Though the itinerary on our Beijing trip with Geely stated that there would be a track session, we did not expect it to turn out like this. Lining up on the pitlane of the Goldenport Park Circuit in Beijing are 14 different models across the Geely Group umbrella for us to try out.

Models from Lotus, Smart, Lynk & Co, Geely, Zeekr, Radar, and Farizon were unlocked and the powertrains running for Malaysian and European journalists to take out onto the track. This ranged from the smallest vehicle, the Geely Panda Mini to the largest, the Farizon Homtruck semi.

Despite the smorgasbord of vehicles available for us to try around the track, there wouldn’t be enough space to review all 14 models. Besides, I did not drive all of them due to charging constraints for the BEVs in the lineup - there were no back-up charging generators provided considering the cars will be used for a full-day track experience.

Most of the lineup also had a slim chance of a Malaysian arrival. The only exceptions were the Lotus Eletre, the Smart #1, and the Smart #3 with the latter teased for arrival in Malaysia and could see a launch at the upcoming 2024 Malaysia Autoshow. There was also the Geely Galaxy L7 which we speculate could be offered here as Proton’s first PHEV model, due for 2025.

I decided to narrow down from the at least 10 models I had driven at the track to 5 which I thought to be the most impressive. Technically it will be 6 since I will also cover one I did not like.

It might seem too presumptuous that my verdict applies to all Malaysian buyers but I digress. Besides, I was only given a brief moment behind the wheel of most of the cars so this won’t be a proper review and merely a series of first impressions. Without further ado, let’s begin the rundown.

Want: Geely Panda Mini

This tiny box on wheels looks like one of those children's rides you see at malls. Rather than inserting coins to power it up, a starter button brings the 41 PS/110 Nm rear-mounted electric motor to life. This is then juiced up by a 17.03-kWh LFP battery.

The Geely Panda Mini only has a top speed of 100 km/h, the doors close with an industrial-grade loud "THONK", and its tall stature would make it seem like it is easy to topple over. So, why do I think it could be a winner in Malaysia?

Well, the Panda Mini is a micro-BEV that you wouldn’t want to take too seriously and I meant it in a joyful manner. It is made for neighbourhood driving and with a maximum range of 200 km, that is more than enough to last for a week if it’s just to pop over to the nearby shops or cafes.

Also read: A baby Honda e, the Geely Panda Mini is a RM 25k EV you can't have, yet

It takes 4.5 hours to charge from 20-100% via AC charging and supports up to 22 kW of DC fast charging which takes 30 minutes to charge from 30-80%.

Due to its size and speed, we were only allowed to drive the Panda Mini around the pit lane though a few journalists were given the opportunity to drive briefly on public roads. Compared to the more advanced cars out on the track, the tiny BEV brought the most joy.

The small size made it easy to move around and visibility was great. It might be a simple car and the plastics felt scratchy but it is well put together. The rotary-style gear selector, for instance, engages into gear better than a familiar electric feline.

This is meant to be a cheap electric car in China with prices starting from CNY 29,900 (~RM 19.6k) but with around 10,000 units sold every month, the Panda Mini is more successful than you might think. It might be hard to believe such a contraption would be appealing to motoring journalists but this simple car easily won over our hearts.

Want: Lynk & Co 03+TCR Cyan

If the Panda Mini charmed its way to our minds, the Lynk & Co 03+TCR Cyan pushed the adrenaline rush throughout the body. This is the sole internal combustion engine (ICE) car at our disposal and out here in Goldenpark, it is perfectly right at home.

The 2.3-km long circuit is filled with challenging corners and only a couple of fast straights. For most of the electrified vehicles out here, this location is out of their comfort zone but not for the 03+TCR.

Designed and developed as a circuit car for the road, the sports saloon's roots are traced back to the WTCR series which the Cyan Racing team competed in.

With a big rear wing, carbon fibre splitters, and wide body design, the 03+TCR Cyan not only resembled a road-legal version of a touring race car, it is literally one. Open the rear doors and you will find a roll cage in the back where the rear seats would be normally placed.

Powered by a turbocharged 2.0-litre 4-cylinder engine developed by Polestar when they were more known as Volvo’s performance division, the sports saloon makes 350 PS and 450 Nm. Power is delivered to the front wheels via an 8-speed Aisin automatic transmission.

Fans often praise Honda for perfecting performance FWD cars but during my brief time with the 03+TCR, I believe that the Civic Type R has a worthy rival. The super saloon treated bends with enough balance that it didn't feel too wild even for an amateur circuit driver like me as I ripped through each corner.

Also read: Review: 2024 Honda Civic Type R (FL5) - Bonafide everyday superstar, but why do we miss the FK8?

