Geely Emgrand News

Chinese cars have entered “uncharted territory”, according to Vice President of Geely Group Li Chuanhai.Chuanhai explained that as Chinese automakers became global entities, they could no longer rely on challenging the status quo of so-called legacy brands, but would have to innovate on their own if they want to move the industry forward.“Franky, the Chinese automotive industry has reached its current position by standing on the shoulders of giants in the century-old automotive industry,” he said.“But now that we’re taking the lead, we have entered uncharted territory. How do we innovate in uncharted territory? I think our logic for innovation needs to change."He said Geely was well positioned to provide multiple power options, such as as petrol, hybrid and EV, across many markets, but there would still be the need to innovate further in the future.“Geely adheres to its energy diversification strategy. Our Thor hybrid, SEA EV, i-HEV, and green methanol developed over 20 years have created a complete ecosystem covering pure electric, hybrid, range extender, methanol, and charging/battery swapping. We’ve successfully explored every path to provide global users with more choices,” he said.Chuanhai outlined some investments Geely was making including collaborations with “more than 50 universities on basic research”. He said this “may not yield immediate returns” for the group, but that innovation required “adequate resource investment, effective ecosystem collaboration, and sufficient talent density”.Chuanhai earmarked the success of its premium Zeekr arm as evidence Geely had moved beyond its challenger status.“We don't have the time to build the brand story that century-old established brands have accumulated over time,” he said.“New energy and intelligent technologies have brought us opportunities for brand advancement. However, we also believe that the foundation for brand advancement lies in safety, chassis and powertrain—areas that best reflect our core professional capabilities."He said the brand is aiming for Volvo’s ultimate safety, Lotus’ ultimate handling and Horse Powertrain’s ultimate performance.He said the 750,000 units Zeekr has delivered in its short existence have an average selling price of more than the equivalent of $62,000, comparatively very high for a Chinese brand, with the national average being a little over half that ($35,000).“The essence of Chinese automotive globalisation is not about low prices and high volume, but about being rooted in technology and driven by brands, ultimately moving from simply selling cars to defining the future of automobiles,” he said.“We hope that Geely's experience can serve as a model for Chinese automakers going global, and we believe that China's automotive industry is fully capable of winning respect and establishing a firm foothold in the world.”Next for Geely in Australia will be its EX2 fully electric hatchback, which will be followed by the Emgrand EM-i plug-in hybrid sedan. Zeekr will launch its flagship 9X plug-in hybrid large SUV before the end of the year, alongside the 7GT fully-electric performance wagon.In 2027, the much-hyped 8X large five-seat hybrid SUV will arrive, with Geely also plotting a yet-to-be confirmed three-row hybrid SUV offering.

With a flood of new and affordable Chinese automakers hitting the Australian market, Geely’s Australian CEO Alex Gu explained why its strategy is a little different from that of Chery, MG or GAC.Geely, which has such brands as Volvo, Zeekr, and Polestar under its ownership umbrella and ranks as one of China’s top-selling carmakers, said it will continue to approach the Australian market slowly.“This is culture-wise,” Gu said.“Geely is fully committed and we keep patient on the market penetration. Once we decide to enter into each individual global market, we are present to be a success.“Success is not only the volume booming. Success is also customer satisfaction and partner satisfaction.“So, you’ve noticed that for the Australian market, we’ve only launched two models up until today for example other have launched 10 models, five models, six or eight models.“Of course, they have been in the market longer, but Geely, even with two models you can notice from the VFACTs number, we try to bring ‘star’ models into each segment so we can make it successful.“EX5, you can already see, in April it will be a top-three BEV SUV. Starray EM-i? Same story. Now we are aiming to bring in EX2. These days we are taking pre-orders, which are very good figures.“So we’ll focus on our current models, but you can believe that after we bring all new models we will study the segment fully and those models as ‘star’ models for the segment.“We don’t want to make chaos. So we’ll bring each model to a segment in a significant position. This is our target," he said.Despite its more measured model roll out, will Geely have a model in every segment like some of its rivals have recently declared?“It’s a hard thing to do,” said Gu. “Even some mainstream brands, they don’t have a model in every segment. So for Geely, again we will study the market, study what customers want.“So it’s mutual success, for Geely and for our partner, and for the market,” he said.The brand was planning to have a seven-seat SUV, an off-roader (as previewed by the Geely Battleship 700 concept) and a ute, according to Gu.Gu said models need to sell more than 1000 units to be considered a success."From my perspective, 1000 a month is a milestone for a new model, especially in mainstream segments.”Gu said it is well known Geely is “aiming to be top five” globally.“For the Australian market of course we have a target, each market needs to support this goal. At least for the Chinese brands in the market, we are always mentioned as the number one Chinese brand," he said.From there Gu said it becomes a game of “how to challenge the global top three brands”.One area Geely was particularly focused on was consistent parts supply.Gu said it was essential for the brand to properly plan for its parts distribution centres (PDC), so that “when there is an order, we need to guarantee how to get it within 24 hours from the PDC to the customer”.He also noted Geely had an expansive dealer network already, up to 48 locations, with a plan to “exceed 80” despite only having the two models on sale currently.Gu said the brand would sell any purely petrol or diesel models. Instead the brand would focus on EVs, plug-in hybrids and conventional plugless hybrids.Geely’s next model will be the EX2 electric hatchback, which is due to arrive in the third quarter of 2026. The Emgrand plug-in hybrid sedan will arrive in 2027. Gu also confirmed a seven-seat SUV (something similar to the Geely M9 shown at the Melbourne Motor Show recently) is also in the plan for the next 12 to 18 months.

