Geely EX5 review

Our opinion on the Geely EX5

With a lot of pressure on its shoulders, the Geely EX5 makes a good account for itself. The standard equipment list is vast, pricing is exceptionally keen, and the Geely is very much on the larger end of its class - resulting in acres of interior space. 

It’s not without fault, though. Far too many functions go through the slightly fiddly touchscreen, there’s just one battery and electric motor combination, and its range is nothing special. While Geely has leant on its connections for chassis development, the EX5 isn’t particularly fun to drive either. But perhaps more importantly, it is impressively comfortable. 

About the Geely EX5

Geely is yet another Chinese brand looking to make an impact in the UK, but it’s definitely one to be reckoned with. To some extent it’s already done so by having Lotus, Volvo and Polestar within its wider ‘Geely Auto Group’, accumulating a 4.2 per cent share of the UK market. 

The first car to bear the Geely name here is the EX5, which joins the all-important, all-electric C-segment SUV market. Keeping things simple, there’s just one battery option and three trim levels – SE, Pro and Max. We’re told a plug-in hybrid variant (or at least a similarly sized Geely SUV) will join the line-up in early 2026 to broaden the brand’s appeal, and it will be followed by a B-segment hatchback and then a D-segment SUV flagship by the end of next year. 

As for the new EX5, it has plenty of solid rivals. There’s the excellent Skoda Elroq, the Kia EV3, Citroen e-C5 Aircross, Renault Scenic and of course, many other new competitors from China, including the Jaecoo E5 and Omoda E5. 

Geely EX5 prices and latest deals

Geely has been pretty aggressive with its pricing strategy, immediately knocking off up to £4,750 from the EX5. With the self-imposed ”Geely EV grant” in place - which runs up until the end of 2025, the EX5 is priced at: 

• Geely EX5 SE - £29,690
• Geely EX5 Pro - £30,790
• Geely EX5 Max - £33,240

Although the brand has only just arrived here in the UK, Auto Express already has loads of EX5s to choose from on the Find A Car service - including those tempting grants from Geely. 

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The platform that underpins the EX5 is a new one from Geely called the ‘Global Intelligent New Energy Architecture’ (GEA). So far, it’s only been used on the EX5, which is called the Galaxy E5 in other markets. 

It hasn’t been offered on any other models to date, so we’re in untested territory, although some of its technology sounds familiar. For example, there’s ‘Cell-to-body’, which works similarly to Leapmotor’s ‘Cell-to-chassis’, incorporating the battery into the structure of the car to increase torsional rigidity and free up interior space. 

The EX5 is only available as an all-electric car, but that potential upcoming PHEV alternative will sit on the same GEA platform, which is a ‘multi-energy’ architecture. 

Performance, 0-60mph acceleration and top speed 

Along with the single battery option, the EX5 only comes with only one electric motor. It’s mounted on the front axle and while this layout sometimes results in excessive wheelspin at low speeds (we’re looking at you, Skywell BE11), the EX5 manages its 320Nm of torque perfectly well.

It’s quick to reach 62mph and there’s no real lump of power either – it’s all relatively smoothly distributed, and even at higher speeds the EX5 feels pretty punchy. The throttle mapping is nicely done; you have a bit of give in the pedal before anything happens, but we’d rather this than an overly sensitive response. 

Town driving, visibility and parking

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The EX5 has a proper SUV profile, and when you jump in, you’re met with a high driving position and great visibility all round. Despite being larger than most of its rivals, the EX5 never feels cumbersome in town, thanks to its incredibly light steering. You can change the weight of the steering via the driving mode options within the screen, but at low speeds, no matter what setting you have it in, you could operate it with one finger. 

You can also change up the strength of the brake regeneration in the EX5, though no one-pedal mode is offered. Even in the strongest of the three settings, the brake regen is pretty relaxed and there’s a slight delay to it as well. Dropping down to the middle setting, it feels like the EX5 is coasting without any braking input. 

We’ve only driven the EX5 on the 19-inch wheels that come as standard on Pro and Max trims (SE gets 18-inch wheels). However, we didn’t find ourselves craving the smaller wheels, because the EX5’s ride quality is very good at low speeds. The suspension is soft, so speed bumps are dealt with easily, but it doesn’t wallow around much either.

Every EX5 gets a strong roster of driver-assistance technology and some of it is pretty handy around town. Although the resolution of the 360-degree camera (an impressive feature on a car at this price) didn’t quite gain our trust, the rear-view camera was perfectly clear and useful.

