Geely is out to draw attention to its starter car. It’s here with a sharp launch price and fat incentive package.

THE latest brand from China to contest the electric car sector believes the pricing it has announced for its first car here will rattle cages.

Geely, which is represented by Giltrap Group and so far has just two outlets - in Auckland and in Christchurch - is better known here as the parent of Volvo, Lotus and Polestar.

The EX5 medium sports utility that is positioning in two trim levels, a base Complete at $51,990 and a higher-level Inspire, for $55,990, is the first Geely-badged car here.

In a media share announcing prices today, Geely NZ said it believes the car is either aligning with or sitting at a cheaper price-of-entry than some key internal combustion, mild hybrid and plug-in hybrid midsize competitors.

It does not name any of those likely competitors, but logically they might well include the Mitsubishi Outlander, the Ford Escape, the Toyota Highlander, the BYD Sealion 6 and Atto 3, Telsa Model Y, Leap Motor C10, MG ZS EV and the Haval H6 PHEV. Most of those are either no sharper priced or more expensive.

Geely has an incentive programme for EX5 early adopters; anyone signing up between today and May 31 will achieve a complimentary service plan, spanning three years or 60,000 kilometres (whichever occurs first) and will avoid paying the usual $950 premium for metallic paint.

There are caveats, including that cars have to be registered within that period; potentially a small window of opportunity as the first examples are not expected prior to April 14. Also, the deal curtails as soon as stock exhausts.

The EX5 arrives with a seven year warranty that is transferable to subsequent owners, an eight year unlimited kilometre battery warranty, seven years’ complimentary roadside assist and two years of connected car data.

EX5 is on a new platform and runs a single 160kW/320Nm electric motor fed by 60.22kWh lithium-iron-phosphate battery, with a 400-volt system. WLTP ranges of 410-430km are claimed, the Complete have longer legs.

The car has vehicle to load and vehicle to vehicle functions and can support a 3.3kW of maximum output in respect to appliances being run off it, with the V2V rate of 6kW.

The cabin features a 15.4-inch HD multimedia screen and a 10.2-inch LCD digital instrument cluster and Geely is claiming ultrafast processing. It claims phone-like responses to prompts “making satellite navigation respond quicker than ever.”

Spotify can be run directly through the vehicle’s infotainment. However, though the hardware can support Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, that connectivity is not expected to enact until end of 2025. Geely says an over the air update will do this, but has yet to say if there is any cost.

Standard features including power and heated front seats, LED lights, wireless phone charging, adaptive driving modes and a suite of safety aides and driver assists. Inspire adds massaging and ventilation for the front seats, a panoramic glass sunroof, a power leg rest for the front passenger and upgrades to a 16-speaker sound system.

Geely says the car arrives for sale in wake of it spending a full year of local testing and evaluation to ensure it would be fit for New Zealand and Australia.

That process delivered suspension revisions and fine tuning of the ADAS calibration, which is often proving to be problematic on China brand cars. Geely says it has worked on the lane-keep assist, driver attention monitoring and traffic sign recognition.

The media share says “the Geely team concluded their evaluation program (sic) having tailored an automotive product that goes above and beyond in the segment, providing a comfortable, composed and enjoyable driving experience without compromising driver control or engagement with the vehicle.”

Geely NZ says it is working on expanding its national representation, but has given no indication on where more outlets might be located.