Zeekr Australia desires to boost the native folks mover market by launching the ultra-luxurious 009 Grand Down Beneath, though its arrival is contingent on as-yet unconfirmed right-hand drive manufacturing.
The usual 009 went on sale in Australia late final yr, supplied in both seven-seat or six-seat configurations, priced at $135,900 and $139,900 earlier than on-road prices, respectively.
Gross sales have step by step elevated since launch – 66 have been offered this yr to the tip of June – though the Lexus LM (163 deliveries) and Mercedes-Benz V-Class (141) stay the popular choices within the premium folks mover house.
That hasn’t stopped Zeekr’s native staff from enquiring concerning the Grand, which hit the Chinese language market a couple of months in the past at roughly double the worth of the usual 009 variants.
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“We’re exploring methods to launch it in Australia formally in the intervening time,” Zeekr Australia advertising and marketing boss, Andrew Haurissa informed native media in Sydney.
“With the 009 current within the native market, that makes a compelling argument to have the Grand right here.”
Whereas the Grand could be welcomed to Australian showrooms, there’s no assure it is going to be produced in right-hand drive at this stage.
Zeekr is within the means of investigating the viability of a conversion for the Grand, which will probably be knowledgeable by the gross sales efficiency of different 009 variants throughout the globe.
“The correct-hand drive is right here however solely as a six- or seven-seater, we’re investigating the potential for the Grand, not just for Australia however for all right-hand drive market relying on buyer wants and the enterprise case,” stated Zeekr international product advertising and marketing director Tony Zhou.
“The Grand model is a brand new variant that solely launched in China a couple of months in the past in left-hand drive. To transform from left- to right-hand drive takes time, together with the product growth, engineering and homologation.
“We’d like a constructive enterprise case, which we’re investigating now. The efficiency of the present variations will give us the boldness to ship the Grand model, as a result of the Grand is positioned a lot greater than present variations, which suggests the worth will probably be a lot greater.
“Simply have a look at the worth in China, it’s round double the conventional variations. Changing to right-hand drive the worth will probably be a lot greater, what number of clients will select this one? And given the amount assumptions, what would be the enterprise case?”
Primarily based on pricing within the Chinese language market and the prices concerned in readying a car on the market in Australia, it could be cheap to anticipate that the 009 Grand might retail for north of $250,000 domestically, making it the costliest folks mover on sale.
The 009 is one in all two Zeekr fashions at the moment out there in Australia, alongside the compact X electrical SUV. Each will probably be joined by the bigger 7X SUV later this yr, with an extra SUV providing to come back in 2026.
Mr Zhou says that the model desires to keep away from overcrowding its Australian showrooms at this early stage.
“We have to take into account the product lineup right here, as a result of we’ve got two variations already, the X, and the 7X coming, we’re going to have a brand new mannequin subsequent yr, it’s about whether or not the showrooms can comprise so many variants,” stated Mr Zhou.
Zeekr markets the 009 as a luxurious folks mover, however the Grand elevates that premium positioning to a different stage.
For starters, the third row of seats has been deleted to maximise second row passenger legroom. As a substitute, the rear part homes a pair of airplane-style particular person seats with 24-way electrical adjustment, 12 zones of help, heating, air flow, and therapeutic massage features.
There’s additionally an enormous divider between the entrance and rear compartments, just like the Lexus LM.
The cabin is now trimmed in hand-polished stainless-steel components and pure Himalayan marble, whereas leisure is delivered via a 43-inch mini-LED display and 31-speaker Yamaha sound system.
VIP passengers may also take pleasure in full privateness courtesy of sunshine curtain glass expertise that provides adjustable window tinting, and ice-cold refreshments because of an 18-litre mini fridge.
Like the bottom 009, the Grand contains a dual-motor electrical powertrain that may propel the folks mover from 0-100km/h in 3.9 seconds on this software. Zeekr quotes 702km of driving vary on the extra optimistic CLTC testing cycle.
