► Geely to launch PHEV Defender rival
► Uses new AI-powered platform with steer-by-wire
► Brand intends to launch production car in the UK
Geely’s Galaxy Cruiser concept – first unveiled at the 2025 Shanghai motor show – will be made into a real production car, and it is planned to launch in the UK.
The concept is ’90 to 95 per cent’ what the upcoming production model will look like according to Flavian Dachet, director of design at Geely group’s Shanghai design studio, meaning very little will change from the concept design.
When the production car launches later in 2026, it’s expected to inevitably launch in the UK; Tianxiao Yan, Geely Auto’s UK marketing director was pretty up front: ‘We will definitely launch that car in the UK. No problem.’
As you can tell, it’s quite heavily inspired by the Land Rover Defender, with Dachet quick to point out that it is also inspired by other off-roading icons like the Mercedes G-Class and Toyota Land Cruiser.
‘If you want to look at classic off-roaders, there’s always the same recipe whether you look at Defender, G wagon, Bronco etc.,’ says Dachet. ‘So it’s a matter of how we integrate it in a way that is recognisable. There is not so much off-road vehicle history in the Chinese car industry, so they always look up to these icons. We want to learn from it and add our own take on it.
‘But if the interior is going to be a lot more comfortable and safe feeling,’ adds Dachet, ‘then the customer will be more likely to buy one. It’s a strategically interesting approach – very different to what, say, Land Rover might have taken.’
The architecture underneath is Geely Group’s most advanced architecture yet. As well as steer-by-wire technology that allows for more driver assistance functions, four-wheel steering allows for tighter turns when parking or even a crab mode similar to that of GMC’s Hummer EV.
It’s the same one used in the monolithic Zeekr 9X – an enormous three-row SUV that’s filled to the brim with luxuries and technology. The platform – named SEA-R, can develop up to 1380bhp and runs on a 900-volt architecture; Geely also claims a 780-mile range (with the 9X) via Chinese economy testing standards.
We’ll find out more when the production model of the Geely Galaxy Cruiser concept is unveiled later in 2026.
Curtis Moldrich is CAR magazine’s Digital Editor and has worked for the brand for the past five years. He’s responsible for online strategy, including CAR’s website, social media channels such as X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook, and helps on wider platform strategy as CAR magazine branches out on to Apple News+ and more.
By Curtis Moldrich
CAR's Digital Editor, F1 and sim-racing enthusiast. Partial to clever tech and sports bikes
