This question is for @Dan, and open to any other opinions as well.
Dan, I noticed on your bio that you have a brand spanking new Geely Geometry M6!
Congratulations! What are your first impressions? How is the driving experience?How is the fit and finish? How did you choose the Geely over other models or even other makes?
Dan, I noticed on your bio that you have a brand spanking new Geely Geometry M6!
Yep!
This is a car I got from work, it's actually my second Geely Geometry M6!
Previously I had a white base-model one, now I have a black luxury trim one - I was offered to upgrade at work.
Before I get into it, I'd like to add that:
This post is not a recommendation, nor a long term ownership assessment.
What are your first impressions?
It's shockingly good - not something I ever thought I'd ever say about a Chinese car, or an EV.
I do not know how reliable it's going to be, and honestly in my case it's not an issue either way.
As far as the car, the drivetrain is extremely punchy, responsive, silent, and smooth.
The suspension, steering, noise isolation, are very good.
The main thing though is the interior is absolutely incredible, especially on the luxury trim.
It's more luxurious than the Volvos I previously owned,
It's the Smart #1's, and Volvo EX30's sister car and all of them are very well priced semi-luxury cars.
And it's very 'techie' in the best possible way,
no locking/unlocking, no start/stop, you just walk up and it opens, begin driving without needing to press anything, no need to adjust wipers or headlights they all (even enabling the automatic high beam) are automatic, and after driving you just park and walk away and it turns off and locks itself - everything just happens automatically, it's a very surreal experience compared to my KIAs which are very mechanically conservative.
My first impression was amusement and a bit of shock at how good it drives and feels.
How is the fit and finish?
It's very good.
The interior and exterior quality are leaps and bounds above most Japanese and Korean cars.
The paint is thick and beautiful, the materials are probably best in class (the dash is 100% soft touch and so is almost anything else you touch), the seats are all faux-leather (but one that feels much better than what I previously had in Volvos).
In terms of fit and finish the Chinese absolutely delivered, especially on the luxury trim.
The fit and finish on the base long-range model was also good, but not as great as it's here.
This is the new one:
The only complaint I really have is the infotainment, although it's very quick and responsive but the Huawei HarmonyOS lacks basic features that were available on the previous generation, I ordered a supplemental screen for it for $40 I will update if that solves the issues.
How did you choose the Geely over other models or even other makes?
It's a corporate car, basically a car we get as a work benefit. So I do not have to worry about reliability, costs, or anything - this allows me to get a car I want, regardless of it being unproven.
The Geely wasn't planned, I was planning on getting a Škoda Kodiaq - but the Kia Niro I had experienced a tire explosion (on a brand new Bridgestone tire) and got severely damaged, so I got a Geely Geometry C as a temporary car - and I really liked the Geely although I originally was in horror at the idea of using an EV, or even just a Chinese car but it turned out to be an incredible car.
After that I decided to order another Geely but this time with all the bells and whistles I wanted - as it was just an incredible experience.
Generally, EVs and Chinese ones in particular are very hot where I live.
The market here is dominated by the BYD ATTO 3 (it's the best seller on the market, outselling all cars including ICE and hybrid by a factor of 2x) and EVs are generally popular.
The Geely feels nicer than the BYD ATTO3, although perhaps the BYD SEAL might end up being the best option, they seem to have nicer and more advanced tech.
I'm pretty sure Dan talked about it at great length in one of his posts. Try looking through his post activity.
@Dan impressive review, you seem delighted and the car looks amazing. I have no idea how long you've had this car but would you consider buying it if 'corporate' no longer provided the car? For example they suddenly cancel their option and require you to buy your own car - are you that impressed?
That's actually a very difficult question. I honestly do not know.
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I guess the best answer would be what I've done in practice.
Early last year, my SO and I replaced our aging cars with new compact ~$15k SUVs.
They're the kind of cars that are hard to come by in 2023, cheap, mechanically simple workhorses.
(I know they have a Kia badge and that's scary to people who are used to T-GDi and DCT crap, these are proven MPi port injected with proven torque convertor ATs and I had a good run with these previously.)
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I honestly do not know if this would have been my decision if I needed to make the same decision this year.
I definitely would've considered an EV from a Chinese made EV from a more established brand like MG, Smart, or Volvo, but it's still too early to know if they will hold up as well as I hope they will.
Yes, there are far too many unknown variables for a 'logical decision'. Thanks @dan for attempting to answer tho.. Just seems this particular EV has garnered your favor! lol