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A Geely four-wheel-drive ute is all but locked in for Australia as a more heavy-duty proposition than the car-derived Riddara ute available overseas.
Geely is working on a four-wheel-drive ute for Australia, which could be in showrooms in 2028 or 2029 with plug-in hybrid power to rival the BYD Shark 6 and GWM Cannon Alpha.
It is according to Geely Australia CEO Alex Gu, who told Australian motoring media about the brand's intentions in the off-road space.
And while the Chinese automotive giant does not plan to offer a pure internal combustion-engined version, there is scope for hybrid and/or plug-in hybrid technology, potentially with diesel as well as petrol.
Geely’s future ute could receive a new 3.0-litre twin-turbocharged petrol V6 hybrid powertrain developed by Horse, an engine joint-venture between the Chinese giant and Renault, which can develop up to 400kW and 700Nm with the aid of an electric motor.
The rolling off-road chassis shown at the Beijing motor show last month was fitted with independent suspension front and rear.
Gu's comments leave the door open for whatever comes to Australia to adopt a more rugged live rear axle, if load carrying is a focus.
“The Australian pickup is an off-road pickup. This we will study because so far, this is a unique knowledge,” Gu said.
“Because we don’t have these historic platforms. But we will study and create to satisfy that ute market.
“So first we could do the plug-in hybrid. But also the next time, next generation, I’m not sure so far. Based on the study, [there] could be others, like diesel plug-in hybrid – a mixture.”
When asked if the recently-revealed turbocharged 3.0-litre V6 hybrid setup could end up in the ute, Gu indicated it was possible.
“We see Australia as one of the strategic markets for Geely globally,” Gu said. “This is reliant on localisation. Not to bring the Chinese model into this market, we need to create a local model.
“[The] V6 engine, right – as you may study about the Zeekr, we use two or four electric motors to make even more horsepower. This is a very good upgrade of technology.”
Asked when Geely's forthcoming ute is due, Gu said “two to three years”.
Gu was also bullish on the use of Geely's forthcoming 'plug-less' hybrid technology, which he claims can deliver fuel consumption superior to what Toyota can currently achieve.
Sam Purcell has been writing about cars, four-wheel driving and camping since 2013, and obsessed with anything that goes brum-brum longer than he can remember. Sam joined the team at CarAdvice/Drive as the off-road Editor in 2018, after cutting his teeth at Unsealed 4X4 and Pat Callinan’s 4X4 Adventures. Off-road writer of the Year, Winner - Sam Purcell