Geely Australia’s CEO Alex Gu confirmed the brand was considering the company’s new i-HEV technology for our market.Geely’s i-HEV tech, which is a new-generation hybrid set-up consisting of a 1.5- or 2.0-litre engine mated to a hybrid transmission system (DHT), is claimed to be one of the most fuel efficient production plugless systems on the market.The brand declared at the Beijing Motor Show it had achieved a fuel consumption as low as 2.22L/100km when tested in an Emgrand sedan, and claims it can drive under electric power up to 80 per cent of the time despite not needing to be plugged in.Gu said that unlike its Chinese rival brands, Geely wouldn’t be bringing combustion models to Australia and will instead consider i-HEVs as an option to sit alongside its existing fully electric EX5 and upcoming EX2 SUVs, and its plug-in hybrid Starray SUV and Emgrand sedan, with the latter is due in 2027.“For Geely we don’t have a plan to do ICE , but we are planning for the i-HEV,” he said.“For this, we benchmarked Toyota actually. This is very friendly for emissions. It will be in a sedan, SUV, and so on,” said Gu.Gu said it was Geely’s attitude that plug-in systems will be able to “move forward together” in global markets, rather than have plug-ins outright replace ICE and HEVs as they have in some other markets.“This will be the entire way to enter the market. We’re making it very balanced,” he said.Gu wouldn't confirm when the first hybrid models would arrive in Australia.“So far I’m not sure.” he said.“We will have to see what is planned for the global market. So for me, I will push for the Australian market to be the first market to bring i-HEV models,” he said.The Emgrand is not the only car in Geely’s product catalogue that has the new i-HEV hybrid system at the brand’s stand at the Beijing motor show.It also showed off its larger sibling, the Preface sedan, as well as an updated version of its Monjaro mid-size SUV.Both cars, which ride on Volvo’s Compact Modular Architecture (CMA) platform, pair a 1.5-litre petrol engine with an electric motor driving the front wheels via a hybrid transmission.The Preface sedan consumes 3.98L/100km, while the Monjaro mid-size SUV drinks 4.75L/100km according to the slightly more lenient WLTC method, which cuts fuel consumption nearly in half compared to the turbo dual-clutch versions of both cars.Offering all three levels of electrification will help set Geely apart from its main Chinese rivals, most of which are either plug-in exclusive like BYD, or are also leaning on ultra-affordable combustion models like Chery, MG or GAC.Next for Geely in Australia will be the introduction of the EX2 hatchback, due in the third quarter of 2026, while the Emgrand will join the line-up in 2027. Gu also outlined a seven-seat SUV, something along the lines of the M9 the brand showed at the Melbourne Motor Show, would debut in 2027. In the longer-term Geely has aspirations to offer both a 4x4 and a ute, and would be “studying the market” closely in the meantime.

Geely has confirmed it will add the Emgrand sedan to its roster of cars in Australia, following the EX2 electric SUV Q3 arrival.The Emgrand will go into battle with the segment dominant Toyota Camry, as well as existing favourites like the Kia K4 and newcomers like the BYD Seal 6 PHEV.Measuring 4806mm long 1886mm wide and 1490mm tall, the fifth-generation Emgrand is in the mid-size sedan category, although sits in the space between the larger Camry and smaller Kia K4.Like the Seal 6, the Emgrand will launch into Australia as a plug-in hybrid initially. A plugless hybrid version is also on the cards, according to Geely’s Australian CEO Alex Gu.CarsGuide understands the Emgrand will launch in 2027, with its EM-i plug-in hybrid system consisting of a 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine and dual electric motors inside a hybrid transmission.The engine produces 82kW/136Nm, while the electric motor provides 120kW/210Nm. This is backed by the choice of two battery capacities, either a 8.5kWh unit or a 17kWh unit for either 60km or 125km of driving range.These ranges are to the CLTC standard, so expect slightly less once it arrives here. It is likely only the larger battery capacity version will be offered. All versions of the car sold in China are able to provide 3kW of external power via the vehicle-to-load system.Geely says the Emgrand will consume 2.9L/100km even when the battery is depleted to the reserve level, and it manages to maintain a 52-litre fuel tank despite making room for its battery underneath the cabin.Maximum fast charging speed is 35kW, allowing a 30 - 80 per cent charge in 20 minutes, according to the brand.The Emgrand rides on the same GEA platform as the EX5 and Starray, which is a spin-off of Volvo’s CMA architecture for the purposes of Geely’s more mass-market hybrid and electric models.On the inside, it gets a similar steering wheel to the EX5 or Starray, and a console with a multimedia dial and shortcut buttons, the shifter is on the steering column. It also has a 14.6-inch multimedia touchscreen running Geely’s Flyme Auto software and a 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster.A 50W wireless charger exists in the centre console, while boot space measures 609 litres.Pricing in China is up to the equivalent of $24,600, suggesting a starting price in Australia of $30,000 or less. The newcomer from Geely will have to establish itself against the just-announced Kia K4 hybrid (from $32,090), BYD Seal 6 (from $34,990), and the segment-dominating Toyota Camry (from $39,990).Expect to learn more about the Emgrand ahead of its launch in 2027. It will form part of a slowly-but-surely product roll-out from Geely, which is likely to include both the Monjaro mid-size SUV and M9 three-row plug-in hybrid.Geely has had a reasonable start in Australia, with its EX5 and Starray EM-i amassing 1437 and 1384 units respectively, capturing close to five per cent of the mainstream mid-size SUV category.