Why the 2026 Zeekr 7X looks so different to the upcoming 2027 Zeekr 8X and what to look forward to in the future for the BMW-rivalling Chinese brand

Zeekr is storming up the charts in Australia, targeting luxury and mainstream rivals, proving Chinese brands can be more than just budget-oriented.

While rival premium brands like Audi, BMW and Mercedes have such distinctive designs tied to their identities though, you might have noticed Zeekrs all look a bit different.

Explaining this quirk of the brand, the head of Zeekr’s design studio in Shanghai Javier Garcia-Gallardo explained why the company had such diverse designs in its portfolio, and how things were going to evolve going forward.

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“It’s to do with the evolution of Zeekr and how the brand was born,” he said.

“You could say we’ve been through three main chapters - the first chapter is the vehicles with heritage from Lynk & Co like the 001, 009 and the X. They are vehicles which transparently were designed to be part of the Lynk & Co brand and transitioned across to the Zeekr brand.

Lynk & Co is Zeekr’s sister company, both premium marques under parent company Geely’s umbrella.

Lynk & Co existed first, dating back to 2016, but it has now been re-organised to sit under Zeekr ownership. Zeekr’s first vehicle, the 001, was originally revealed as the Lynk & Co Zero concept in 2020, before Zeekr’s formation in 2021.

“The second chapter is where we introduced the ‘Hidden Energy’ language.” Garcia-Gallardo continued, “This is for the 7GT, the 7X and the Zeekr Mix.”

This design language originally debuted in 2023 on the 007 sedan on which the 7GT wagon is based.

“It was the first exclusively Zeekr design.” Garcia-Gallardo said. “For this, we wanted a shift of mindset for the customer. We wanted it to be very progressive, targeting Generation Z. They are digital natives and perceive technology in the car in a different way from previous generations.

“Chapter three is ‘Powerful Elegance’ - our first cars represented by this are the 8X and 9X. These vehicles are targeted at a more material customer and have more traditional automotive design cues, but you can also see some cues from the 009 as well. The grille is very dominant and gives a kind of architectural design to the cars.”

Going forward, things are set to line up to the brand’s main two designs, with smaller vehicles to stick to the ‘Hidden Energy’ and larger ones to sport the ‘Powerful Elegance’ look. This is particularly because Zeekr intends to have a more distinctive and instantly-identifiable look going forward as it builds its recognition globally.

“The market is flexible, but a consistent design language is important for brand awareness," Garcia-Gallardo said, “we’ve spent the last couple of years evolving and exploring these different languages for different customer bases. What you can expect to see is the design languages will get closer together.

“They won’t be ultra-dogmatic between them though - you’ll see some features from the 9X for example being interpreted in a different way on the 7 series vehicles and vice versa.

“One example is the detail line which follows the ambient light through the digital instrument panel across the dash from door to door. It’s not as clear on the exteriors yet, but you’ll start to see a bit of horizontality introduced across our model range going forward.”

Garcia-Gallardo hinted at other changes and tweaks to the model range going forward, too, which would be based on global feedback as Zeekr becomes more of an international brand.

As for the Lynk & Co and Zeekr split, the two could be thought of as the Chinese side of the Volvo/Polestar equation (two similar brands with different purposes), although Lynk & Co and its sportier and largely hybrid offerings remains squarely aimed at Europe where it is headquartered for the time being rather than right-hand drive markets like Australia.

Instead, we’ll be an important export focus for the Zeekr brand, which is headquartered in China. A plan to re-badge certain Lynk & Co models as Zeekrs for markets like Australia has been reportedly cancelled, as each brand establishes its own identity.

The pair continue to diverge in their design, with Lynk & Co models continuing ownership of the split-DRL design on the new 08 PHEV mid-sizer and 900 large PHEV SUV.

Meanwhile Zeekr will power ahead with its more high-end offerings in Australia into 2027, with the 8X and 9X hybrids due here over the next year, adding to its current range which consists of the X small SUV, 7X mid-sizer, 009 people mover, and incoming 7GT station wagon, all for now as electric cars.