Beijing 2024: Geely Panda Knight, Kart, RM35k – Can Proton rebadge EVs smaller than the Kancil to battle the P2?
At Auto China 2024 in Beijing, we found the latest information Geely Panda Mini the Panda Knight and Panda Kart models, the latter of which will be launched at the show. The company’s cheap and cheerful electric vehicles have been around since late 2022, but this is the first time we’ve laid eyes on them.
They’re certainly small – the Knight is just 3,135mm long, 1,565mm wide and 1,655mm tall, with a wheelbase just 2,015mm long. The bespoke Kart is slightly longer at 3,150mm (it’s also 15mm narrower and 30mm taller, due to its rather large rear wing), but they’re still very small – by comparison, the Perodua Kancil is 260mm longer. mm and wheelbase.
Both cars are clear derivatives of the Panda Mini, sharing round headlights, clamshell bonnets, pill-shaped body dents, body-colored B-pillar “fins” and shaped tail lights. letter C. Their difference lies in the styling treatment, with the Knight having a rugged mini 4×4 bendy.
The orange car you see here has the obligatory black plastic body (with a cool speckled finish), chunky front and rear bumpers, and a new front “grille” with six “dashes.” ” rise, rear spoiler and 14-inch two-tone. alloy wheels.
Then there are the details that make the Knight look ridiculous Ford Bronco-suitable areas, such as bonnet-mounted grab handles, tow hooks, roof rails and even the ladder on the driver’s side. However, these look decorative only – I don’t recommend putting any form of load on them and you should sure Avoid climbing that ladder.
Meanwhile, the Panda Kart looks track-ready, with details like a deep front spoiler, side skirts, faux front fender vents and a large rear diffuser, along with a wing. the rear wind mentioned above. The flat hubcaps for the steel wheels also feature a cute design that mimics the directional buttons on a game controller. You also get pink accents throughout if you choose black paint.
Despite their faster appearance, all Panda Mini models have the same front motor, making 41 PS (30 kW) and 110 Nm of torque – hardly enough to get them up to speed. maximum 100 km/h. On the other hand, both the Knight and Kart get Mini’s latest upgraded 17.03 kWh battery, which gives it a range of 200 km on the gentle Chinese CLTC cycle.
They can also be DC fast charged at up to 22 kW – charging the battery from 30 to 80% in 30 minutes – while a 6 kW AC wall box can charge the Panda Knight and Kart from 20 to 100% in four hours half . The charging ports are located at the front, where you’ll also find the “Geome” badge; The cars are sold through both Geely and Geometry channels.
All Panda Mini models are identical on the inside, except for some minor trim and color changes. That means you get a simple four-seat cabin made entirely of hard plastic. Even so, it looks quite modern thanks to its 8-inch freestanding infotainment touchscreen and slim 9.2-inch LCD clock screen.
You also get some nice improvements, such as automatic air conditioning, power windows (which automatically lower but not up) and a rotary gear selector, although the handbrake is still a manual lever. You also get a generous amount of space in the back seat; this comes at the expense of cargo space, which is practically non-existent when all the seats are folded up.
It’s in the safety department where the Panda Mini models fail. There’s only one airbag for the driver (passengers get a few storage compartments instead) and you can forget about automatic emergency braking – you don’t even get stability control decided!
On the flip side are the Panda Mini models cheap. There is no price yet for the Panda Kart, but the Panda Knight retails at 53,900 yuan (RM35,500). That would make it an ideal candidate for a cheap price proton electric vehiclealthough the national carmaker will have to modify it to pass UN ECE regulations – think dual airbags and stability control as a minimum.
What do you think – should Proton bring in the Panda Mini models to take on Perodua? Sound off in the comments section after the jump.
COLLECTION: Geely Panda Knight at Geely Driving Experience 2024
COLLECTION: Geely Panda Kart at Auto China 2024
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