ZEEKR plans ambitious 2023, including doubling sales, 2 new EV models, and entry into Europe
Young Chinese EV brand ZEEKR is looking to significantly expand its sales and global footprint in 2023, according to an internal letter outlining several of the Geely-owned marque’s goals. In addition to introducing two new EV models this year, ZEEKR is planning to enter key markets in Europe. It makes us wonder if the US could soon be next.
Having only been founded in 2021, ZEEKR remains a young luxury EV automotive brand in China existing under the Geely umbrella. Sales so far have only included the brand’s first EV model called the 001.
It will be followed by a multipurpose vehicle (MPV) called the 009, which ZEEKR just began rolling off its assembly lines in China earlier this month. After reporting promising quarterly numbers midway through 2022, ZEEKR announced it had capped off the fiscal year above its sales target of 70,000 units.
Looking ahead to 2023, the young automaker looks to double those numbers on the wings of two new EVs in addition to the two mentioned above. Furthermore, ZEEKR appears to be making good on its promise to enter Europe sooner rather than later. Here’s the latest.
Peek at ZEEKR’s new EV, plus plans for Europe – is the US next?
According to an internal letter to staff obtained by CnEVPost, ZEEKR CEO Andy An believes China’s EV market will be especially competitive in 2023. To face these impending challenges in the industry, An laid out five key tasks for the ZEEKR team, including entry into Europe and 140,000 EVs deliveries. Per An’s letter:
The 140,000-unit delivery goal will be a hard battle, and we have to accomplish that mission.
A huge factor in doubling its deliveries compared to 2022 will be the two new EVs ZEEKR has planned, one of which can be seen above, thanks to images obtained by CnEVPost. The original post said ZEEKR is using the code-name BX1E for its third EV model and speculated that it could be named the 003. However, Geely senior vice president, Yang Xueliang, took to Weibo to confirm this is, in fact, ZEEKR’s third EV but that it will not necessarily be named the 003.
BX1E has not yet been registered with the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology’s vehicle catalog, but the EV is expected to make its debut at the Shanghai Auto Show this April. Another task in trying to stand out among the competition this year will be bolstering intelligence technology, including smart cockpits and driving assistance.
According to An:
This year, our continued high investment in R&D will enter a period of bearing fruit and teams will have to accelerate to get the technology into application.
An’s fourth task is ZEEKR’s strategy for entering Europe. An did not specifically mention where ZEEKR’s invasion of Europe will begin but did state the brand intends to “create value in the world’s most mature automotive markets.” Germany stands out as a mature market in the EU, but smaller more EV-centric countries where other Chinese automakers have begun sales make sense as well. This includes territories like Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and the Netherlands.
This move to Europe is something we’ve been anticipating for quite some time now, considering ZEEKR said as much in January of 2022 during the launch of the 001 sedan. At the time, ZEEKR said it expects its total overseas exports (Europe and beyond) to reach 100,000 vehicles by 2025 alongside seven branded EV models by that same time.
Parent company Geely has even bigger plans for ZEEKR, previously stating it expects the luxury EV brand to contribute approximately 650,000 units to its annual sales every year by 2025.
We probably won’t see it in 2023, but with ZEEKR’s quick sales growth and expansion to Europe imminent, entry into North America feels like a natural next step. An even hinted at it back in early 2022 as well:
North America is in our plan for the next step. That will happen after 2022.
Since then, ZEEKR has confidentially filed for an IPO on the US stock market, seeking a valuation over $10 billion. It could go public as early as Q2 of this year, so that will be something to keep an eye on.
Last but not least, An’s fifth task for ZEEKR employees is to optimize internal management, optimizing for efficiency in order to transcend the automaker from “sloppy growth to high-quality development.”
We will keep eyes on ZEEKR as we approach the Shanghai Auto Show and its pending entry into Europe. More is sure to come as 2023 is making to be a crucial year for EV companies like this one.
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The Dodge Charger Daytona EV made headlines when it rolled out fake engine noises as a way to make the EV appeal to muscle car drivers. As it turns out, they weren’t the right sort of fake engine noises – and now Stellantis has to recall 8,000 of them for a fix.
According to the ChryCo fans at Mopar Insider, Stellantis is recalling ~8,390 examples of its 2024 to 2025 Dodge Charger Daytona EVs because of an exterior amplifier that may be missing critical enabling the amp to emit exterior sounds – including the Federally mandated pedestrian warning sounds designed to keep pedestrians safe.
What’s more, the recall’s “suspect period” reportedly begins on 30APR2024, when the first 2024 Dodge Charger Daytona was produced, and ends 18MAR2025 … when the last Charger EV was produced.
