Last year was a good year for Zeekr. Despite growing anti-China tensions, a softening Chinese economy, and overall weirdness in the EV market, it’s been largely nothing but net for the Sino-Swedish brand. It doesn’t even sell cars in America but it still stole the show at CES, while announcing that it’s sold more than 15,000 units since it started selling cars outside of China en masse.
That’s not bad, considering the fact it’s a new brand with oddly shaped, oddly named models that are hellbent on straddling traditional sedan or crossover segments. The not-quite-a-subcompact Zeekr X and Polestar-4-with-a-rear-window Zeekr 001 “shooting brake” are generally good cars, but they’re not really direct competitors to the Model Ys or BMW X3s of the world.
This thing, however, is. Meet the Zeekr 7X, and it may be the poster boy for the Geely Group’s plans for world domination—um, er, a global increase in sales.
That plan means it needs to make things that normal people want and can identify with. The Zeekr 7X looks might be the brand’s most traditional offering yet: a midsized (or compact if you’re American) crossover aimed right at the heart of the market.
When I was in China late last year, Zeekr’s representatives snatched a base model 7X from a Shanghai-area dealership and let me tootle around town for a little over an hour. My time may have been short, but make no mistake, folks: This crossover is poised to put a real hurt on some of the biggest names in the compact to midsized crossover market.
(Full Disclosure: Zeekr gave me the keys to a 7x from a random Shanghai Zeekr dealer while on a trip to China.)
Gallery: Zeekr 7x (2024)
What Is the Zeekr 7X?
By now, I’d hope that over the dozens of articles we’ve written here at InsideEVs (many of them by me), you’d be pretty familiar with Zeekr. Zeekr is another Chinese brand with deep European roots brand under the Geely umbrella.
It does a lot of technical development for all of Geely’s brands, including some platform sharing with Volvo and Polestar. Zeekr is a premium brand with luxury aspirations, sitting adjacent to and sometimes slightly above Tesla. Currently, the brand makes a gaggle of full EV models, including a luxury van, compact crossover, sporty sedan, and station wagon (aka a shooting brake.)
The 7X is Zeekr’s first attempt at a traditional upright SUV or crossover in one of the most popular segments across the world. Underneath, it’s closely related to the very good Zeekr 007 sedan. Both use the same variant of the Volvo-Geely SEA chassis, both cars have Zeekr’s 75 kWh Golden Battery that can sprint to 80% in as little as 10 and a half minutes, and both have the same single or dual motor setup good for up to 636 horsepower.
It’s state-of-the-art for modern EVs with an 800-volt electrical architecture boasting a maximum charging speed of more than 500 kW in China. Charging time does increase slightly to 10-80% sprint in 13 minutes on Europe’s fastest DC fast charger, 360 kW.
Oh, and like the Mix and 007 sedan, the 7X has the same optional “Stargate” panel that can display custom messages and greetings right on the front of the car. Zeekr itself says the 7X is meant for families, so it resisted the urge to coupe-ify the roofline in the name of aesthetics. This is meant to be a practical luxury crossover, folks.
As a whole, the Zeekr 7X is handsome, even if it looks like probably the least interesting vehicle from the brand. It’s a well-proportioned car, there’s very little front overhang, the glass is upright, and it avoids falling into the coupe-like trap of other crossover SUVs where they try and pretend like they aren’t as tall or big as they really are.
It feels unmistakably like an SUV, although the clean styling and tasteful side surfacing don’t let it feel like a huge, bulky thing. Technically at 190 inches (4860 mm) long it’s bigger than cars like the Mercedes Benz GLC or BMW X3, but like the Nio ES6, I think most Americans would consider this an entry-level compact crossover. It’s nice, but compared to the out-there designs of the X, Mix and 001, the 7X feels kind of pedestrian. It’s not a bad thing, but it’s just a thing.
