New Geely EX2 set to hit the UK this summer, and it’ll only cost £20k

This is the Geely EX2: the biggest-selling car in China last year and the latest challenger to the Renault 5 headed for our shores. And Auto Express can confirm the cut-price all-electric hatchback is due to arrive in the UK this summer.

This smart-looking small EV is known as the Geome Xingyuan in China, where it’s available from the equivalent of just over £7,000 – which goes some way to explaining its massive popularity. Needless to say it won’t be that cheap in the UK, but we expect prices to start somewhere in the region of £20,000.

That would put the EX2 in the same price range as the Renault 5 and the new MG4 Urban, which start from around £21,500 and £23,500 respectively. The Volkswagen ID. Polo and Kia EV2 that are coming later this year are potential competitors, too, and are expected to cost from around £22k and £25k respectively. 

Meanwhile, the BYD Dolphin currently starts from more than £30k, but with the Auto Express Buy A Car service you can save almost £3,000 on brand-new models that are in stock at dealerships around the UK.

What’s the interior of the Geely EX2 like?

You might assume a car that costs £7,000 would be about as well-equipped and modern inside as a horse stable, but that’s not the case. We had the opportunity to poke around the EX2 during a visit to Geely’s factory in Linhai, China, where the car is made, and were impressed by how smart the interior looks and feels.

The cabin does feature a lot of plastic, but that’s the case with every small EV. The illuminated skyline artwork on the dashboard and doors is a nice touch, and we like the fact that Geely has included physical buttons on the steering wheel and centre console. 

The 14.6-inch central touchscreen and 8.8-inch driver’s display looked bright and sharp, and menus in the infotainment system were quick to load. Unfortunately, we couldn’t play around with the touchscreen too much, because everything was in Thai and we couldn’t figure out how to change it to English.

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Perhaps more impressive is how spacious the EX2 is for a small electric car, especially when compared to a Renault 5. Admittedly, at a little over 4.1 metres long, the EX2 is slightly bigger than the French contender, but the result is what felt like considerably more room for passengers in the back of the Geely, helped in part by the completely flat floor. 

The 375-litre boot is also about 50 litres bigger than the R5’s, plus there’s an additional 75 litres of storage under the bonnet. The BYD Dolphin is even bigger at nearly 4.3 metres long, yet its 345-litre boot can’t match the Geely’s either.

How much range will the Geely EX2 offer?

In China, the EX2 is available with two battery sizes: 30kWh and 40kWh. The smaller unit is paired with a 78bhp rear-mounted e-motor for up to 193 miles of range, while those with the larger battery get a slightly more potent 114bhp e-motor and a 255-mile official range.

However those figures are based on the Chinese CLTC test cycle, which produces considerably higher range figures for EVs than the WLTP standard used in Europe. If the EX2 uses the same batteries when it comes to the UK, they should offer around 150 to 200 miles of range.

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For context, the Renault 5 offers up to 250 miles of range and the BYD Dolphin is good for up to 265 miles on a single charge. So it’s possible Geely will go down the same route as BYD did with its electric hatchback, and fit larger batteries to give the EX2 more competitive range stats. 

How many other cars is Geely bringing to the UK?

The EX2 is one of at least seven models Geely has told Auto Express it will bring to the UK by 2028. The EX5 electric SUV was the brand’s first offering to Brits, and this is being followed by the new Starray plug-in hybrid SUV. Also on the way is a seven-seat SUV that should rival the Skoda Kodiaq, among others, plus a rugged 4x4 that has the Land Rover Defender in its sights.

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