Polestar isn’t afraid of competition from a surging Zeekr

Geely appears to be happy pitting its premium brands against each other in markets like Australia, with Zeekr now soaring above Polestar in the sales race – not that the latter is worried.

When asked how much of an impact a rising Zeekr will have on Polestar in this market, Polestar Australia managing director Scott Maynard told CarExpert there’s room for both brands to grow.

“Polestar’s still seen a 20 per cent lift in quarter one, and we’re still seeing month-on-month growth which we’re really pleased with,” he said.

“We don’t even expect that will continue. We’re very, very happy with the growth trajectory that we’ve been on for the first part of the year, so it doesn’t feel to us like the new entrants are cutting our grass.

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“It would appear that the market is growing at a rate that can accommodate new players.

“Brands like [Zeekr] are still sitting at a lower price point than us, we still occupy a higher and more premium spot in market that’s not as cluttered, so we still have room and scope to continue growing and forming the way we have.”

Mr Maynard also noted the brand had its best-ever first-quarter sales result both here and globally.

But after a sluggish start in Australia following its local introduction late in 2024 with the small X electric SUV and 009 electric people mover, Zeekr is now on a tear.

The mid-size Zeekr 7X electric SUV, launched here late last year, has soared up the sales charts.

To the end of April this year, Zeekr has notched up 2698 sales of the 7X, plus 59 sales of the 009 and 81 sales of the X. Overall, its sales are up a whopping 955 per cent compared with the same period last year, albeit from a low base, and it's even outselling fellow Geely-owned brand Volvo (2351, up 1.9 per cent).

Polestar sales, in contrast, are up by 18.4 per cent. In the first four months of this year it delivered 499 examples of the Polestar 4, its own mid-size electric SUV, along with 182 Polestar 2 electric liftbacks and 19 Polestar 3 large SUVs. That means a total of 700 Polestars have reached Australian buyers so far this year.

To Mr Maynard’s point, the Zeekr range does start at a lower price than Polestar. The entry-level X’s price was recently slashed from $49,900 before on-road costs to $48,990 drive-away.

The 7X opens at $57,900 before on-roads, making it more than $20,000 cheaper than Polestar’s most affordable mid-size SUV, and even undercutting the Polestar 2.

However, Zeekr does have the 009 which tops out at $139,900 before on-roads, making it pricier than most Polestar 3 variants, and it will soon launch the 8X and 9X large SUVs, its most upscale SUVs yet and its first plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs).

Polestar has a new generation of its Polestar 2 due in 2027, along with a more practical version of the Polestar 4, and the Polestar 7 which will battle not only the Zeekr 7X but also models from other brands under the Geely umbrella, including the Volvo EX30 and Smart #1.

Before these vehicles arrive, it'll launch a high-performance flagship passenger car, the Polestar 5, which will be its most expensive vehicle yet.

The brand still expects its sales to grow this year, however, though not to the extent of last year when they rose by 38.5 per cent as deliveries of its Polestar 4 ramped up.

“We’re not expecting huge growth this year… I’d be happy with single-digit growth,” said Mr Maynard.

He said enquiry levels are still up by nearly 20 per cent compared to the period before recent spikes in fuel prices.

“We’re still seeing a level of enquiry that’s sitting above where it was same time last year,” he said.

“It’s not at the panic-buying peak that we saw when the current prices first kicked off, but it’s still measurably above what we were running at last year, which we’re happy about.”

Mr Maynard also noted recent fuel price spikes have also made drivers aware of the issue of fuel scarcity.

“Nobody in Australia knew that we only had 30 days' supply until this whole thing kicked off, and suddenly everyone knows and now everyone’s saying if this can happen again, then we want an electric car,” he said.

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