Geely EX2 review

The best-selling car in all of China, which buys more new cars than any other nation on earth. Over there, it’s called the Xingyuan, which means something close to ‘star-wish’.

It’s now on sale in Europe, where it’s called the E2. And in Britain, where it’s called EX2, for some reason. Maybe Geely gets a discount on ‘E’ badges. It says ‘GEELY’ on the boot twice… unlike on the bigger EX5 crossover, where it’s only on there once. Weird.

If the home market’s a sign, this thing will be a phenomenon. In 2025, Geely says it shifted a colossal 460,000 of these reasonably cute five-door electric superminis. And at first, it’s not hard to see why.

Sorry, did you say four-hundred and sixty THOUSAND?!

Indeed. Here’s some context: in Britain during 2025, 473,000 electric cars were registered. So this one car, in one country, was close to matching all EV sales in the sixth-biggest new car market on Earth. Or if you like, it’s twice the total new car sales for all of Portugal.

Granted, China is a big place with a mighty 1.4 billion-strong population. And it’s an urban population: 69 per cent of Chinese people live in cities. So a spacious, efficient, cheap to buy and own EV is bang on the money.

Is there lots to like about this car?

On paper yes, and when you first get up close to it, even more so.

It looks cheerful in a generic, inoffensive background character sort of way. Prices start at a tenner under £21k, and model for model it’s about £500 cheaper than the equivalent Renault 5 – Top Gear’s favourite small electric car.

It’s also hugely spacious. This isn’t some sort of secret Chinese dimension-bending technology at work. The EX2 is tall and long for a supermini, which is why it looks dorky next to the retro-cool Renault 5 and the neat new Volkswagen ID. Polo.

Think of it more like a Honda Jazz, straddling the line where superminis end and family hatchbacks begin.

Why is it so big?

The benefits, if you’ve space to park it, are enormous. Literally. The doors open wide and invite you into a cabin where there’s headroom for basketball players and enough cargo space for all their kit.

Not only can you seat a six-foot adult comfortably behind a same-sized driver with head- and knee-room to spare, the floor is flat and the rear bench isn’t sculpted with bolsters, so it’s a fuss-free five-seater. No squabbles over who has to perch in the middle.

There’s also a whopping 375-litre boot – the same size as a VW Golf’s – which must’ve involved actual Chinese fourth dimension tech because the EX2 is actually rear-wheel drive. There’s a motor under the back, and yet the boot is bottomless. And there’s a 28-litre locker under the rear seats. How have they done that?

Is the motor tiny and pathetic?

Well, yes. Choose from 80bhp in the base model with 37kWh battery, or 114bhp in the bigger-battery 47kWh version. Depending on which spec you’ve gone for, you and the EX2’s class-leading 36 stowage compartments will saunter from 0-62mph in 14.2 or 11.5 seconds. The top speed is pegged at just 80mph.

So it’s very slow. But this is a town car, and EVs punch above their weight in zippiness, so unless you’re a regular motorway cruiser you’re not exactly holding up lorries, tractors, and hedgehogs hoping to cross the street.

So it’s affordable. It’s practical. Efficient?

Oh yes. You might not get much power but the EX2 sips at its wee battery. We tested the top-spec, highest power version on a sunny day and averaged between 4.6 and 4.8 miles per kWh.

Geely claims a 214-mile best-case range, and we were reckoning on a real-world 180-190 miles. During summer a Renault 5 can match that, but it needs a bigger 52kWh battery. Another point to Geely.

Goes far enough, carries lots of stuff, doesn’t cost much. Sold!

Except… no. Don’t. Just don’t. Because the EX2 has flaws that will drive you up the wall. Or very possibly drive it into a wall on purpose.

Over-active, nonsensical driver assistance tech, an overwhelming and confusing touchscreen in another otherwise dated-looking cabin, and a forgettable experience.
If it was £5,000 less than a Renault 5, you’d forgive it. But it’s worth finding the £500 difference and owning a better-thought out car.

China’s storming of the UK car market has been one of the all-time great industrial power moves: as of mid-2026 15 per cent of new cars bought by Brits are Chinese. Brands unheard of a couple of years ago like Jaecoo and BYD are topping sales charts in their segment. With Geely’s vast resources and experience, you’d bet on it doing the same.

But not with the EX2. You deserve a car that’s been properly calibrated. You deserve a car that doesn’t drive like an early PlayStation 1 gaming rig. And when it comes to EV superminis, the likes of Renault, Volkswagen, Kia, Hyundai, Cupra and Honda are able to either do that already, or will do very shortly.

Geely promises many updates are due for the EX2. And if they materialise, we’ll test them. In the meantime, buy a car that’s finished. If you like cars, anyway. If you need Some Transport – and apparently lots of people in China are just fine with that – then you’re in good company.