Author: Qian Jialing

“Combining the greatness of 3 and breaking the limitations of 3” – yes, the third model of ZEEKR has arrived. The first step in “breaking the limitations of 3” is that this car is not named after “3”, but named as “X”.

By the way, do you still remember “X-Men”? Bling thinks that he feels a sense of science fiction and future whenever he hears the name “X”.

Rebellious luxury?

ZEEKR X is based on the SEA architecture and is positioned as a new luxury all-round compact SUV.

The length, width and height are 4450mm/1836mm/1572mm respectively, and the wheelbase is 2750mm, and the wheelbase-to-length ratio is very close to the golden ratio of 0.618.

The appearance of ZEEKR X is designed by a team led by the international car design master Stefan Sielaff. He himself said in an interview that the luxury design of new energy vehicles is different from that of traditional vehicles. I believe you have already felt this “unique luxury” on the ZEEKR 009.

Referring to some models he designed for Audi, it is not difficult to find that his design style tends to be urban aesthetics and modernism, and he advocates that form follows function.

In Bling’s opinion, ZEEKR X is also a work of his personal style. As for how to define the luxury displayed by “traditional new energy vehicles”, I think this new car may be able to give you the answer. When Bling saw the pictures, he felt that this car had a rebellious flavor in luxury.

Although parts such as the headlamps still retain ZEEKR’s consistent design style, there have been significant changes in design form, which is the place where ZEEKR can redefine the “luxury” of new energy vehicles.## Breaking the Convention in Design Style?

One of the most prominent features of the modernist style in car body design is its emphasis on lines and angles, as seen in vehicles like GAC Trumpchi’s iClimb, which leans towards this style.

In fact, no matter from which angle one views this new vehicle, including the aerodynamic fins that extend from the sides and the top of the body, the color scheme is very urbanized and the corners and connections of the lines and surfaces are very pronounced.

In addition to maintaining the ultra-bright headlight features of previous models in the headlamp, the new vehicle employs a straight-line segment connection design, and the closed grille on the front face adopts a horizontal and vertical design, which matches the vehicle’s body well.

Moreover, both the headlights and the grille conform to the shape and edge of the body for design purposes, with the contrast of light and dark brought by the long and short lines creating a rather sci-fi look!

Apart from the front face, I also like the design of the body side. The triangular top aerodynamic fins, the two black lines of the side skirts, and the two wheel arches visually form a parallelogram, which is the most aesthetically pleasing shape after the “round” shape and looks very harmonious.

Meanwhile, the large volume of the black edges has a slightly exaggerated taste, reflecting the “personality” positioning of the ZEEKR X.

You won’t be able to guess from the pictures that the charging port is hidden between the C-pillar and the D-pillar, perfectly blending in with the body lines, which is a great example of form following function!The overall horizontal order at the rear is very strong, using a layout of horizontal and vertical lines to build a sense of framework. The linear taillights joined by straight line segments are very futuristic! There is also an extremely cool logo in the middle of the light strip, as shown in the picture, it seems to support lighting up.

In addition, another interesting point is that the two narrow vertical taillights at the rear blend into the decorative lines at both ends of the rear. While maintaining consistency with the overall design style, it also frees up visual space for the relatively large diffuser area.

Also, as seen in the picture, the position of the dividing line of the tailgate is relatively high, which makes it look like the trunk capacity is not very large.

Due to the solid and sturdy feeling brought by the SUV body design, combined with the reduction of the sharpness brought by the connection of various different edges of the body, the combination of these two points is very beautiful. Therefore, BLINK believes that the appearance design of ZEEKR X can cater to the aesthetic of most users.

Looking at the design technique of the overall shape, BLINK speculates that it refers to deconstructionism and modular design. Due to the use of button electric doors without door handles and frameless exterior mirrors, there is a strong sense of integrated coverage on the surface of the body.

Based on the design form of “deconstruction”-“separation”-“recombination”, it not only makes the thickness of the integrated body look thinner and creates a more sci-fi and lightweight feeling, but also highlights the modules such as the lights, grille, wheel arches, and logos.The current exposed interior design continues the business style of ZEEKR 001. From the pictures alone, personally, I think there is still a gap between the “intelligent”, “luxury” and “personality” labels. It feels like we need to wait and see the subsequent cockpit information.

In terms of power, the zero to one hundred acceleration of ZEEKR X has joined the 3-second club, and there is also a dual motor version. It is believed that the performance will be very good.

“X” often represents mystery, the unknown, and more possibilities, and also implies “more room for improvement.” Such naming has not only successfully aroused everyone’s curiosity about this new car model – ZEEKR X, but also seems to have left room for the positioning and development of the new car model.

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.