Zeekr 009: Posh and pleasurable

TO put its electric driving range anxiety to rest, Zeekr Malaysia organised a Kuala Lumpur-Penang drive in its strong selling Zeekr 009 “Tech-Luxury” multi-purpose vehicle (MPV) recently.

In addition to enjoying the luxury available with the two variants offered, we were impressed (and flabbergasted at the same time) with the high level of intelligent controls, even for the most mundane of functions.

Before we delve further into our experience, let us re-introduce you to what the 009 is all about.

Since it was launched in December last year, more than 400 units of the 009 MPVs found satisfied customers, 40% of whom are corporate clients.

In March, the 009 was ranked the seventh best-selling EV model with 151 vehicles sold, based on JPJ’s vehicle registration data.

As an all-electric luxury MPV vying for a share in the market against a formidable rival in the Toyota Alphard/Vellfire lineup, its sales achievement is laudable.

Priced from RM349,000 for the seven-seat variant and an additional RM10,000 for the six-seat model, the 009 easily rubs shoulders with vehicles in the premium MPV market.


Built on a SEA or Sustainable Experience Architecture platform, it provides quite a few “ultimate” features – Ultimate Luxury, Performance, Intelligence and Safety.

Ultimate Luxury includes soft Nappa leather upholstery, 10mm Dreamy Rebound Sponge and massage and ventilated features for the seats.

Upping the comfort factor are the Eames Lounge Chair Mode for one of the second-row captain seats, electric leg support and recliner footrest.

Ultimate Intelligence comes in the retractable 17-inch rear entertain screen (OLED and 3K resolution), Yamaha Surround Sound System, AR-HUD and Intelligent Matrix LED (light emitting diode) projection headlamps.

The Yamaha Surround Sound System boasts 30 speakers (including the front headrests), 3000W peak power and 7.1.9 sound channel that takes into consideration the nine ceiling speakers.

Our favourite is the AR-HUD with its near 36-inch screen that offers the relevant information in good 1280x640 resolution.


For Ultimate Performance, the Zeekr accelerates from 0 to 100kph in 4.5 seconds, which is very quick for a vehicle of its sizeable dimensions (think Alphard and bigger).

This strong acceleration comes from the 450kW (612hp) for the dual motors and 693Nm; the battery pack comprises a 116kWh CTP NMC unit that could be charged from 10% to 80% in 30 minutes.

Its range is given as 582km (WTLP – World Harmonised Light Vehicles Test Procedure), which is almost as good as the Mercedes-Benz EQS.

There is also the quick switch Intelligent AWD (all-wheel-drive) system that ensures optimum energy consumption with 0.4-second instant switch in power flow to the front wheels and all four wheels according to drive and road conditions.

This is supported by the Dual Air Chamber Suspension system to provide the optimum ride comfort (which we fully enjoyed both ways during the KL-Penang drive).

The Ultimate Safety feature covers just about every aspect of vehicle safety than one could imagine, starting with the Double A-pillar design and 70-litre side curtain airbags that stretch across 2.7 metres to protect everyone – from front passengers to those in the third row.

Add to this the 10-gang Battery Crush Structure (that protects the battery in an accident), 13-tonne Roof Load Protection (enough to withstand the weight of a primer truck) and Single Piece Die Cast Aluminium for the floor platform.


As we took off from the IOI Puchong Mall, we had 470km on our instrument panel or about 80% of battery range.

Since this drive was to prove that the 009 could cover the KL-Penang drive on a single charge, it was done in a convoy format and at mostly legal speeds.

We set drive mode to Normal and was as gentle with the accelerator as possible as EVs are said to perform more efficiently with progressive accelerator action, rather than foot stomping ones.

Although our 009 registered more than 230km at our Ipoh lunch stop, it was determined that a quick charge-up was required; our vehicle was one of two which needed that while the other three 009s had range above 250km.

We were somewhat disappoin­­ted but continued nonetheless; when we got to our Batu Ferringhi hotel, we still had a range of 104km.

Given that scenario, we believe we could have made it on one charge.

On the return drive the following day, we started with a 480km range but were left to drive at our own pace.


When we arrived at our favourite Tapah rest stop, our range was above 250km and we believe we could easily cover the remaining distance of about 180km to IOI Puchong Mall.

But we decided to go for a 30-minute charge at the Shell station; as we normally spend about 25-30 minutes during drives in other ICE (internal combustion engine) vehicles, the time spent to charge the Zeekr was about the same.

The 009’s KL-Penang drive proved that range anxiety is basically the same as driving an ICE vehicle.

It all depends on how you use the accelerator pedal and with the proliferation of charge points at major rest stops, range anxiety is the least of your problem.

The other aspect of the Penang drive was the opportunity to lounge in the 009’s second-row seats and experience the wide variety of intelligent features.

Things like adjusting the steering column for height and reach or adjusting the door mirrors for optimum viewing.

You have to activate the respective function via the large central display before manually making the respective adjustments via the steering wheel.

Similarly, the adjustment for suspension mode, regenerating strength, music zoning (you could have the driver listening to his selection via his headrest speakers while the rear passengers could listen to another set of music), among others.


The “towkay” items include the Intelligent Sound Shield that he could activate via the large 17-inch rear screen.

Once activated, what is being discussed among the second-row occupants would come out garbled via the front headrest speakers.

There is also an interior camera that the towkay could use for video-conferencing on the go.

Lounging in the second row, especially by using the Eames Lounge Chair Mode, reminded us of flying business class.

It collapses the front passenger seat to provide a foot board to rest one’s feet and with the captain seat fully reclined, we could catch more than 40 winks.

However, this feature would not work if it detects someone occupying the front passenger seat.

Other relevant notes on its luxury travel are the quietness in which the Zeekr drives along and good absorption of road irregularities.

It’s among the better vehicles with fully-appreciable ride comfort that we have experienced and we could see why the 009 is gaining strong sales traction in the market.