TOYOTA has Lexus and Nissan has Infinity, while Geely has Emgrand,
and the Chinese giant is sending this luxury sub-brand to 40 dealers across
South Africa and Namibia.
Geely said sales of the Emgrand have been very good in China in the
past year and it hopes to take on the Corolla with keen pricing in South Africa
with the EC7 model.
Two models will be fully imported from China, starting at just
under R150 000.
La’t Wiel, whose presenters drove the EC7 GL, says that Geely is on
the money with the pricing and product offering, but adds that in these tough
times, consumers still need a lot of convincing to shift to a Chinese marque, no
matter how good the value offering.
Not discouraged by this, Henri Meistre, managing director of Geely
SA, who cut his teeth helping GWM grow, said the EC7 is “a car of many firsts,
with particular reference to its country of origin and the subsequent
competitors”.
The EC7 is based on an entirely new Emgrand platform, developed
according to a first-class internationally derived development process. “The
entire vehicle meets multiple European safety and environmental standards, and
is the first and only Chinese vehicle produced by a stand-alone manufacturer, to
score a full-house of five stars in the Chinese NCAP crash tests, and four in
its first attempt at the stringent Euro-NCAP collision tests,” said
Meistre.
Powered by the GeTec 1,8-litre engine, delivering 102 kW with
172 Nm of torque, Geely claims an acceleration from zero to 100 km/h in 10,5
seconds and a top speed of about 185 km/h.
Standard equipment starts with electric door mirrors and windows on
both models, as well as an electric driver’s seat in the GT model.
Both launch models have a leather interior, climate control, a
radio and CD player.
The GT model has electronic slip control and four additional air
bags, as well as an electric sun roof. Both vehicles will be covered by Geely’s
five-year/100 000 km warranty (optional service plans are available), as well as
two-year road-side assistance, for the ultimate in peace of mind when
driving.
Prices
GL Luxury
R149 990
GT E xecutive
R164 990
