Lynk&Co’s hybrid SUV shares CMA 2.0 platform with next Volvo XC60 and takes design cues from the original radical concept.
Lynk&Co has fully revealed its new 08 hybrid SUV ahead of its launch event in Shanghai on 25 March.
A sibling model of the next-generation Volvo XC60, the Geely-owned brand’s seventh model will be sold in China from the second half of 2023. It’s then expected to be sold in select foreign markets from 2024. The brand is yet to comment on plans to launch in Australia.
It swaps the low-slung, two-door silhouette of 2022’s The Next Day concept for a traditional crossover bodystyle. However, it carries over the concept’s signature LED headlights within a near-grilleless front fascia that gives it away as an electrified model.
Moving round to the side, the door handles sit flush with the bodywork in the name of reducing drag and the wheel arches are clad in black plastic with a glossy finish.
At the rear, the LED lights wrap around into the rear wings, while a sporty diffuser features below the bumper.
As with the forthcoming XC60, the 08 is based on Geely’s CMA 2.0 platform and is expected to be available with two versions of the firm’s E-Motive hybrid system.
Known internally under the codename DX11, this comprises a turbocharged 1.5-litre three-cylinder petrol engine and a three-speed Dedicated Hybrid Transmission (DHT) in combination with an electric motor and battery of varying power and capacities.
Two versions of the E-Motive system are planned. The first, called EM-F, is a parallel hybrid set-up in which the petrol engine charges a small battery that in turn powers an electric motor for a limited electric-only range. The second, called EM-P, is a plug-in hybrid set-up that allows the battery to be charged at up to 50kW and offers an extended electric-only range.
The so-called Nordthor 1.5-litre petrol engine claims to return fuel savings of up to 15% over Lynk&Co’s existing mild-hybrid and plug-in hybrid systems and has a thermal efficiency of up to 44.2%.
Chinese-market versions of the 08 will feature a new in-car operating system developed under a partnership between Geely and Chinese smartphone company Meizu.
Further details about the new model will be made available at its launch event later this week.