Postscript to the Paris Auto Show: Geely Delivers Not Just a Participation List, but a "Long-Term Commitment"

In early October 2026, a familiar name appeared on the test drive schedule of European media: Geely. At the carefully designed test venue, multiple new cars waited for inspection by European professional media. With flawless driving quality and a tech luxury cabin exceeding expectations, discussions beside the cars quickly shifted from "How is this car" to a more topical question: What exactly does a Chinese automotive group rooted in Europe for nearly two decades want to achieve by making a high-profile appearance at the Paris Auto Show?

The answer given by Geely is much longer than a list of participating models. At this edition of the Paris Auto Show, Geely Automobile Holdings presented its three brands—Geely, Lynk & Co, and Zeekr—in a joint premiere, with a new energy product matrix ranging from mainstream to luxury lined up in a row. The exhibition lasts only seven days, but the commitment is calculated in ten-year units.

Three booths, three strategies, placing "from mainstream to luxury" on the same table

To understand Geely, look at brand segmentation first. Three booths represent three markets, executing a combination of "front-end segmentation, back-end sharing". The message Geely wants to convey is straightforward: for its first participation in the Paris Auto Show, it pushed the Geely Monjaro EM-i to the European premiere slot and simultaneously launched it in the high-spec market. This car is Geely's first D-segment PHEV global vehicle. Choosing to premiere in Paris and prioritize overseas launch, the attitude itself speaks volumes.

Also on display was the Galaxy Starship 700, premiering in Europe after its global release on October 10th, along with models like Geely E5, Geely E2, and Geely Starray EM-i, filling the booth with new energy product lines ranging from household to off-road.

The highlight of the Lynk & Co booth is the European premiere of Lynk & Co 07GT. As the brand's first B-segment PHEV Wagon, it is the core product of the brand's "Broadening Strategy", entering the travel car consumption scenario familiar to Europeans with trendy sporty design. This means Lynk & Co's product matrix in Europe has formally expanded from SUV to the wagon category favored by local users.

The Zeekr booth appeared steadier, placing the flagship Zeekr 9X, positioned as luxury within the group system, in the center. This vehicle was designed by the Gothenburg design team and is a key strategic model for Zeekr entering the European luxury SUV niche market. The new Zeekr 7X beside it was equally significant: achieving comprehensive advancement in dimensions such as ADAS, cabin, exterior, color, range, and performance, it is planned to commence first deliveries in Q1 2027, while its global cumulative production has already broken 200,000 units.

Three brands, three positioning: Geely targets the global mainstream mass market, Lynk & Co targets the high-end new energy market, and Zeekr targets the luxury market. Together, the three booths are a microcosm of Geely's global expansion.

2.23 million, 798,000: Globalization is not a slogan, it's the numbers

To judge whether an automaker's globalization is serious or just posing, the numbers are the baseline.

First, the scale. From January to September 2026, Geely Automobile Holdings' cumulative sales exceeded 2.23 million units, setting a new historical high for the same period; among which overseas exports were 797,670 units, up 169% year-on-year. A more noteworthy rhythm is that overseas exports exceeded 100,000 units monthly for 4 consecutive months, with September single-month exports reaching 106,685 units, up 162% year-on-year. Because the pace achieved in the first 9 months, the annual export target was raised from 640,000 to 920,000 units, sprinting towards the million-unit level.

Next, the network. The group's business covers over 100 countries and regions, with over 2,300 sales and service outlets built; Geely brand entered 88 countries and regions with overseas outlets over 1,200; Lynk & Co business expanded to 53 overseas countries; Zeekr covers over 60 countries and regions with nearly 800 global stores. The R&D and manufacturing footprint also landed overseas: 5 major design centers and 5 major engineering R&D centers arranged in Shanghai, Hangzhou, Ningbo, Gothenburg, Milan, Coventry, Frankfurt, etc.; and 11 overseas manufacturing plants in operation in Malaysia, UK, Brazil, etc.

