- Geely will unveil the Galaxy M7 mid-size plug-in hybrid SUV on March 13 to help regain the sub-brand's strong sales momentum.
- The first production M7 officially rolled off the assembly line on March 5, marking Geely Galaxy's 2-millionth vehicle production milestone.
Geely Galaxy, a sub-brand of Geely Auto (HKG: 0175), plans to officially unveil the new M7 plug-in hybrid SUV on March 13, in a move to regain growth momentum amid fierce competition.
Geely Galaxy announced the plan on Monday, with an event to be held at the Quzhou base of Geely's battery subsidiary, Energee.
The Chinese automaker announced on March 5 that the first production vehicle of the M7 had officially rolled off the assembly line, marking the milestone of 2 million vehicles produced by the Geely Galaxy brand within 37 months.
As the first mid-size SUV in the Galaxy M series, the new model, equipped with a lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery pack, is designed to have a maximum pure electric range of up to 225 kilometers.
Its combined range can reach up to 1,730 kilometers on a full tank and full charge, aiming to alleviate range anxiety.
The mid-size hybrid SUV measures 4,770 mm in length, 1,905 mm in width, and 1,685 mm in height, with a wheelbase of 2,785 mm, according to a previous regulatory catalog from China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT).
The SUV is expected to officially enter the market and go on sale in the first half of this year, according to current plans.
Pricing for the M7 is expected to be lower than the previously launched M9 model, which has a post-discount price of around 173,800 yuan ($25,100), highlighting its high cost performance.
The upcoming launch of the M7 comes as plug-in hybrid vehicles prove to be Geely's core growth engine, with sales in this category surging by about 89% year-on-year in February.
Thanks to record overseas exports, Geely achieved an overall year-on-year growth of about 1% in the traditionally slow sales month of February, despite a 23.69% drop from January, according to data released on March 1.
By launching the potentially price-competitive M7 and expanding its product lineup, Geely is attempting to capitalize on the strong demand among Chinese consumers for highly cost-effective hybrid vehicles.
($1 = 6.9245 yuan)
