Deng Simiao from Co-pilot Temple
Smart Car Reference | Official Account AI4Auto
New Energy Sedan, SUV, MPV Racetracks too crowded?
Geely has come up with a new brand called “Radar” and brought in its first vehicle – the all-electric pickup truck RD6.
Like the GEEK001 and Smart#1, all are built based on Geely’s SEA platform.
In terms of performance, it features a 200 kW power electric motors, accelerating from 0 to 100 km/h in 6 seconds, and has a range of over 600 km.
Why build a pickup truck? Geely’s ambition is that during leisure time, you can drive out for camping and experience nature, enjoy the afternoon sun in the mountains, cook a pot of tea or make a cup of coffee, and enjoy life.
What kind of vehicle is the all-electric pickup truck RD6?
Radar RD6 is a cute and small pickup truck, with a body length, width, and height of 5260/1900/1830 mm and a wheelbase of 3120 mm.
In comparison, the body dimensions of Great Wall Cannon and Ford F-150 Lightning Pickup Truck are shown in the figure below:
In terms of performance, the new vehicle will be equipped with a 200 kW power electric motor, which can accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in 6 seconds and has a range of over 600 km.
In addition, like the GEEK001, Smart#1, and JiDu ROBO-01, this vehicle also uses the Geely pure electric SEA platform.
As its name suggests, since the platform was born in 2020, it has considered pickup trucks as this kind of vehicle.
In terms of intelligence, further information has not been revealed, but we can also imagine it based on this platform.
Geely’s SEA architecture includes the SEA OS whole-vehicle intelligent development system. In this system, not only can you develop the car’s infotainment system, but you can also directly develop a complete set of intelligent automotive systems, including cloud support.
At the level of intelligent driving, the SEA architecture also has considerable expandability, covering everything from basic intelligent auxiliary driving to high-level automatic driving.
From this perspective, in terms of the car’s infotainment system and intelligent driving in the future, this all-electric pickup truck should not be inferior.
# What Can the Combination of Electric and Pickup Bring?
Besides having a large storage space for hauling cargo (the front trunk has a volume of 70L, the seat cushion storage box has a volume of 48L), it also supports high-power discharge in all scenarios.
Equipped with a rear discharge panel, the maximum discharge power is 6kW, supporting 16A, 10A, three-hole, double-hole, and 12V interfaces, achieving plug-and-play power.
It can also provide power for 3 2000W power electric ovens at the same time, and can support up to 5 household air conditioners to work simultaneously (under the cooling condition of 1.5 horsepower).
The RD6 radar is currently available for reservation at zero yuan, and will be mass-produced at the Zibo factory in Shandong, and is expected to be available on September 9th.
Regarding future development plans, Radar Motor will also launch various sizes of pure electric pickups, off-road SUVs, all-terrain vehicles, etc., covering various power modes such as pure electricity and hybrid.
Can Geely Do Well in Electric Pickup Trucks?
Can Geely build electric pickups, seize the initiative, and win the victory?
It is not yet known.
But looking at it from the aspects of national policies, market consumer demand, and existing products, it may be feasible.
First of all, in April of this year, the General Office of the State Council issued the “Opinions on Further Releasing Consumption Potential and Promoting Continued Consumption Recovery,” in which Article 4, point 13 specifically proposes to study further relaxing the restrictions on pickup trucks entering the city.
According to statistics, in the first half of this year, 15 provinces (municipalities directly under the central government) issued documents proposing to relax restrictions on pickup truck travel, and 9 prefecture-level cities joined the pickup truck ban lift camp.
The new version of the “Home Automobile Product Repair/Replacement/Return Responsibility Rules” issued by the State Administration for Market Regulation in 2022, also known as the “three-pack policy,” also includes pickups along with passenger vehicles.
On the other hand, market demand is gradually increasing.
Although in the short term, according to data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, total pickup truck sales in the first six months of this year fell by 5.7% year-on-year due to the impact of the epidemic.
However, public information shows that from 2015 to 2021, the domestic pickup truck market has grown 1.69 times, which is higher than the 1.07 times growth of the overall automobile market.
Dr. Ling Shiquan, CEO of Radar Motor, also optimistically estimated that “the annual sales of pickups in China could reach 3 million by 2030.”
In addition, the epidemic has also boosted the camping economy, and more and more people are turning their attention to the wilderness and nature. This is also the marketing concept and selling point of LeiDa electric pickup truck.
Finally, among the existing products, Great Wall Pickup, Tesla Cybertruck, and Ford F-150 Lightning are all phenomenal.
For the past 30 years, Great Wall Pickup has always been the absolute leader, and its sales are solid proof. In June of this year, the sales volume of Great Wall Pickup was 21,251, a year-on-year increase of 17.67%, and the cumulative sales volume from January to June was 94,417.
Although Great Wall also has an electric pickup truck based on the Great Wall Cannon, it is only used as a truck to transport goods in the factory.
The keyword Tesla Cybertruck attracts attention wherever it is mentioned, but it doesn’t seem very “practical.”
The Ford Lightning pickup is very popular abroad, but there is no sign of it being introduced in China.
Compared with others, Geely’s understanding of pickup trucks seems more “high-end” and it cooperates with camping equipment brands and launches the “Guarding Natural Wonders” plan with National Geographic magazine.
Perhaps they are targeting high-end consumer groups in first and second-tier cities?
What do netizens think of this?
Some people misunderstood the “LeiDa Automotive” brand and thought that mosquito repellent manufacturers had come to make cars:
Some people also suggest names for new brands from Changan and Chery:
Some people seem to see through the essence at a glance:
And some people don’t have high hopes for pickup trucks or pure electric pickup trucks:
### Chinese Version
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还有人嫌弃吉利旗下子品牌太多：
你怎么看待吉利造纯电皮卡呢？欢迎评论区留言。
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English Version
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Some people still complain that Geely has too many sub-brands:
What do you think of Geely producing pure electric pickup trucks? Feel free to leave a comment in the comment section.
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This article is a translation by ChatGPT of a Chinese report from 42HOW. If you have any questions about it, please email bd@42how.com.