Exactly one week after it launched the XPENG brand with a chic and modern pop-up showroom in front of UOB Plaza 2, Premium Automobiles has shaken up the electric vehicle (EV) space in Singapore yet again.
This time round, it's doing so with a Chinese name that's positioning itself even more firmly on the more premium-end of the market: Zeekr. The brand was officially ushered into Singapore on Thursday evening (1 August 2024) with the launch of the Zeekr X at the ArtScience Museum.
The car's official launch now follows a special preview period (including test drives) held at Jewel Changi Airport in end-July, and arrives in two variants: The X Standard RWD, and the X Flagship AWD.
Established in 2021, the Zeekr brand may be relatively young, but has the privilege of calling one of China's largest and longest-standing automotive supergroups its parent: The Zhejiang Geely Holding Group. And while it seems that electric Chinese crossovers are fast becoming dime a dozen on Singapore's roads, the Zeekr X does set itself apart with a number of unique touches.
The Zeekr brand is positioned by Geely as both intelligence-driven and upmarket - and is targeted at EV-buyers seeking to deviate from the mainstream. The latter should be particularly clear the moment one lays their eyes on the X, with its "quad-eye" daytime running lights outlined in black clusters, angular side profile and slim taillights.
Interestingly, despite not being positioned explicitly as a coupe-SUV, the X could very well fit the bill, with its tapered roofline at the rear giving it its distinct silhouette. At the same time, however, ensuring that the roofline only drops down close to the rear promises to preserve good headroom for rear passengers.
Climb aboard the car and the intelligent and premium claims will also start to become clear. It begins from the moment you're getting in; the car comes with hidden electronic door handles, which pop open gently when you fit your hands in them, to reveal frameless windows.
The X's interior comes in a soothing dual-tone upholstery regardless of which variant one goes for. Soft-touch materials abound not just up front and at the rear, with a metallic rose gold trim lining various parts of the cabin. Most of the knobs and switches one finds inside the car are also metallic, such as the rectangular door release buttons, toggle-style switches for lowering/raising the windows, and even knobs in place of conventional hooks.
Other expensive-feeling touches include a suede-like headliner, as well as a wireless charging tray that is likewise lined with a suede-like material. Because the X is built atop of Geely's EV-dedicated Sustainable Experience Architecture 2 (SEA2), it gets a rather generous wheelbase of 2,750mm too for its size - promising good legroom for rear passengers.
Zeekr is also eager to point out the safety credentials achieved by the SEA2 platform, with the X having achieved the full 5-Star Euro NCAP safety rating.
Additionally, the X gets a good serving of digitalisation that one expects of a high-tech 2024 car. An 8.8-inch LCD instrument cluster resides behind the steering wheel, and is paired with a 14.6-inch infotainment touchscreen that takes centrestage on the dash.
Powered by a Qualcomm 8155 chip, the car's infotainment system already comes with 5G connectivity out of the box, and can support over-the-air (OTA) upgrades. Zeekr Singapore is also already offering customers a Zeekr app, which can be tapped on to remotely control a multitude of functions on the car. Yet another tech highlight is the car's voice-operated virtual assistant.
Finally, the X comes with an optional accessory normally found on larger and much more expensive cars: An in-car refrigerator (or heater, although we doubt you'd ever be using that in Singapore), which resides where the centre cubby area normally lies if specced on the car. This can even be detached to double up as an icebox where needed.
At just over 4.4m long and 1.8m wide, piloting the X through Singapore's congested roads promises to be rather fuss-free, but Zeekr is also offering a wide range of advanced driving assistance systems as standard.
Beyond more 'basic' tech such as adaptive cruise control and blind spot monitoring, the X offers drivers a number of more sophisticated (and smart) features too, including the likes of an automatic lane change system, and a door open warning.
With the two variants offered in Singapore, customers will get to have their Zeekr X in either single-motor (Standard) or dual-motor (Flagship) flavours.
But even the Zeekr X Standard is no slouch. Its single motor sends a good 200kW (268bhp) and 343Nm of torque to the rear wheels, helping it hit 100km/h from a standstill in 5.6 seconds.
If such power does not suffice, however, the Zeekr X Flagship raises the performance stakes further, with its dual motors sending 315kW (422bhp) and 543Nm of torque to all four wheels. These figures mean that it finishes the century sprint in a quicker (and rather manic) 3.8 seconds.
As for range, both the Standard and the Flagship are powered by the same 66kWh battery, mounted low in the car's bodies, which gives the cars a WLTC-rated range of 440km and 420km respectively. This also supports DC fast charging at up to 150kW. As a clear sign of confidence, Zeekr states that this battery doesn't just come with an eight-year (or 160,000km, whichever comes first) warranty, but will also, at end-of-life, be recycled in line with the brand's global directives.
Extra power aside, stepping up to the Zeekr X Flagship also nets customers the full range of creature comforts offered by Zeekr.
Exclusive to the Flagship are front ventilated seats with four-way lumbar adjustment, an augmented reality head-up display, and a premium 13-speaker Yamaha sound system. It's worth noting, though, that you can still pay extra to opt for these on the Standard if you'd still prefer to go without the extra firepower.
The Flagship also rides on 19-inch wheels - one size larger than the ones on the Standard. If these aren't large enough, 20-inch wheels with self-repairing tyres and forged rims are additionally optional (exclusive to the Flagship).
The launch of the Zeekr brand as well as the pioneering Zeekr X now coincides with the official opening of the Zeekr Centre at 9 Leng Kee Road. (This was previously occupied by Premium Automobile's Audi Pre-Owned arm.) Here, customers will be able to get up close with both variants of the X, learn more about the brand's story - and even enjoy a cup of coffee (or a milkshake) at a cafe on the second floor. Sgcarmart understands that the 009, an electric luxury MPV, is set to arrive here soon too in the months to come.
Zeekr's local launch also follows a period of rapid international growth - with the month of July alone seeing the brand arriving in Hong Kong, Thailand, and Mexico, and an official market launch in Malaysia set to follow after Singapore. The brand also revealed at the local launch that it had recently hit a milestone 300,000 deliveries cumulatively.
Expressing his confidence in the growth of the brand's footprint across the region, Mr. Mars Chen, Vice President of Zeekr, said of the Zeekr X, "As Singapore continues to progress its EV transition, we believe that there is a desire for EVs that go beyond being simply a form of conveyance, to offering a premium driving experience with conveniences that elevate urban living."
| Car model | Price as of press time (including COE) |
| Zeekr X Standard RWD 66kWh | $199,999 |
| Zeekr X Flagship AWD 66kWh | $214,999 |