The technical foundation supporting these figures is also displayed on the booth: i-HEV Smart Engine Hybrid achieved engine thermal efficiency of 48.41% and comprehensive fuel consumption per 100km as low as 2.22L, breaking Guinness World Records; 5th Generation Geely Smart Charging Pile single gun peak power 2.2MW, 4 minutes ready to drive, 8 minutes fully charged; New Generation Shield Gold Brick Battery is at the forefront of mass-produced vehicle level with 12C peak charging rate; Thunder 16-in-1 Smart Electric Drive overall efficiency 93.8%, first equipped with Geely Galaxy TT, creating two Guinness World Records: "Lowest Energy Consumption Around Qinghai Lake" and "Longest Continuous Dual-Car Drift on Wet Roads". On technical routes, pure electric, plug-in hybrid, extended range, hybrid, and alcohol hydrogen five routes run in parallel, with core three-electric systems fully self-developed. To summarize in one sentence, "Technology independence, full market coverage".

"One Geely" Going Global: Why systemic operation is more resilient than single-product breakthrough

Single brand going global bets on a hit car; system going global bets on risk resilience and localization speed. Geely's going global logic obviously belongs to the latter. It relies on the "One Geely" system of the group's complete industrial ecosystem: back-end R&D and supply chain highly shared, front-end three brands maintain independent positioning and user operations, precisely covering different niche markets.

This system has more obvious advantages when facing European market barriers. Geely follows an "Industrial Symbiosis" light-asset cooperation path: not building new factories, not building new capacity, but sharing capacity, sharing market, sharing results with global peers. Deep cooperation with partners like Volvo, Renault, and Ford covers technology, channels, manufacturing, powertrains, able to handle tariffs and investment barriers, and quickly scale up localization.

Starting from January 2027, Volvo Cars will become Lynk & Co's exclusive dealer in Europe. The significance of this cooperation goes beyond channel agency: relying on the group's internal asset portfolio, mobilizing operational and channel capabilities of mature luxury brands within the system to empower Lynk & Co, achieving deeper localized operations. This "incubating brands using the system" approach is hard for single brands to replicate.

From product export to local manufacturing, Geely's globalization is shifting gears: relying on global capacity layout and partner factory network, from "selling to Europe" to "making in Europe, selling in Europe".

Europe wants not just "Exhibitors", but "Co-builders"

At the auto show, products are compared; off the show, compliance, R&D, and responsibility are compared. The landing point of "Long-term" is exactly outside the booth. Europe's test for outsiders, product capability is just one link; Geely's response is to become a co-builder on the industrial chain.

Compliance first. In March 2026, Geely's Vast Horizon G-ASD System obtained UN R171 certification, becoming the first Chinese automaker to obtain this certification, securing the "passport" to the European high-end ADAS market first, bringing high-end ADAS solutions meeting UNECE regulatory requirements to Europe.

Also in March 2026, Geely Tech Europe Company was established, integrating R&D businesses in Gothenburg, Sweden and Frankfurt, Germany, with the goal of compressing the new car release interval between China and abroad to within 6 months. Gothenburg's design and R&D centers serve Zeekr and Lynk & Co, Italian design center serves Geely brand. Europe is not just Geely's sales market, but also an R&D and design stronghold.

ESG and Safety are another yardstick for "long-term" measured by European partners. Geely was selected in S&P Global "Sustainability Yearbook 2026", is the only Chinese automaker shortlisted; carbon emissions per vehicle over its full lifecycle in 2025 decreased by 25.5% compared to 2020, exceeding the 25% phase target, continuously promoting 2045 Carbon Neutrality target; Lynk & Co conducted lifecycle assessments for 01, 02, 08, European self-operated facilities use 100% renewable power.

At the safety level, the group already has 10 car models with Euro NCAP 5-star rating, covering products from Zeekr 007GT to Geely E2 of different positioning; Global All-Domain Safety Center holds five Guinness World Records, open to the entire industry; Geely is also the first Chinese automaker to join the European Road Safety Information System (DFRS), participating in Europe's real-time road hazard information network via anonymized data sharing.

Conclusion

Auto show ends, spotlights fade, cars on the booth will change one after another. But what Geely brought to Europe—nearly 20 years of cooperation depth, 11 factories, 5 major R&D design centers, network covering over 100 countries and regions, and the stance of "Grow together with European industry"—will not disappear with the end of the exhibition period.

The three booths at the Paris Auto Show are a mirror of Geely's globalization: long-term deep cultivation, so dare to stretch the timeline to 20 years; systemic operation, so three brands can fight their own battles, sharing the same back-end; industrial symbiosis, so can turn the European market from "Destination" to "Co-building Place".

This "Long-Term Commitment" cannot be written in the participation list, must be fulfilled with the next 20 years.