Not only did it look ferocious but it sounded feral too with pops and bangs echoing throughout the circuit as each writer took their fast laps. That cacophony of pistons and cylinders sparking one after the other made this the most sublime car of the lot even if it wasn’t the most powerful.

That honour goes to the all-electric Zeekr 001 FR which made 1,247 PS and 1,280 Nm from its dual motors. It also gained sporty visual enhancements which matched its 0-100 km/h time of 2.02 seconds but the true king of the race track that day still belonged to the 03+TCR.

It can still do plenty more hot laps on the track compared to the 1,000+ PS electric shooting brake. This was true as I never got to try out the 001 FR since its battery ran flat when it was my group’s turn to get behind the wheel.

Want: Zeekr X

Of all the cars out on the track that day, the Zeekr X didn't look nor feel like it would be enjoyable. After all, this is a premium compact crossover with doors that open automatically at the touch of a button which invites you to a lavish cream and blue interior.

Even the front passenger seat has an ottoman while premium Yamaha-branded speakers are placed around this compact BEV. Yet, the Zeekr X proved that appearances never mattered as it became one of the most enjoyable cars on the track.

My initial scepticism was thrown out of the window as I was grinning at how chuckable this was around the circuit. Yet despite the eagerness, it was composed but this excitable feeling felt quite familiar as I had experienced something similar back in Malaysia.

The Zeekr X sits on the same Sustainable Experience Architecture (SEA) platform as the Smart #1 and our unit on the track was a fully loaded all-wheel drive (AWD) variant. The dual motor system makes a total of 428 PS and 543 Nm; the same output as the Smart #1 Brabus.

Also read: Can the Smart #1 spark some joy in the EV landscape? We took a long drive to Penang to find out

While the Brabus felt like a roller coaster around a similar track back in Malaysia, the Zeekr X AWD felt more dignified. Yes, it was out of its comfort zone and would make more sense stuck in Beijing traffic but it adapted gracefully on the circuit.

Want: Lynk & Co 07 EM-P

This was the newest car on the grid having launched at that week’s Auto China 2024. It also meant that our group was among the first to drive the Lynk & Co 07 EM-P but I never had a chance to drive this on the track due to time constraints.

Instead, I took it out on public roads with the 07’s product planner sitting shotgun in the passenger seat. Technically, it was a road encircling the circuit so I did not drive the PHEV sedan out amidst the chaos of Beijing traffic.

Nevertheless, it was an opportunity to check out how the 07 would perform in the real world where it naturally belongs. I drove its sister model, the Lynk & Co 08 around the track and Goldenport Park was clearly not where the SUV felt at ease.

The body roll was so immense that I didn't bother hooning it. While it has a combined output of 593 PS and 905 Nm, the initial acceleration also did not feel quick.

As I waited for the second half of the day’s track session, I checked out the 07. While it shares the same platform and is essentially a sedan version of the 08, it is only available in FWD while its SUV relative has an additional AWD variant that I had driven on the track.

Both tested units were the top-of-the-line Halo variants which utilised a turbocharged 1.5-litre 4-cylinder engine under the hood. The single-motor 07 PHEV has a combined output of 381 PS and 615 Nm.

Just like the 08, the 07 wasn’t going to light up in terms of performance and looking at the features offered on this top-of-the-line Halo variant, you might guess which consumer group Lynk & Co is targeting.

Features include a pair of screens for rear occupants, a 23-speaker Harmon Kardon audio system, a swivelling 15.4-inch infotainment screen, and a head-up display that doubles as a projector connected to the infotainment unit.

The 07’s product planner told me these features were also offered on the 08 before we drove off. As he demonstrated the projector feature, I was a bit bemused but according to the product planner, it is what most Chinese buyers are interested in.

Soon, we head off for a more realistic driving experience of Lynk & Co's latest star.

Surrounding the track were various car showrooms and workshops and as such it felt like the Chinese version of Glenmarie or ‘Jalan Horsepower’ around Sunway University. The roads also reminded me of home with plenty of potholes and rough surfaces so the ride in the 07 felt jittery and harsh.

It was only then that we realised the car was in Sport mode. Switching to Comfort brought out the 07's true quality as it soaked through the rough roads like they were fluffy clouds. It was as comfortable as a Lexus and my tired body was savouring through this blissful moment.

Want: Zeekr 007

Like the Zeekr X, the Zeekr 007 also brought some surprises on the track. It is the only sedan in Zeekr’s line-up and from the looks of things, it reminded me of the Lucid Air and is a little shorter in length.

