Geely hasn’t been shy about releasing its EVs in South Africa. Hopefully, that trend will continue with the company’s new Galaxy TT EV, a sporty new sedan with decent specs and an even better price. That price is confined to Geely’s native China and probably won’t carry over to South Africa.
Even so, it’ll probably be priced extremely competitively. Not as competitive as Geely’s ¥130,000 (R316,000) price, of course. We can expect it to be a few hundred thousand more if it comes to this country. But we certainly want it to arrive. The 0-100km/m time of 3.8 seconds for the all-wheel-drive version is just the first reason why.
Galaxy TT explored
The second reason is that the less powerful model, with 245kW of output, is rear-wheel drive. Those are increasingly rare, but also incredibly fun to drive. Whether the Geely Galaxy TT will also feel safe to drive, with electric torque over the back axles, is something Stuff doesn’t really care about. The 7.8-second 100km/h acceleration is a decent compromise. The pricier version of the TT increases power to 425kW and sends it through all four wheels. Faster? Sure. More fun? Not likely.
The Galaxy TT’s AWD model has a claimed range of 527km (CLTC reckons this is 640km), with the RWD netting about the same, depending on battery choice. The Chinese company is also sticking a decent amount of tech inside to keep you busy while on those longer trips. A 15.4in touchscreen panel handles passenger duties (and, likely, cabin controls when you’re not rolling), with a 10.5in display working as the instrument cluster.
There’s also supposed to be a 25.6in augmented reality heads-up display. This looks to be projected in front of the driver, but we haven’t a clue what it’ll be used to display. But, as with Xiaomi’s fancy new SUV, Geely has also designed the cabin around lounging around. The front and rear seats reconfigure into loungers, if you’re into that. And storage is also a thing, for some reason. The company boasts of more than 30 places to stash your things.
Finally, if you really need to feel like you’re driving something more expensive, Geely is fitting its Galaxy TT with a big red button. Seriously. Right on the steering wheel. This will enable what it calls a “20-second berserk mode” with “no cooldown”. It should be fun for showing off, but abusing it will likely do a number on your estimated range.
Geely’s Galaxy TT is going on sale in China this month, and that optimised price is an introductory offer. Even so, it should prove relatively affordable when if it comes to SA. We dearly hope it does — even if it’s just the rear-wheel-drive.
