I think the Geely EX2 is a cracking compact electric car and it’s cheap too

It’s no secret I love compact electric cars and there are now plenty to choose from. If budget sits at the core of your new car buying-requirements, the £20,000-ish Geely EX2 is well worth a look. Apparently, it’s the biggest selling car in China; after trying one it’s easy to see why. I thought the EX2 would be a no-frills, low-personality EV that is a means to an end but after a few days behind the wheel, I really quite liked it.

Despite some issues that might grate after extended ownership, for the money, the Geely EX2 is a cracking little car that comes with everything most people want from four wheels. Better still, the EX2 isn’t as small as it seems and so the space inside is very good. For anyone with kids to get to school, it’d make an excellent second or first car. Get a good deal on it (in countries where it’s sold, at any rate – the USA is definitely not included) and the Geely EX2 could look even more appealing.

There are two battery options: the 37kWh 156-mile Pro model, or the 47kWh Max or Ultra editions with their 214-mile range being nigh on essential for anyone doing anything more than just school runs or shopping trips. However, folks with a home charger will find the smaller edition fine thanks to impressive levels of efficiency. The main thing with the Geely EX2 is that price though, which brings it in below the likes of our benchmark, the Renault 5 along with the Renault 4, Fiat Grande Panda, Citroen e-C3, Hyundai Inster, MG4 Urban et al. The catch? That’ll only get you the basic Geely EX2 Pro…

The styling

The Geely EX2 is bigger than it looks. At just over 4 metres long the rounded off curves of the exterior belie the fact that, inside, the EX2 has oodles of space on offer. Topped off, no less, with a 375-litre boot and 60/40 folding seats that allow for even more jiggery pokery on days that have ‘awkward load’ attached to them. The cabin area also feels cavernous, with a high roof line and plenty of space between the back and the front seats meaning the Geely EX2 is going to be fine for tall or oddly shaped people. It’s undeniably practical. A 70-litre frunk adds another gold star storage tick.

Around the exterior, which definitely looks aerodynamic, there were few highlights and the design is standard fare compact electric car, although there are two Geely badges on the hatchback as a minor bonus. My test car came in a pearl-style pink/purple hue and the contrasting upper and lower areas of the bodywork worked well together. There were practical rather than silly door handles too, making it family-friendly while the front and rear lights could have come from anything but the alloy wheels looked decent enough.

Inside, the cabin of the Geely EX2 was not bad at all. I thought the faux leather seats were very comfortable and looked like they’d be durable enough to handle the rigours of family ownership. Some minor niggles required attention, however, like the reversing sound that was ridiculously loud by default. The infotainment screen was far too bright as well, which I only discovered when driving down the road at night. The glare was way too much, although I was thankfully able to lower that, unlike the volume of the reversing alert that I never quite figured out.

The drive

Somewhat surprisingly, the Geely EX2 was a treat to drive. The steering felt just right for a car of this class and the turning circle was excellent. I thought it was really agile around town and there was enough power to zip away at the lights, join motorways without hesitation and even overtake without much in the way of fuss or bother. I think the EX2 worked best as an around town car, but the range of the bigger battery did make it able to do longer runs as well.

One of the main irritants about driving the EX2 was the ADAS and the lane-keeping side of things, which isn’t unusual in a Chinese-made car. They just don’t seem very able to contend with our highway network, especially when it comes to unpredictable back roads and barely legible markings. The other downside of the Geely was how it felt less great on surfaces at faster speeds and especially so on the motorway.

However, the EX2 is rear-wheel drive and the push rather than pull feel of the powertrain was perhaps its main strength. The car felt nicely balanced on the whole, although it is worth noting just how spongy the suspension could be. Approach a speed ramp doing anything more than the required speed limit and the result is, er, bouncy. The same went for going around sharper corners and roundabouts. I thought it stopped okay though once I’d set the brakes to maximum regen via the touchscreen.

The technology

Although the Geely EX2 comes at a reasonably affordable price, even the smaller battery edition delivers on the tech front. There was a very dominant 14.6in touchscreen in the middle of the dash augmented with an 8.8in driver’s display. The former felt, well, almost too large for the size of the car. Even more so driving in the dark when its overwhelming glow illuminated the whole interior of the car until I managed to dim the display a bit. Hidden inside were lots of controls, although a swipe down from the top got me easily to frequently needed options.

Anyone heading for the top Ultra trim will benefit from a heated steering wheel and seats, wireless phone charging with cooling coming from a small fan, plus a 360-degree camera system and electric tailgate. These added a touch of finesse to more expected features that included wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and the ambient lighting was a nice touch too, especially when it came to the illuminated graphic on the passenger side of the dash. Meanwhile, the audio system was acceptable rather than exceptional, but levels could also be tweaked within the screen’s software fest.

Geely EX2 verdict

The Geely EX2 isn’t going to garner the same levels of love and affection as the Renault 5 but it looks and feels more than durable enough to endure hard use as an everyday family runabout. Judged on its base price alone, the Geely EX2 certainly looks tempting for anyone not bothered about having a car with a personality.

Pick the better specification car though and that price creeps up, which immediately puts the Geely EX2 at risk of being ignored in favour of any of those star cars mentioned at the start, plus a few more besides. In short, the Geely EX2 is right up against it, unless cheap finance deals manage to persuade people otherwise.

Geely EX2 technical specifications