Considering how sedans are not doing so well outside of China, there is a very slim chance of the 007's arrival overseas. Still, the lone Zeekr sedan surprised me with how adaptable it was outside of its comfort zone like the Zeekr X.

The 007 – Can you imagine Agent Bond using this? – was quite agile around the bends while also pushing the typically instant acceleration you normally get in BEVs. Our unit came with a dual-motor AWD setup (637 PS/710 Nm) and sat on an 800V electrical architecture.

Again, Zeekr is meant to be a premium sub-brand in Geely’s line-up but so far, the models that we experienced at Goldenport Park have been impressive with their behaviour and on-track eagerness. Besides the X and 007, Zeekr also brought out the 001 which also provided some surprising track capabilities.

Zeekr is looking to expand in right-hand drive (RHD) markets as it aims to reach 50 destinations by the end of the year. Malaysia is merely considered due to Proton’s relationship with Geely but so far, we are looking forward to what they could offer.

Also read: Mulled for Malaysia, Geely confirms trial production of RHD Zeekr cars has started, APAC region debut by Q3 2024

That is enough praise because the next car on this list deserves its fair share of criticism.

Leave it in China: Ji Yue 01

If you’ve never heard of Ji Yue, it is the newest brand in Geely Group and formed as an alliance between the group and Baidu, China’s equivalent of Google. The Ji Yue 01 is as the name suggests, the collaboration’s first model and at the Beijing Auto Show, the international media were introduced to the brand.

Ji Yue touts itself as a robocar company to become a pioneer in autonomous driving and artificial intelligence (AI) technology. This automotive start-up prides itself with a team of visionaries who want to bring about sustainable mobility solutions driven by smart intelligence with highly impeccable English presentations.

Also read: Geely pairs up with China's Google to develop AI-enabled driver-less cars

As a car enthusiast, I don’t like these snotty-nosed tech bros who think they can enter the automotive industry with their highbrow AI fetish. To them, a car is as much a consumer product as any electronic device even if it has a sense of sporty exterior design.

This was the first car I was shuffled to on the track and I let my media colleague take the first drive as I hopped into the rear seat. The Ji Yue 01 has an athletic design that has won multiple design accolades like the Red Dot Design Award but inside, the team must’ve seen what Tesla had done with minimalism and ripped a few pages out of it.

It has a steering yoke which comes as an option with button-mounted indicators and the gear selector is located on the 35.6-inch-wide screen. While minimalism is great and all, why make straightforward controls into difficult manoeuvres for the sake of it? I was starting to despise this car and wasn’t even in the driver’s seat yet.

Ji Yue probably figured out that their models would be for people who simply needed a car like regular consumers and not those who want a car - usually fans. I’m sure all those fancy intelligent self-driving capabilities would work in busy traffic where even self-proclaimed car enthusiasts would rather let the car drive on its own.

But I’m on the track right now looking at my colleague who was struggling to come to terms with the yoke and the on-screen gear selector. This is clearly a fish-out-of-water moment for both of us.

Once the driving instructor radioed us to move, we never really bothered pushing the 'Robocar' to its limits. Simply because that steering yoke is making things difficult for us around the bends. It’s not even steer-by-wire and is a conventional rack-and-pinion steering so turning the wheel looks and is stressful.

Also read: Empathy drives: How a Toyota chief engineer crafts NEO Steer for Paralympian colleague's Land Cruiser 200

When it was my turn to drive the 01, my disdain for this 4-wheel appliance reached its peak. I was gripping the yoke hard as I greeted the corners. With nothing to catch on the yoke if I went full lock, I was basically hanging on for life on the yoke's ends with each turn.

Trying to enjoy the Ji Yue 01 on track is about as impossible as not trying to imagine John Cena when you hear the Mandarin word for ice cream.

Once you get to terms with the steering yoke, the Ji Yue 01 drives pretty anonymously but I guess that’s part of what a robocar is meant to be. It turns driving into an artificial chore rather than pleasure and out here on this track, it feels so off-putting.

The Ji Yue 01 only truly makes sense for e-hailing companies like Grab. It’s not a car meant for regular consumers and frankly, if you want to tie yourself up to years of car loans with a self-driving autonomous vehicle, why even bother considering one?

There is a self-driving autonomous vehicle which you don’t have to keep up with hefty monthly instalment plans called the public transit system. You don't need a robocar to get you to and from work but it does make all those e-hailing drivers redundant in the future.

That is why of all the cars I have the pleasure of driving around Goldenport Park, the Ji Yue 01 is easily one I do not remember fondly. Hopefully, we might see the other 5 cars make their way into Malaysia and for the one unworthy car, may it simply remain in China.