2026 Zeekr X review: Quick drive

Zeekr’s first model in Australia has come in for its first update.

The 2026 Zeekr X officially lands Down Under in May, bringing a range of changes across the board and promising sharper pricing – more on that shortly – to keep the compact electric SUV competitive in an ever-changing market.

Headline changes include more power, new battery tech with faster charging in the base model, enhanced equipment levels, and new personalisation options.

Pricing hasn’t been confirmed yet, but Zeekr’s promise of under $50,000 drive-away for the base grade and less than $60,000 drive-away for the 365kW all-wheel drive flagship on test here points to thousands in savings over the current model. Even if it’s small compared to other EVs at this price point, there’s plenty of value squeezed in.

CarExpert scored a first drive of a pre-production MY26 Zeekr X AWD ahead of its official launch in the coming months – here are our initial thoughts.

How much does the Zeekr X cost?

Zeekr Australia will announce pricing for the MY26 X lineup at the Melbourne motor show on April 10 – though the company has indicated it will start at under $50,000 drive-away.

For reference, the outgoing model starts from $49,900 for the RWD and $62,900 for the AWD – both plus on-road costs.

So, if Zeekr hits the above price points (including on-road costs) for each variant as promised, the updated model will be thousands cheaper than before.

To see how the Zeekr lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool

What is the Zeekr X like on the inside?

The changes here are minimal and, like the exterior, the overall interior design is one of the X’s strong points.

A redesigned centre console and new touch-capacitive shortcuts on the steering wheel hub are the key hardware changes, with the rest of the new-ness coming from significantly enhanced specifications.

Both the RWD and AWD variants now come standard with heated front and rear seats, as well as a 13-speaker Yamaha-branded premium audio system.

Opt for the AWD we have on test, and you also get a new massage function for the front row of seats to go with the existing ventilation, and there’s a fridge compartment under the front centre armrest.

A grey interior is now the standard colourway, with ‘White’ now available as an option for both grades. In the AWD, you can also opt for a new Black interior with Red seatbelts – sporty.

It all presents very well, and the quilted and perforated leather upholstery is gorgeously presented, right down to the flourishes of brightwork integrated into their respective designs. The quilting extends into the doors as well, which is a nice touch, with everything feeling quite high-end indeed.

Our test car’s optional White interior really pops against the new Onyx Black paintwork, and the ice cube-like LED ambient lighting – configurable in many a colour – adds a cool ambience when the sun sets (or you go through a tunnel).

Display tech is another talking point, with the 8.8-inch digital instrument cluster and 14.6-inch touchscreen infotainment system carrying over for the updated model.

The slim driver’s instrument binnacle shows key information like speed, assistance graphics and various widgets in a conventional position relative to the steering wheel, but its slim aspect ratio limits the breadth or detail of information you can put in the driver’s line of sight.

It’s augmented by a projector-type head-up display which doubles up most of that info with a simpler layout for ease-of-use, which is helpful. Annoyingly, like the mirrors, you need to adjust this via the touchscreen rather than having quick access to adjustment.

Speaking of the touchscreen, it’s big, bright and offers crisp resolution. I enjoyed its snappy response too, but maintain that too many functions are still embedded here, even with shortcuts for functions like demisters, door lock/unlock and parking cameras now featuring on the steering wheel.

Drive modes, seat ventilation and massaging controls (for both rows, mind you) shouldn’t be buried here. Many of these require adjustment on the fly and it takes too much digging to find in reasonable time, so you’ll often mis-press if you try to do it on a bumpy road.

Not to mention that if you spend too much time trying to do any of this on the move you’ll fire up the driver attention monitor which incessantly beeps and bongs at you while cutting the audio of whatever you’re listening to – more on that later.

I also had issues with wireless Apple CarPlay using my iPhone 17 Pro Max. It generally did most things fine, but for some reason our test car couldn’t hear any voice commands I tried to dictate using Siri. The microphone button on the steering wheel worked, and people could hear me on calls, but I couldn’t ask it to set a destination, call or text someone, nor ask it to play a song like I can do in any other car.

At least the 12-speaker Yamaha premium audio offers clear, deep sound with various options for surround effects and equaliser settings. The ‘Theater’ setting was a touch echoey but did give that concert hall feel – though it doesn’t match the Gothenburg Hall of a Volvo Bowers and Wilkins system.

The optional ‘automatic’ doors (price TBC) also took some getting used to. Getting into the car, they don’t really open wide enough, but when you get out they open wide even if you’re parked in the street, which can be a little frightening the first time you do it on a busy road.

That said, it uses sensors to prevent bumping into neighbouring vehicles in carparks, which I tested a couple of times and didn’t have to get insurance on the phone.

Despite its teeny city-friendly dimensions, the Zeekr X’s 2750mm wheelbase means it has better second-row accommodation than similarly sized hatchbacks and crossovers.

