The sheer magnitude of the Beijing Auto Show defies belief with more than 1.2-million people visiting the exhibition centre over its duration, more than 180 vehicles that were shown for the first time and over 70 concept vehicles debuting.
Geely robotaxi
From a Geely perspective, there were quite a few exciting unveilings.
Kicking things off was the unveiling of the Eva Cab, China’s first purpose-built robotaxi prototype, which has been engineered for production-grade L4 autonomous operation.
Testing is already underway in Hangzhou and Suzhou. However, it’s very unlikely that we’ll see the Robotaxi on South African roads anytime soon due to laws and regulations against this level of autonomous driving.
Zeekr coming to SA
Next up, we headed over to the Zeekr stand, which is a premium EV brand owned by Geely. The exciting news with Zeekr is that it’s a new brand that will be coming to South Africa in 2026, but at this stage, the models have not been confirmed.
There were two standout models that we reckon would make a great fit for the South African market. First is the Zeekr 7X, which is a mid-size SUV that comes in either a single-motor configuration, sporting 310kW, or a dual-motor variant which boasts 475kW.
Two battery options are on offer with a driving claimed range of 780 kilometres when fitted with the larger battery.
The next model likely for South African introduction is the 007, which is a sleek luxury sedan. It promises a 0-100km/h sprint time of 2.84 seconds in the AWD variant, thanks to its 475kW and 710Nm of torque on tap. Electric driving range is claimed at an impressive 870km.
The Zeekr line-up is quite extensive, with extremely luxurious SUVs such as the 9X also on offer; however, realistically speaking, it’s highly unlikely they will see the light of day in South Africa.
Next-gen concept car
Geely also unveiled its next generation of electrified vehicles, and the star of the show was the Galaxy Light concept car, which is a sleek, large, premium sedan that boasts an evolution of Geely’s “ripple aesthetics” design language.
The concept car looks stunning, with suicide doors that reveal a luxurious interior. The production-ready vehicle is yet to be seen, as this was the unveiling of the concept car.
Exact model line-up and local specifications will be revealed closer to the market launch of the Zeekr brand.