Inside, the Zeekr 7X’s interior is downright sumptuous. Perhaps it’s the ivory and gold interior that’s doing a lot of heavy lifting, I love cream-colored leather interiors, but it’s just so damn nice. Like other Zeekr products, the brand shows attention to detail that I haven’t seen from so-called aspirationally premium manufacturers for a very long time. All materials are immaculate; there are soft-touch leather surfaces on all touchpoints, Alcantara on the headliner and abundant room for both rows of passengers.
In a few modern Audi or BMW products, it can be easy to find the oft material or trim piece that feels a little too downmarket for the car’s price point. In the Zeekr 7X, you’ll have to really search for those pieces. A Q6 E-Tron’s interior might have a few uncharacteristic cheap materials cheap for its MSRP, but the 7X’s swanky interior and lightning-quick infotainment screen feel like you’ve got away with highway robbery.
How Does The Zeekr 7X Drive?
I might be the only person who has driven so many SEA-platform vehicles and isn’t a Geely or Volvo employee. They’re all generally good, these cars. I have yet to get behind the wheel of a dynamically poor one, they’re all generally well-resolved, even if some of them have a bit of a weight problem.
The 7X is no exception to this rule. Like the 007 it is closest related to, the 7X feels well-sorted, at least from what I can tell on Shanghai’s crowded roads. It is pleasant, comfortable, and whisper-quiet – all important qualities for Chinese buyers. On its face, that’s a very banal read of the 7X, plenty of cars are comfy and compliant. Yet, there’s one thing that stuck out to me the most about the Zeekr 7X: It’s really agile.
When I drove the Nio ES6 and Onvo L60, it was a little off-putting how light and disconnected the driving experience was. The suspension was soft and the steering was light. It wasn’t poorly calibrated, but Nio and Onvo’s engineers clearly had a target in mind for someone who doesn’t want to feel the road at all. Zeekr’s clientele is different because the 7X’s steering is relatively communicative.
The crossover corners fairly flat for a Chinese-market luxury crossover with no inherent sporting pretensions I think the Nio and Onvo would need a bit of market-specific tuning to be palatable to Western audiences, but Zeekr’s7X feels pretty much good to go. I see why Ethan Robertson, owner of the YouTube Wheelsboy called the 7X the “best handling Chinese EV yet.” It kind of is.
And this was all in the standard range, 416 hp RWD unit with no real options. Not sure if any buyer really needs the bigger battery or extra traction and power from the 637 hp AWD model.
So, What Does This Mean For Us?
I’m not going to give our American audience any hope here, because things don’t look all that good right now. The idea that Zeekr will somehow miraculously come to the United States in the near future is pretty slim even considering Zeekr’s new Arizona office and its (officially, anyway) nonchalant attitude toward growing anti-China sentiment codified in U.S law.
In the time since I went to China to talk with Nio and drive a few Zeekrs, geopolitical tension between the U.S. and China has gotten significantly worse. It’s not clear what the hell is going to happen with any EV subsidies or development over the duration of the Trump administration.
But, the 7X is still important for several reasons. One, for our audience members outside of the U.S. who do have access to Zeekr, its next model just might cement the brand as a real competitor in markets outside of China. We know the Zeekr X and 001 are generally good cars, but they’re odd vehicles that kind of don’t fit in. The Zeekr 7X is good, and it’s of a size and shape that’s familiar to consumers. It’s an approachable model, that if priced right, could really put a dent in the sales of EVs of this size and class from established brands. Especially if this thing DC fast charges as quickly as some have experienced.
Secondly, it bodes well for Geely’s brands that are marketed toward us. The 7X may never reach the U.S. or Canada, but a Polestar or Volvo based on this car’s guts could potentially leapfrog the EV efforts of big brands that can’t seem to figure it out.
Whatever the case, the Zeekr 7X proves that China’s got what it takes to compete on the global stage. And the rest of you guys had better watch your back.
Contact the author: Kevin.Williams@InsideEVs.com