Country road driving and handling

Geely actually requested advice from Lotus for the chassis development of the EX5. While the Norfolk sports car firm isn’t exactly known for all-electric family SUVs, it did have “a lot of comments” for the EX5, according to Geely. 

Unfortunately, the EX5 still isn’t a particularly fun car to drive. In the bends it’s surprisingly stable and the brake can scrub off a decent amount of speed, but the steering is pretty lifeless, so you’re never really engaged with the Geely. At 1,765kg, the EX5 is lighter than most rivals, so despite its SUV proportions, there’s not much body roll in the corners, which is also helped by the battery positioning. 

Comfort is still good on back roads, although you notice undulations more often than in a Skoda Elroq or Ford Puma Gen-E. At times the EX5’s ride can feel a little more floaty than we’d like too.

Motorway driving and long-distance comfort

At motorway speeds there’s genuinely good refinement in the Geely, which is something we welcome in a family-oriented SUV. Despite the near-silent powertrain (there’s just a hum at low speeds), wind and road noise are kept at bay and we’d have no issue running the EX5’s battery down on a long journey.

The ride remains compliant, although the suspension still has a tendency to float around. The light steering becomes much stiffer at speed, so you’re not constantly making adjustments, but it’s still not particularly pleasant to use. 

Driver aids such as lane-keep assist aren’t too intrusive in the Geely, but we’d quickly get into the habit of switching it off via the touchscreen – and it’s the same story with the driver-attention assist. We also found the Forward collision control a little keen to warn us of impending doom – even when we couldn’t see any immediate danger. 

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Electric range, battery life and charge time

The 60.2kWh battery in the EX5 goes up against smaller-battery versions of the Skoda Elroq (59kWh), Kia EV3 (58.3kWh) and Leapmotor B10, which we recently tested with its 67.1kWh battery. 

Most of the Geely’s rivals offer around 260 to 270 miles of range, so the EX5 is in the right ballpark. Cars with larger wheels lose a bit of range, not helped either by a heavier kerbweight brought on by more kit. 

During our drive of the EX5 Max we saw a predicted range of 205 miles, which was brought on by performance tests, and running the heated and massaging seats. It turns out that the air-conditioning system used a whopping five per cent of the battery’s power. A heat pump is standard across the EX5’s trim levels, so that’ll help prime the battery in colder months to prioritise efficiency.

The EX5 is big enough to take a larger battery and Geely – which produces its own batteries – says it’s contemplating bringing a larger battery with ‘around 70kWh’ usable capacity to market. That could unlock more than 300 miles of range, giving Geely another version of the EX5 to take on bigger-battery versions of the Elroq and EV3, not to mention the 381-mile Renault Scenic E-Tech. 

A charging speed of 160kW is pretty respectable. That’s higher than the Renault Scenic and smaller-battery versions of the Volkswagen ID.4, Skoda Elroq and Kia EV3. Geely says a 30 to 80 per cent top-up will take 20 minutes in the EX5. 

There’s an 11kW on-board charger, but Geely only quotes figures for 7kW home charging, which stands at just over six hours for a 10 to 100 per cent recharge. 

The EX5 has the ability to provide a 3.3kW vehicle-to-load or 6kW vehicle-to-vehicle charge, powering things like e-bikes, appliances or camping gear including fridges or stoves.

Geely is also running a package for buyers of mid-spec Pro and top-spec Max cars to receive £1,000 off an Andersen home charger (reducing it to £499). If you don’t fancy that offer, you can also opt for a £500 charging credit through Octopus Electroverse instead. 

Insurance groups

Despite the Geely EX5’s keen pricing, it’s quite expensive to insure. It sits in a slightly higher group than comparable Skoda Elroqs, Renault Scenics and Kia EV3 – and way higher than the Ford Puma Gen-E, which is in group 18. 

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Geely has gone for a safe, minimalist cabin for the EX5. We can expect more of the same for the upcoming EX2 as well - which is no bad thing because the interior of the EX5 is rather pleasant. 

Interior and dashboard design

We found the black cabin a little drab and preferred the two-tone version. With a white lower section and darker upper, the EX5’s interior is bright and airy - although we did wonder how the light upholstery would tackle the usual spillages from family use. 

The dash layout is uncluttered with the huge touchscreen dominating the view. It’s not integrated into the dash at all either, nor is the driver’s display, but the positioning of air vents against different materials and colours still looks classy enough. Top-spec Max versions also get 256-colour ambient lighting. 