At 6’1″ tall, I could fit behind my driving position with ease, meaning two taller adults can fit in the back just fine. With that said, the small rear windows and chunky front seats hinder outward visibility a bit, which is something to consider if you have nausea-prone kids.

Speaking of little ones, ISOFIX and top-tether points are there to anchor your child seats, and other amenities include a fold-down armrest with cupholders, rear air vents, a USB-C charging outlet, map pockets behind the front seats, and bottle holders in the doors.

Luggage capacity is also up, with Zeekr quoting an 18 per cent increase to 404 litres with the rear seats in place. It expands to 1247L with the seats down, but it’s still a small cargo area compared to other EVs at this price point.

To see how the Zeekr lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool

What’s under the bonnet?

The 2026 Zeekr X AWD is powered by a dual-motor electric drive system, outputting 115kW of power on the front axle and 250kW at the rear, for a total system total of 365kW – that’s 50kW up on the old model.

The extra grunt in both models has only translated to a 0.1-second improvement in the AWD’s claimed 0-100km/h claim, while the change from ADR (NEDC) to WLTP range claims sees the figures shift to lower but likely more realistic figures.

Full details like claimed energy consumption are still to be confirmed, but we saw 16-17kWh/100km with a focus on suburban and city driving, climbing to 18-19kWh/100km at speeds around 100-110km/h on the open road.

The base RWD benefits from a new LFP battery with a higher DC fast-charging capacity, while the AWD retains its 150kW DC charging cap but doubles its AC charging speed to 22kW.

To see how the Zeekr lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool

How does the Zeekr X drive?

While we had the Zeekr X for a week in total, my busy schedule meant I only spent a trio of meaningful days with the pre-production vehicle, which largely centred around daily commuting to and from the office as well as getting to and from the airport.

I was quite critical of the pre-update Zeekr X AWD, as I felt that while it was insanely quick for the money it lacked the finesse and overall refinement of the Volvo EX30 with which it shares its underpinnings. This new one seems a little better, but I have a number of carryover complaints.

First, the good. The AWD has plenty of performance under foot even if you dull down the ‘Acceleration’ setting to ‘Normal’ or ‘Comfort’ modes. I floored it in ‘Sport’ and it was so fast I triggered the on-board dashcam ‘SOS’ setting. Woops…

The AWD rides a little better than I remember, too. Where the outgoing vehicle felt a little wobbly and lacking in body control, the new model strikes a better balance between comfort and dynamism, though having just stepped out of the Volvo EX30 Cross Country, which offers a beautiful ride/handling balance in all conditions, I can’t say that Zeekr has quite nailed it with this remix.

It steers nicely too, again allowing you to toggle a handful of settings (all via the touchscreen, annoyingly) to adjust the weight and feel. I actually liked Sport, which is more to my tastes. Given how small the tiller is, you’d expect this car to steer quickly, but the X’s steering rack isn’t as sweet as the Volvo’s.

General refinement is pretty good. Despite riding on big 20-inch forged alloys and skinny rubber, the Zeekr X maintains a relatively quiet cabin even on the freeway, while you don’t hear too many knocks and thuds from the suspension over the lumps and bumps of daily life.

While the cabin is generally a quiet place to be – keeping in mind there’s little powertrain noise save for the faint whirring of the e-motors – the ambience is often upset by the infuriatingly intrusive driver assistance systems, despite Zeekr bringing in a new ‘Zeekr AD’ suite of sensors and technologies.

Several systems were very annoying and overzealous during my time with the car, to the point where I’d be yelling at the car in frustration or annoyance. And, to be clear, I don’t do that very often, despite the perception of some that I’m a bit of a diva.

The overspeed warning and driver attention monitor will jump at any chance to audibly alert you that you’ve exceeded the detected speed limit or glanced away from the road for too long, which is annoying when it’s picking up a school zone out of school times or keeping a side street’s limit when you hit a main road.

Even more annoying is the fact it’ll cut the audio of the music you’re listening to when it bongs, and try to compete with phone calls too. The fact that it’s so persistent when you’re just doing a head-check and even when driving at the signed limit really grates over time.

Then there are the lane assist and lane change assist functions, which also don’t work as well as they should. The cruise assist feature with lane-centring regularly jerks the steering wheel when you’re not anywhere near the lines or there’s a curve in the road, while the auto lane change assist will wrestle you if you try to change lanes yourself.

Adaptive cruise control worked fine, and once I switched the lane change assistant off there were far fewer complaints, save for the alert telling you to hold onto the steering wheel even though your hands haven’t left it for the last 20 minutes of straight highway – the X hasn’t adopted capacitive sensors on the tiller to avoid this.

These could all have been issues with our pre-production test vehicle’s calibration, but that’s what I was given. I was perhaps more disappointed because the Zeekr 7X we currently have as a long-termer doesn’t really suffer any of these issues at all.

To see how the Zeekr lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool

What do you get?

Let’s run through the MY26 changes, and then do a refresh on the pre-update model’s spec.

