Geely EX2 — There Is Only One In Australia, For Now!

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Geely is a brand to watch as it storms the barricades of the rEVolution. Geely owns many other brands, but the focus in this article is one brand, and one particular model: the Geely Xingyuan, recently launched in Australia as the Geely EX2. According to CleanTechnica’s Jose Pontes in his latest review of global EV sales, the EX2 (41,617 units sold) came second in the world to the Tesla Model Y (71,510) in April. Can the Geely EX2 outsell the mighty Tesla Model Y? Time will tell.

So, when I got an email from a local dealer telling me that they had an EX2 on display, Majella and I had to go check it out. It became a bit of a chase. There appears to be only one in the country of Australia, being trucked from spot to spot as a roadshow. It has already been displayed in Sydney and the Australian Capital Territory. We couldn’t make it on Wednesday or Thursday, but managed to align time tables and made it to the Friday venue. The car was on display from 12 noon till 6:00 or 7:00 pm at one dealer before leaving for the next one. It was not available for a test drive. Now it has disappeared down south in Melbourne, and on to Adelaide and Perth. You can check out the roadshow dates here.

The visit to Bartons on the other side of the Brisbane River on Friday was well worth it. Although the sales staff had difficulty answering any technical questions, they were courteous and generous with what they did know. “We have only had the car for an hour.” The biggest question? The price. This has not yet been released but is speculated to be about AU$30,000 for the base model. The EX5, already on sale, is around AU$40,000. The staff have had to do a lot of their own research.

Many prospective customers sat in the car, played with the tech, and considered the value. A Facebook page has already been established and people are sharing their excitement and enthusiasm. Deliveries are expected to begin in September. Many people are cross-shopping against the GAC Aeon — also sold by Bartons. There were plenty of staff on hand to service the customers — about half a dozen interested customers when we arrived, and more came through the door as we were leaving. The dealer principal expected more people to visit in the evening.

Majella was able to point out some tech to the sales staff. I was in the car when another lady was experimenting with the AC and the fan and I noticed that the cityscape changed colours and contours. I showed this to the salespeople, who had not yet noticed it. Something exciting for them. She was impressed with the good-sized frunk.

Majella found the screen easy to use. The back seat had enough room for two adults to sit — plenty of head room and leg room. She was disappointed that there was no lower boot. The boot was a reasonable size for a small car — and of course there is that ample frunk.

The Geely EX2 is a similar size to the Toyota Yaris Cross, the BYD Atto 1 (Seagull), and the MG4 urban. According to their website, the EX2 has “Design that will stand the test of time. The Geely EX2 has been crafted to embody the golden ratio: ensuring proportions and curves result in a car that is not only great to look at, but aerodynamic for maximum efficiency.” EVDB tells us that the EX2 has a battery size of 42 kWh providing a range of 340 km. The EX2 is specifically designed for urban driving.

In conversation with the dealer principal, she revealed that Bartons is seeing a reduction in BEV sales and she believes that the future belongs to PHEVs and HEVs. “We’ll see, I thought.” I enquired about the rumoured RADAR BEV ute. She expects a slow release. She shared some of the issues regarding taking on the sale of BEV vehicles. Apparently, if a battery fails or is recalled, it has to be stored on site at the dealership, for up to 3 months, leading to safety concerns. The technicians at the dealership have been trained to deal with high-voltage batteries safely.

Globally, Geely is challenging the heavyweights with its varied lineup — from Volvo and Polestar to Lynk and Co, Proton, and Lotus. They also own London Electric Vehicle Company (taxis), Farizon (vans), and Radar (utes). According to Wikipedia, Geely Holding is a “Chinese multinational automotive conglomerate headquartered in Hangzhou, China. The company was founded by, and is privately owned by Chinese entrepreneur Li Shufu … Geely was founded in 1986 as a refrigerator parts company, before transitioning to motorcycles in 1994 and entering the automotive industry in 1997.” Geely also has a stake in Aston Martin.

Geely is currently only selling one model in Australia — the Geely EX5. This car has sold 4,453 units so far this year. By comparison, BYD has sold 7,786 Sealions and Tesla 12,324 Model Ys. The Geely EX5 was #3 in the top ten last month.

I am expecting that the EX2 will sell as well as its big brother as Australia continues the rEVolution, led by affordable and dependable Chinese electric cars.