Meet Zeekr — the latest Chinese EV brand coming to Oz

A sister brand to Volvo and Polestar, Zeekr is a fast-growing EV offshoot owned by Chinese conglomerate Geely, and will launch in Australia with two models.

Leading the charge is the Zeekr 009, a large six- or seven-seater family mover that promises sportscar-like acceleration and up to 800km of driving range.

Zeekr will also offer a small SUV, known as the Zeekr X, which will be a rival to the BMW iX1 and the closely-related Volvo XC40 Recharge.

Until now Zeekr has been building cars in left-hand drive at its factories in China and claims to have delivered more than 220,000 vehicles since production began in late 2021.

Plans for a rapid global expansion are now underway and include the establishment of a new factory in Thailand which is already producing the Zeekr 009 and X.

Zeekr has already begun hiring top-level executives in Australia, including its new head of marketing Andrew Haurissa who moves across from fellow Chinese brand Chery.

Pricing and specifications for the Zeekr 009 and X are yet to be locked in although both vehicles are likely to be premium offerings.

In China, the cheapest Zeekr 009 is priced at 499,000 Chinese Yuan (AU$107,000) and comes with a large 116kWh battery and a claimed driving range of 702km.

The flagship version of the 009 costs 588,000 Yuan (AU$127,000) and has a bigger 140kWh battery and a range of 822km.

Both versions are powered by two electric motors producing a combined 405kW/686Nm and can hit 0-100km/h in a claimed 4.5 seconds.

Size-wise, the Zeekr 009 is bigger than a combustion-powered Kia Carnival and is available either as a six- or seven-seater. It is 5209mm long, 2024mm wide and 1867mm tall, with a wheelbase of 3205mm.

The smaller Zeekr X, meanwhile, measures 4450mm long and 1836mm wide and is available solely as a five-seater.

Overseas it is available either with a single electric motor or a more powerful twin e-motor set-up, with the latter offering a claimed 0-100km/h dash of just 3.8 seconds.

Driving ranges for the Zeekr X are between 500-560km on the Chinese testing cycle, which is more lenient than the European WLTP standard.