Geely recently launched their brand in Kenya through Simba Corporation. In its bag of goodies are various cars that suit each particular taste. However, its best gift to the Kenyan automobile market is a brand new saloon. The saloon comes from Geely’ssub-brand knows as Emgrand which is much like various top-selling Japanese and German brands with luxury car sub-brands. The new Geely Emgrand EC7 is a high-quality car with high spec as part of a vision to establish itself in Kenya, but at an affordable price. The Geely Emgrand is available in two specifications – the EC7 GL Luxury and the EC7 GT Executive.
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| Geely Emgrand EC7 |
Design
The stunning frontal design boasts a ‘Black Magic’ headlight cluster giving the car an aggressive yet serious look. Features such as height adjustment, daytime running lights and front fog lights come standard in both models.A red, gold and black Emgrand logo dominates the front grille with chromed horizontal fins beneath a chromed lip on the bonnet. From behind the new Emgrand has a wide but elegant and mature presence, boasting the same prominent logo on the lip of the luggage lid.
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| Cockpit |
Performance
Powered by the GeTec 1.8-litre engine delivering 102 kW (136hp) with 172 Nm of torque, the EC7 accelerates from standstill to 100 km/h in 10.5 seconds; reaching a top-speed of approximately 185 km/h. Mated to the 4-cylinder power unit is a 5-speed manual transmission. The Geely Emgrand EC7 rides on MacPherson struts front suspension and rear multilink suspension. 16-inch alloy wheels encase the disc brakes fitted on both the front and rear wheels.
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| Front look |
Safety
The Geely Emgrand EC7 has dual front airbags (plus side curtains on the Executive model), park assist, ABS with EBD and it is the first Chinese car to get a four star EuroNCAP safety rating.
Interior
The interior design of the Geely Emgrand EC7 features two and three colour tones on the dashboard and door panels as well as the instrument cluster and middle console. Something that immediately catches the eye is the soft, but clear blue backlighting of the instrument panel. The centre console houses a CD/radio combination and an easy to operate climate control system standard on both models.The layout of the cockpit is as ergonomic as it gets, with the main focal point of the driver the small, but easily visible instrument panel.
The instrument cluster houses two main dials for speed – car and engine speed – and a unique fuel gauge and water temperature meter made up of the vertical halves of a circle. Other driver aids include electrical operation for the exterior door mirror and windows with the window, central locking and mirror control buttons within arm’s length on the driver’s door. As far as comfort is concerned, both launch models have leather interior, climate control with easy to control dials in the centre console, and the sound system (radio/CD player) situated directly above.
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| Rear seats |
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| Rear look |
Verdict
Geely has been working hard to change public perception of its brand. All their hard work seems to have bared fruit with the launch of the Geely Emgrand EC7. However, there is no new car of its size and price that comes with impressive features visible on the Geely Emgrand EC7. With Geely now owning Volvo, expect better and more upmarket cars from the Chinese brand.