Zeekr 009: The electric, ultra-luxury minivan that can keep up with a Subaru STI

Zero to 100 km/h in 4.5 seconds.

For many of us, this can only happen in a video game, especially since the average 1.3-liter subcompact sedan does that sprint in 12 to 13 seconds.

Zero to 100 km/h in 4.5 seconds is usually the territory of turbocharged, four-wheel-drive machines like the 300-horsepower Subaru STI. And now, you can include the Zeekr 009 to that list.

Is it a 4x4 rally special? A sleek, two-seat sports car? Not even close.

The 009 is actually a fully electric, six-seater minivan out of China and is the second model from the Zeekr brand, which was established in 2021 to wage war in the luxury electric-vehicle (EV) market against the likes of Nio and Tesla.

Zeekr is also part of Chinese automaker Geely, which is known locally for crossovers like the Coolray Okavango and Azkarra.

Superb aerodynamics

One look at the 009 and you really wouldn’t think such a behemoth would go so fast.

It has the face of an anime character, with LED daytime running lights shaped like staples and a contrast-color front grill that makes the van look rather happy. The black brackets on the sides contain what appears to be the headlights.

Down the side – it’s undeniably a van. But touches like the gloss-black pillars provide the illusion of a floating roofline.

Other fancy features include the upward kink on the sliding doors that break up the straight beltline, the chrome door handles and the fabulous lattice-style alloy wheels.

Go around to the back and you have an enormous hatch with boomerang-style taillights connected by a red strip. The rear end is also unusually pert, with hardly any protrusion from the rear bumper.

Despite looking like a fancy refrigerator on wheels, Zeekr claims that the 009 has a drag coefficient of 0.27. For comparison, the Toyota Alphard luxury minivan has a coefficient of 0.33.

This means the 009 cuts through the air more cleanly than many of its slab-sided minivan rivals, which contributes to less cabin noise and better performance at higher speeds.

Roomy, plush cabin

The good aerodynamics, combined with the fact that the 009 is fully electric, should mean a very serene ride.

And it gets all the more serene with vast swaths of two-tone leather lining the capacious cabin, including the second-row captain chairs that offers various adjustments and even massage functions.

Zeekr said the 009 also comes with a 20-speaker Yamaha sound system, a 15.6-inch flip-down rear screen and folding tables.

Move up to the front row and you find the lattice theme on the black interior trim. The 009 also features a 15.4-inch central infotainment touchscreen and a fully digital gauge cluster.

Electrifying performance

And now, the secret to the 009’s Subaru-esque performance.

The van is available with either 116-kWh or a 140-kWh battery pack that powers electric motors on the front and rear axles, effectively making the 009 an all-wheel-drive EV.

The motors produce a combined output of 541 PS.

Zeekr claims a maximum range of 822 kilometers for the bigger battery pack, with the smaller pack able to charge from 10 to 80 percent in 28 minutes using a fast charger.

The 009 uses the Geely Sustainable Experience Architecture (SEA), which also underpins the Zeekr 001 sedan that debuted at Auto Shanghai on April 2021.

The SEA platform is also used in the Lotus Eletre EV crossover, the Polestar 3 crossover and the upcoming Polestar 5 sedan. Geely owns both Lotus and Volvo, the latter producing EVs under the Polestar marque

Do you think the Zeekr 009 is the ultimate luxury minivan?