Exterior changes include:

• New Khaki Green matte, Onyx Black colour options – AWD
• 20-inch alloy wheels in Black – AWD
• Available automatic doors – AWD

Interior changes include:

• Heated front, rear seats
• Massaging front seats – AWD
• Onboard fridge under front-centre armrest – AWD
• Touch-capacitive steering wheel shortcuts
• 13-speaker Yamaha surround sound system

Grey is now the standard interior option, with white available as an option on both the RWD and AWD. The AWD is exclusively available with the option of a black interior with red seatbelts.

2025 Zeekr X RWD equipment highlights:

• 19-inch alloy wheels
• 235/50 R19 Continental EcoContact 6 tyres
• Two-tone exterior paint – black roof, mirrors)
• Frameless side mirrors:
• • Heated
  • Auto-dimming
  • Power-folding
  • Memory function
• Panoramic sunroof
• Vehicle-To-Load (V2L) functionality
• Semi-autonomous park assist
• Rain-sensing wipers
• Black/grey “leather-free” interior upholstery
• 6-way power driver’s seat
• 8.8-inch digital instrument cluster
• 14.6-inch touchscreen infotainment system
• • Apple CarPlay – wired, wireless
  • Android Auto – wired, wireless
• Wireless phone charger
• 7-speaker sound system
• Auto-dimming frameless rear-view mirror
• Dual-zone climate control
• Rear air vents (B-pillar mounted)
• 5G-WiFi hotspot
• Connected services – 5yr subscription
• Over-the-air software update capability
• Zeekr App functionality
• • Sentry mode
  • Pet mode
  • Rest mode

Zeekr X AWD adds:

• 20-inch forged alloy wheels
• 245/45 R20 Continental EcoContact 6 Q tyres
• 24.3-inch augmented reality head-up display
• 6-way power-adjustable passenger seat
• Driver’s seat memory
• 4-way power lumbar support
• Heated, ventilated front seats
• Heated steering wheel
• 13-speaker Yamaha sound system
• ‘Ice Block’ LED ambient lighting

To see how the Zeekr lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool

Is the Zeekr X safe?

The pre-update Zeekr X achieved a five-star ANCAP safety rating, based on 2024 testing by sister firm Euro NCAP, and this is expected to carry over.

All X vehicles also receive the brand’s new Zeekr AD driver assistance suite, which incorporates five HD cameras, five millimetre-wave radar sensors, 12 ultrasonic sensors dotted around the vehicle, as well as Remote Parking Assist “for tight urban conditions”.

Standard safety equipment for MY25 models includes:

• 7 airbags (incl. front centre)
• Autonomous emergency braking (front and rear)
• Adaptive cruise control
• Automatic lane change
• Blind-spot monitoring
• Driver attention monitoring
• Front and rear cross-traffic alert
• Lane-centring
• Lane-keep assist
• Evasive Manoeuvre Assist
• Surround-view camera
• Tyre pressure monitoring
• Low-speed pedestrian warning sound
• Digital video recorder

It’s worth noting that Euro NCAP has confirmed the Zeekr X was the first vehicle to be used for experimental ‘research tests’ as the European and Australian crash testers develop upcoming 2029 protocols that will provide a deeper evaluation of how advanced driver assist systems (ADAS) interact with each other.

You can read more on that here.

To see how the Zeekr lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool

How much does the Zeekr X cost to run?

Zeekr Australia covers its range with a five-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty for private buyers, but commercial and fleet customers only get a three-year, 120,000km warranty.

It’s unclear whether the updated 2026 range will receive any adjustments to service pricing. The pre-update Zeekr X AWD quoted $4220 over eight years or 160,000km of scheduled maintenance.

To see how the Zeekr lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool

CarExpert’s Take on the Zeekr X

To be frank, I was a bit disappointed that the new Zeekr X hasn’t addressed a lot of the assistance tech quibbles I experienced with the last one – even if the overall package has improved quite a bit.

Based on our drive of a pre-production car, it needs a bit of tweaking to ensure drivers aren’t infuriated by incessant beeping and bonging, while the occasionally inconsistent lane assist systems could also use some work.

Beyond that, the Zeekr X AWD offers blistering pace for a sharp (projected) price, a plush cabin design with wonderful materials and upmarket detailing, and a fairly resolved ride and handling package that feels more chunky hatchback than SUV.

The sharper pricing also makes this much better value than before, but the market is now so competitive that I fear many EV buyers at under $60,000 will be looking at larger cars with more range. That’s my other main complaint – 400km is merely average in 2026, with even the larger Zeekr 7X offering 480km in base form, which is around the same ballpark ($57,900 plus ORCs) as this X AWD.

We’ll withhold giving this vehicle a final rating due to the test car being pre-production and without having full pricing and spec on hand as yet. But I will say the new X improves on the old one somewhat, but while it’s much better value than before, the safety tech gripes still need attention.

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MORE: Explore the Zeekr X showroom