the money, including space.

Yes, it’s a compact SUV – at 4432mm long it’s shorter than a Mazda3 hatch – but there’s a surprising amount of room inside.

There’s plenty of space in the rear. Headroom is friendly for even the tallest adults and legroom is thoroughly respectable given the external dimensions of the vehicle.

It’s also packed with tech, much of it revolving around the 14.6-inch central screen that provides a vibrant 360-degree camera.

Plus there’s an 8.8-inch digital instrument cluster and on this AWD model we tested a terrific head-up display that plonks a bunch of info in the driver’s line of sight.

It’s clear Tesla has provided the inspiration for plenty with the X, from how you adjust the side mirrors (using the screen and toggles on the steering wheel) to the gear drive selector (a stalk on the steering wheel) and the vast panoramic sunroof (some people may want to buy blinds to keep the rays at bay on a sunny day).

There’s also Tesla thinking in the software, too.

That includes pet mode (which keeps the AC running when parked while flashing a note on the screen alerting passers-by to the temperature inside) and Sentry, which can use the external cameras to record incidents such as theft or vandalism.

You don’t need to press a start button to get things going; just sit inside with the key and everything comes to life.

You can also play games on the screen, play a light show outside the car and pump audio through an external speaker.

Sure, there’s some gimmickry, but it’s also a bit of fun.

And because the Zeekr X gets a lot of the core of the car right we’re all for something a bit out of the four-wheeled ordinary.

And while there’s plenty packed into that centre screen, it also (thankfully) gets traditional stalks to make activating the wipers and indicators a bit easier.

The AWD X also gets a 2-inch circular display built into the driver’s side B-pillar. When charging it displays the battery charge and time remaining. If you’ve activated pet mode it will let those outside the car know that all is cool inside.

Again, it may seem like a gimmick but we found the external charger display genuinely handy. Being able to walk past the car and see how much charging there was left can be handy.

Attention to detail runs deep, too. Perforations on the door add some visual depth during the day but at night provide the outlets for ambient lighting in each of the doors.

The front seats with race-style integrated headrests are great, too, hugging nicely and providing support high up around the upper body.

And the longer you spend in the X the more there is to appreciate.

Slide your hands on the overhead panel to adjust the brightness and tone of the map lights, for example (you can choose bright or warm white). Or pop out the classy centrally-mounted button that provides a hook for bags up front.

In the rear there are elegant metallic hooks on the B-pillar for jackets.

Even the seatback pockets are on a diagonal. Sure, it’s mostly about style but it sort of works for digging stuff out of them, too.

Copper-tinged metallic highlights are indicative of the efforts gone to in selecting materials that live up to the premium promise.

Another thing we like about the Zeekr X is how it drives. Its dual motors make a heap of power, with a combined 315kW and 545Nm to play with.

It’ll blast to 100km/h in 3.8 seconds, so you’re never left wanting.

All-wheel drive traction makes it easy to utilise all its grunt and Continental tyres are suitably sticky.

Along with nicely controlled suspension it makes for an engaging drive, albeit one lacking the aural accompaniments of a petrol engine.

What’s not so good about the Zeekr X?

The Zeekr X isn’t exactly a bargain, especially once you step up to the flagship AWD we’ve tested here.

Sure, there’s a lot of gear, but something like $70K on the road also opens the door to a lot of possibilities, from both the EV and ICE (internal combustion engine) worlds.

The Zeekr X gets pillarless window frames, which give a semblance of aesthetic sportiness when you open the doors.

But where the glass meets the rubber seals can be a big source of creaking and squeaking.

Over speed humps and up driveways it can let out plenty of unwanted groans. Sure, they’re mild, but without music to take over it can also get annoying.

Tip into a corner too hard and it can also hit you with those noises, too.

Speaking of which, if you’re too aggressive into a bend – raising the G forces – the onboard dashcam starts recording, presumably because it suspects there’s the chance of something going wrong.

It’s one of the various driver assist systems that occasionally kicks in when you don’t necessarily want it to.

The Zeekr is nowhere near as intrusive as some rivals with warnings and beeps, which is refreshing. And it’s easy to turn off some of those driver assist systems by swiping down from the top of the screen.

But there’s still room for improvement.

And occasionally the gimmicks overstep the mark.

We’re not enamoured with the tune the car plays every time you lock or unlock it (impressively the locking and unlocking can be programmed to happen automatically when you approach or walk away from the car).

There are also some packaging curiosities.

There’s no glovebox, for example, although the vast centre console with its various elements, forward flipping section (which incorporates the wireless phone charger) and lower binnacle somewhat make up for it.

There’s also a deeper covered section further back. And that whole rear console can be clipped out and removed, in case you want to take it with you… Yep, it’s difficult to imagine a circumstance when they would make sense, although it’s been designed for an optional fridge and warmer, allowing you to take it to the picnic location.

Also, the air-conditioning is only average, which combined with the steamy panoramic roof it can make for a hot back row on a sunny day. Some may want to get some clip in shades to block out the rays.

Also, at the end of the day it’s impossible to ignore the badge on a car that’s trying to play in premium territory.

The reality is Zeekr doesn’t have the recognition and brand footprint that some will expect when splashing out upwards of $60K.

That’s nothing to do with the car itself and if the brand keeps dishing up decent products that recognition will come.

It will be interesting to see see whether the upcoming Zeekr 009, the world's fastest people mover, and the BMW X3-sized Zeekr 7X can push the brand firmly into the premium frame.

Should I buy a Zeekr X?

If you’re just considering the car then the Zeekr X mounts a solid case. For a brand that built its first car in 2021 it’s an impressive result and punches above its newcomer status.

It drives well (although the creaking glass is a blemish) and offers decent value once you consider the performance, feature set and space. Plus, it’s loaded with tech.

And for a small SUV it’s not that small.

While it’s lacking the brand cachet of established players the Zeekr X to some extent makes up for it with attention to detail and substance.

Lined up against the Volvo EX30 it shares so much with beneath the skin (the two brands are part of the Geely Group) it looks like solid value.

But with the Tesla Model Y bubbling around the same price, life gets a bit tougher for the newcomer.

Still, the Zeekr X is something fresh and different for those searching for a high-tech $60K SUV.

2025 Zeekr X AWD at a glance:
Price: $64,900 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Powertrain: Two permanently excited synchronous motors
Output: 315kW/543Nm
Transmission: Single-speed reduction gear
Battery: 66kWh nickel manganese cobalt lithium-ion
Range: 470km (ADR); 425km (WLTP)
Energy consumption: 15.5kWh/100km (WLTP)
Safety rating: Five stars (ANCAP 2024)

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