Over the past few days, social media has been buzzing with photos taken at the scene of an accident in China. These photos have attracted attention because they are related to the safety of the Zeekr 009 – a luxury MPV model from China that shares its platform with Volvo cars.
The exact location of the accident is not yet clear. It is known that the Zeekr 009 collided with the rear trailer of a truck. The strong impact caused extensive damage to the front of the large MPV and the windshield.
However, what surprised many people was the right A-pillar of this luxury MPV. The A-pillar of the Zeekr 009 remained intact, seemingly not bent, while the trailer of the truck was pushed down about 10 cm. It is worth noting that there were no casualties in this accident.
After these photos appeared on social media, many people praised the safety of the Zeekr 009. Some Chinese netizens even called this luxury MPV a “street tank”.
“This is the first time I’ve seen an A-pillar so strong,” wrote a Chinese netizen. “Good quality indeed,” commented another. “If it were a smaller car, the passenger in the front seat could have been in danger,” one person pointed out. “I’m sure I will buy this car, it could save my life in the most dangerous moments,” someone affirmed.
The 009 is a product of the Zeekr electric car brand under the Geely Group. This large MPV model is developed based on Geely’s Sustainable Experience Architecture (SEA) platform. The upcoming all-electric luxury MPV model EM90 from Volvo will also use this platform.
According to the manufacturer’s announcement, the Zeekr 009 uses an A-pillar made of 2000MPa high-strength steel. In addition, the body of the car possesses three times the torsional rigidity of a traditional MPV. Therefore, the Zeekr 009 is called the “sturdiest MPV in history”.
The investment in materials for the Zeekr 009 has made this MPV model quite expensive. In the Chinese market, this MPV is priced from 499,000 to 588,000 Chinese yuan (approximately 1.64 – 1.93 billion VND).
For that price, Chinese customers will receive features such as front-to-rear LED lighting, 19-inch alloy wheels, power-sliding doors, a dual-pane sunroof, 6 or 7-seater interior, a 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster, a 15.4-inch center touchscreen, a 15.6-inch entertainment screen hanging from the ceiling, touchscreens on the door upholstery, wireless phone charging, and USB Type-C ports.
In addition, there are 30 advanced driver assistance features (ADAS) such as door-open collision warning, automatic parking, rear-end collision minimization, lane change warning, automatic lane change assistance, speed violation warning, automatic emergency braking when reversing at low speed, and traffic sign recognition.
The Zeekr 009 is powered by two electric motors on both axles, producing a total output of 544 horsepower and maximum torque of 686 Nm. Thanks to that, the car can accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in 4.5 seconds. Depending on the version, the car will use either a 116 kWh or a 140 kWh battery, providing ranges of 702 km and 822 km, respectively.
Although newly introduced to the Chinese market, the Zeekr 009 has quickly achieved success. This car has surpassed the Toyota Alphard in terms of sales in the MPV segment priced above 500,000 Chinese yuan for 3 consecutive months.