Because while the Zeekr handles tidily enough, the steering is light and feels a bit over-assisted, especially just off centre, and the car limbers a bit when changing direction, which isn’t surprising given it’s a heavy thing. But it doesn’t have the ability to hide its heft in the way an electric BMW iX manages to, for example, and tends to take a second to decide if it likes what you’re asking of it when you throw the car into a bend, before the body settles and it’s all neat and tidy from there. Just not exactly in its element on a British B-road. At least forward visibility is good; better than the fairly narrow rearward sightlines for sure, although myriad cameras, including one for each wheel to help avoid kerbing, and a really impressive 11.8-metre turning circle, mean over five metres of length – longer than Audi’s Q7 – isn’t a huge issue in tighter spots.
Ride quality is pretty good considering it’s on huge 22-inch wheels, and although it’s not cosseting, it doesn’t crash or thump, and feels acceptably part of the sportier end of the premium SUV set.
We’ll have to wait to see where the 8X ends up on price before being able to judge how competitive it is as a proposition. In China, it’s at the equivalent of around £36,000, but we’ve seen figures double here previously compared to their home market pricing, so around £60,000 is around what we can expect for the entry car with ‘just’ 885bhp, likely to rise by at least £10,000 for this 1,381bhp range-topper.
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Model:Zeekr 8X YaoyingPrice:£70,000 (est)Powertrain:2.0-litre 4cyl petrol, 3 e-motorsPower/torque:1,381bhp/1,400NmTransmission:Single-speed automatic, four-wheel drive0-62mph:3.0 secondsTop speed:143mphEconomy/CO2:TBCSize (L/W/H):5,100/1,998/1,780mmOn sale:Early 2027