Materials and build quality

We’ve experienced relatively poor build quality in some Chinese cars that have focused on value in recent years, but that’s not the case in the EX5. A few parts (such as the flimsy steering wheel buttons and a questionable wood-grain centre console trim) don’t feel quite as solid as those in some rivals, but the Geely compensates in other areas. The faux-leather used on the seats, dash and doors feels up to scratch and we didn’t notice any creaks or rattles during our test drive. 

Infotainment, sat-nav and stereo

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With precious few physical controls, a lot of functions go through the central touchscreen. The 15.4-inch display is standard across the range, giving you excellent resolution and response to inputs - which is just as well because you often have to delve into several menus for fairly normal tasks, such as adjusting the heated seats. 

When we noticed the panoramic sunroof on our car (only available with Max trim) we instinctively reached up to adjust it. However, the control is actually within a menu on the touchscreen, which is nonsensical. 

Apple CarPlay mirroring is available and Android Auto will be offered via an over-the-air update soon, which is good news because we found the infotainment layout a little fiddly to use, especially on the move. 

A 13.8-inch head-up unit comes on Max versions and it’s a simple and clear display. It even comes with a ‘snow mode’, which changes the colour to blue. 

Rather than go to Harman Kardon, Bose or Bang and Olufsen for a sound system, Geely built its own, called Flyme. This 16-speaker system is only offered on Max trim and features a 1000W amplifier, several subwoofers and headrest speakers. It’s an impressive bit of kit and a worthwhile upgrade for music lovers. 

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There are so many storage pockets and spaces inside the Geely EX5 that you can spend a while finding new ones. This will be appreciated by family buyers needing places to put things like tablets, food and toys.

Dimensions and size

The EX5 is one of the largest cars in its class and Geely even says it’s almost a D-segment SUV. The upright shape is definitely SUV-inspired, even if there’s not a whiff of off-road ability. 

Seats & passenger space

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One element that separates the EX5 from its rivals is the ability to fold the front seats flat, so long as you take the headrests off. This bed layout makes a little more sense when you factor in the EX5’s V2L charging capability. 

More real-world features in our Max-trimmed EX5 included heated front seats and a powered leg rest for the front passenger seat - which seems quite weird at first, but gives you a limo-like feel up front. The seats themselves are nicely cushioned with supportive side bolstering. 

There’s loads of space both up front and in the back. Even tall adults sitting in the second row will have enough room to stretch their legs, and the SUV profile means headroom is excellent too. In the rear, there’s a sliding drawer underneath the legs of the middle passenger seat. It has a capacity of 14 litres and is a really clever idea for tucking away things you might not use often. 

Boot space

Geely quotes several boot capacities, and with the boot floor in its highest position (flush with the loading lip), there’s 302 litres. Move the floor down and you get a 410-litre boot and then beneath this there’s a storage box with 51 litres, which is where you’ll find the on-board charger and tyre repair kit. 

Some of those figures might sound meagre next to the Ford Puma Gen-E’s impressive 556-litre boot, but we think the shape of the EX5’s boot (especially the 1.1-metre width) will prove useful. 

Tall people will have to stoop a little to reach the opening button (located just above the number plate). But on top-spec Max versions, you get a powered bootlid with five stopping positions. 

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As well as rolling out all-new dealerships, the Geely brand will be sharing outlets with its many sister brands within the wider Geely Auto Group, including Lotus and Polestar. We think that’s a sensible move to build trust in the Geely name, as it looks to launch 100 sales locations by the end of 2026. 

Also helping to build trust in the EX5 is Geely’s warranty scheme. There’s a base cover of six years, plus two additional years up to 125,000 miles. The battery is covered for the same mileage and up to eight years, which is relatively standard for the industry. 

As for safety, there’s an impressive suite of standard technology. You get adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking, lane keeping and emergency lane assist, emergency manoeuvre assist, blind-spot detection, rear cross-traffic alert, door-open warning and a 360-degree camera system. 

• Best buy: Geely EX5 SE

We’d go with the entry-level SE trim because its kit includes a wireless smartphone charger, tinted windows, heated faux-leather steering wheel, keyless go and an exterior surround camera. The SE also gets a slightly longer range and we suspect the smaller wheels will provide greater comfort. But no matter which EX5 you choose, you’ll get incredible value for money.  

Geely EX5 alternatives

The all-electric family car market is hugely competitive and it includes our 2025 Car of the Year, the Skoda Elroq. The Renault Scenic is another option and while it’s a few thousand pounds more expensive, it comes with much more range. Then there’s the Volvo EX30, which might not have the space of the Geely, but it scores points for design and performance. Most of the Geely’s mainstream rivals feel better to drive as well, although few can beat the Chinese car on price.