Geely EX 5

FIRST DRIVE Chinese firm that owns big-name global players launches its assault on UK with a merely adequate electric SUV

- Alastair Crooks

GEELY is yet another Chinese brand looking to make an impact in the UK, and it's one to be reckoned with. It already owns Lotus, Polestar and Volvo, but the first car to bear the Geely name here is the EX5, which joins the all-important, all-electric mid-size SUV market.

There's just one battery option and three trim levels, called SE, Pro and Max, and Geely has been pretty aggressive with its pricing strategy, knocking off up to £4,750 from the EX5. With the company's own "Geely EV grant" in place - which runs up until the end of this year - the EX5 is priced at £29,690 in entry SE trim, £30,790 for the Pro and £33,240 for the Max version we're testing here.

The EX5 comes with just one electric motor, on the front axle. In some rivals, this layout can cause excessive wheelspin at low speeds, but the EX5 manages its 320Nm of torque well.

It's quick to sprint from 0-62mph and there's no real lump of power either - it's all relatively smoothly distributed, and even at higher speeds the EX5 feels pretty punchy.