Geely EX5 review

It’s the Geely EX5. Can’t you tell, from its supremely distinctive styling and that highly inventive badge on the nose?

Okay fine, we’ll stop being facetious for just a moment, but this isn’t exactly the most unique looking crossover is it? That was probably a bit of an oxymoron at one time, but a fair few designers are now proving that just because it’s a medium-sized family car, doesn’t mean it needs to look like an anonymous blob. Not sure Geely got the memo.

Hang on, how do I pronounce the name?

A very valid question. It’s Geely with a G, but pronounced like it’s a J. So you’ll want to refer to it as a J-eely when your mates ask what you’re driving these days.

Of course, you may well have heard of Geely before. The wider Geely Holding Group was founded in China back in 1986 and originally made parts for fridges, before transitioning into motorcycles in 1994 and then cars in 1997. It didn’t take long for it to become an absolute behemoth, with acquisitions of LEVC in 2006 (yep, the London taxi makers), Volvo in 2010 and Lotus in 2017.

These days Geely is also responsible for Polestar, Proton, Zeekr, Lynk & Co, and – through a joint venture with Mercedes – the revived Smart brand. It’s also a major shareholder in Aston Martin and owns half of Horse Powertrain with Renault. And it currently has 41 operational satellites orbiting the Earth for global Internet of Things coverage. Fingers, meet many, many pies.

Why it has decided now is the right time to bring its own Geely Auto brand to the UK is a question we don’t have a definitive answer to, but here we are.

What is it going up against?

The EX5’s rivals will include cars like the Peugeot e-2008, the Kia EV3, the Renault Scenic and the Volvo EX30. Those are but a few. We won’t name every single one otherwise we’ll be here all day.

It’s worth bearing in mind those are competitors roughly based on price, though. As are fellow Chinese crossovers the BYD Atto 2, Omoda E5 and Jaecoo E5. The Geely is bigger than all of them. It costs less than a Skoda Elroq but is very almost as big as an Enyaq. But is bigger always better?

So how much does the EX5 actually cost?

To kick off its launch into the UK, Geely is running its own ‘Geely EV Grant’ discounts until the end of 2025. That means (with £2,300 off) the entry level SE trim currently starts at £29,690.

The mid-range Pro trim gets £3,200 off so costs £30,790, while the top spec Max gets a full-fat £3,750 grant for a list price of £33,240. This is all because the EX5 doesn’t qualify for the UK government’s Electric Car Grant.

What are the powertrain details?

There’s only one option at launch, and it’s all-electric. Geely says that it’ll launch a plug-in hybrid in the same segment in 2026, but for now you’re stuck with a 60.22kWh Lithium Iron Phosphate battery for a WLTP range of 267 miles.

Power is sent to the front wheels by a single electric motor that makes 215bhp and 236lb ft of torque. Geely itself describes the performance as “reassuringly brisk”, with a 0-62mph time of 6.9 seconds (or 7.1 seconds in the heavier Max trim).

What’s the interior like?

As you might expect, there are very few buttons inside. You do get a single clickwheel on the centre console that can be altered to perform a couple of different functions, but mostly you’ll be diving into submenus on the massive 15.4in touchscreen.

There’s a huge amount of legroom for three rear seat passengers, but that does mean boot space is compromised. Want more detail? Click through to the Interior tab of this review.

Anything else I need to know?

Well, the EX5 isn’t actually a brand-new product. In fact, it was unveiled back in 2024 and has been on sale in China, Australia, Thailand and Indonesia for a while now.

And yet, the car sold on our shores by Geely Auto UK will actually be slightly different, because we’re told that after a "chassis and dynamics assessment" by Lotus Engineering it has been “fine-tuned for UK road conditions and driving tastes”. Yep, it’s time to break out those ‘Handling by Lotus’ badges once again...

The Geely EX5 is remarkably plain. If you’re looking to get the biggest possible electric crossover for less than £30,000, then step right up. Just as long as you’re not also after design flair, driver engagement or actual buttons to control fairly crucial functions.

That’s not to say it’s a bad car. It rides reasonably well, has plenty of space inside and gets a respectable amount of range. There’s also a decent amount of kit on board for the money, so expect to see these cropping up on UK roads just as often as those Jaecoos and Omodas.