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Zeekr 001 first drive: A promising start
New Geely-owned brand is set to launch in Europe this year
Zeekr 001 could hit the UK by 2025
High-spec, high-gloss, highly annoying ADAS
Give Chinese car brands their due, they move fast. Zeekr - a child of the vast Geely empire - launched just two years ago but already up past 150,000 sales in its native China and growing fast.
Zeekr’s next plan is to expand into Europe through 2024, with right-hand drive and UK sales possibly starting in 2025. And it’ll kick proceedings off with two all-new electric cars. The Zeekr X compact SUV and this - the Zeekr 001.
It’s a fairly large shooting brake affair, similarly proportioned to the Kia EV6 with a bulbous rear and just enough of a raised ride height to feel commanding without stepping into the realms of being an SUV.
Looks rather like a Lynk & Co?
Yes - the 001 (we’re opting for ‘double-oh one’, incidentally) started life as the Lynk & Co Zero concept car, unveiled ahead of the 2021 Beijing Auto Show. It made it into production largely unchanged, but instead became the first thrust of budding brand Zeekr.
Still, Lynk & Co’s influence is clear to see, particularly in the bulbous, high-mounted daytime running lights, gurning grille and vertical taillight elements.
Lynk & Co - sorry, Zeekr - offers the 001 in three variants for Europe. All use the same beefy 100kWh lithium-ion battery pack mounted under the floor. Kicking off proceedings is the Long Range RWD, equipped with a single electric motor rated for 268bhp and 252lb ft and good for 0-62mph in 7.2 seconds. It’ll do up to 385 WLTP-fresh miles on a charge.
Moving up, the Performance AWD ups this to two electric motors and a total output of 537bhp and 504lb ft. 0-62mph is dispatched in a sprightly 3.8s, though range decreases to a still-impressive 367 miles. The range-topping Privilege model uses the same powertrain as the Performance, but range reduces slightly to 360 miles.
Long Range and Performance models run on double wishbones up front, coil springs at the rear and fixed-rate dampers, but the Privilege gets a full air-sprung setup, usually the preserve of much pricier EVs.
If neither of these are quick enough, the 001 FR will eventually hit Europe - though not for a good few years. It’s a halo performance model with 1248bhp, four electric motors, and 0-62mph in 2.07s. Bonkers.
What about the interior?
This is a real highlight of the Zeekr 001, actually. The dashboard is dominated, Tesla-style, by a 15.4-inch centre touchscreen, but you also get a physical gauge cluster that’s fairly easy to digest. Switchgear is minimal - most everything runs through the touchscreen, including the climate controls, but you do at least get a physical gear selector and a few shortcut keys on the centre console.
Price when new: £58,422
On sale in the UK: 2025
Engine: Dual e-motors, 537bhp, 405lb ft
Transmission: Single-speed automatic, four-wheel drive
Performance: 0-62mph 3.8s, top speed 124mph, 360-mile range, 3.35mi/kWh
Weight / material: 2350kg
Dimensions (length/width/height in mm): 4955/1999/1548mm
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