Geely took to the legendary Paris-Beijing route – or rather, vice versa – to make a point about the durability of its Galaxy M9 SUV. Tale to the story: the car not only reached its destination in good shape, but engineers also dismantled the model overtly to demonstrate its resilience.
Automakers typically prefer their vehicles to arrive at media events gleaming and intact, but Geely Auto Group chose a messier conclusion for its latest promotional campaign in the French capital. After sending its flagship Galaxy M9 SUV on a gruelling cross-continental 18,000-kilometer journey from China, the manufacturer opted to publicly disassemble the vehicle in Paris.
Looking for validation
The spectacle was designed to showcase mechanical durability. Still, it also left the European public with an important question: Is this voyage a prelude to a market launch of the Galaxy M9, or merely a display of engineering marvel?
To be precise, the mechanics stripping down the Galaxy M9 in front of a live audience were not looking for faults, but rather for validation. Having covered all that marketing mileage across Eurasia, the six-seat SUV arrived in France, but not to enter local dealerships immediately. For Geely, the event was a premeditated attempt to counter persistent Western skepticism regarding the long-term reliability of Chinese cars.
Hybrid powertrain
The itinerary was punishing by design. The route subjected the vehicle to a wide range of road surfaces and weather conditions before reaching its final destination in La Ville Lumière. Upon arrival, engineers removed body panels and powertrain components to inspect wear patterns on the plug-in hybrid system.
This setup pairs a 1.5-liter turbocharged engine with electric motors and CATL battery packs and plays a crucial role in Geely’s upmarket push. The automaker claims the system, in its most potent version with a 41 kWh battery, allows for a comprehensive range exceeding 1,300 kilometers, a figure the endurance run was designed to support.
Commercially absent
While the Galaxy M9 is a key product for 2025 in its domestic market, no homologation documents have been publicised for EU sales. The car is physically present, yet commercially absent.
But it might announce a wind of change. Geely is not only present in the EU with brands like Volvo, Polestar, Lynk & Co, and Zeekr, but also under its own name in selected markets like Poland and the UK – but not yet officially in France nor Belgium. The brand plans to launch ten new Geely models by 2030, with the Galaxy as a possible candidate.
The M9 itself is a formidable package on paper, measuring over 5.2 meters and offering performance figures that rival premium German rivals. However, these legacy European manufacturers rarely feel compelled to livestream the disassembly of their cars to prove they won’t fall apart.
But they don’t shy away from similar stunts. After its E-Class suffered reputational damage due to electronic glitches, Mercedes sent the facelifted model out on a similar undertaking in 2006. To prove its regained durability, a convoy of 36 diesel-powered E-Classes was driven from Paris to Beijing by media journalists.