RECALL CHRONOLOGY
- On April 17, 2025, the FCA US LLC (“FCA US”) Technical Safety and Regulatory Compliance (“TSRC”) organization opened an investigation into certain 2024–2025 model year Dodge Charger vehicles that may not emit exterior sound.
- From April 17, 2025, through May 13, 2025, FCA US TSRC met with FCA US Engineering and the supplier to understand all potential failure modes associated with the issue. They also reviewed warranty data, field records, and customer assistance records to determine field occurrences.
- On May 14, 2025, the FCA US TSRC organization determined that a vehicle build issue existed on certain vehicles related to a lack of EV exterior sound, potentially resulting in noncompliance with FMVSS No. 141.
Without the software patch, the vehicles don’t comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) No. 141, “Minimum Sound Requirements for Hybrid and Electric Vehicles.” The rule requires noisemakers for EVs and hybrids when operating under 19 mph, the safest speeds for pedestrians.
Basically, if you have a Dodge Charger EV, expect to get a recall notice.
It just keeps getting funnier
If you’re not familiar with the Charger Daytona EV’s “Fratzonic Chambered Exhaust,” it’s a system that employs a combination of digital sound synthesis and a physical tuning chamber (translation: a speaker) to produce a 126 decibel sound that approximately imitates a Hellcat Hemi V8 ICE. That’s loud enough to cause most people physical pain, according to Yale University – putting it somewhere between a loud rock concert and a passenger jet at takeoff.
While you could argue that such noises are part and parcel with powerful combustion, they’re completely irrelevant to an EV, and speak to a particular sort of infantile delusion of masculinity that I, frankly, have never been able to wrap my head around. Something akin to the, “Hey, look at me! I’m a big tough guy!” attention-whoring of a suburban Harley rider in a “Sons of Anarchy” novelty cut, without even enough courage to ride a motorcycle, you know?
You know – and I bet you can help me dial in the the comparison to perfection (and help me explain why the car just isn’t selling) in the comments section at the bottom of the page.
SOURCE: Mopar Insiders; featured image by Stellantis.
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Is it an electric van or a truck? The Kia PV5 might be in a class of its own. Kia’s electric van was recently spotted charging in public with an open bed, and it looks like a real truck.
Kia’s electric van morphs into a truck with an open bed
The PV5 is the first of a series of electric vans as part of Kia’s new Platform Beyond Vehicle business (PBV). Kia claims the PBVs are more than vans, they are “total mobility solutions,” equipped with Hyundai’s advanced software.
Based on the flexible new EV platform, E-GMP.S, Kia has several new variants in the pipeline, including camper vans, refrigerated trucks, luxury “Prime” models for passenger use, and an open bed model.
Kia launched the PV5 Passenger and Cargo in the UK earlier this year for business and personal use. We knew more were coming, but now we are getting a look at a new variant in public.
Although we got a brief glimpse of it earlier this month driving by in Korea, Kia’s electric van was spotted charging in public with an open bed.
The folks at HealerTV found the PV5 variant with an open bed parked in Korea, offering us a good look from all angles.
From the front, it resembles the Passenger and Cargo variants, featuring slim vertical LED headlights. However, from the side, it’s an entirely different vehicle. The truck sits low to the ground, similar to the one captured driving earlier this month.
When you look at it from the back, you can’t even tell it’s the PV5. It looks like any other cargo truck with an open bed.
The PV5 open bed measures 5,000 mm in length, 1,900 mm in width, and 2,000 mm in height, with a wheelbase of 3,000 mm. Although Kia has yet to say how big the bed will be, the reporter mentions it doesn’t look that deep, but it’s wide enough to carry a good load.
The open bed will be one of several PV5 variants that Kia plans to launch in Europe and Korea later this year, alongside the Passenger, Cargo, and Chassis Cab configurations.
In Europe, the PV5 Passenger is available with two battery pack options: 51.5 kWh or 71.2 kWh, providing WLTP ranges of 179 miles and 249 miles, respectively. The Cargo variant is rated with a WLTP range of 181 miles or 247 miles.
Kia will reveal battery specs closer to launch for the open bed variant, but claims it “has the longest driving range among compact commercial EVs in its class.”
In 2027, Kia will launch the larger PV7, followed by an even bigger PV9 in 2029. There’s also a smaller PV1 in the works, which is expected to arrive sometime next year or in 2027.
What do you think of Kia’s electric van? Will it be a game changer? With plenty of variants on the way, it has a good chance. Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Source: HealerTV
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