► New Lynk & Co 01 and 03 Concept
► Unveiled at 2017 Shanghai show
► It’s Geely’s new connected car brand
Fancy a dash of Volvo quality and a frisson of Chinese start-up fizz? Well Lynk & Co hopes it’s got what you’re looking for, with two new cars unveiled at this week’s Shanghai motor show.
The new Lynk & Co 01 and 03 Concept shows where the new Chinese digital-first brand is going. And it’s designed to make big inroads in Asia and – eventually – in Europe too.
Our full 2017 Shanghai motor show preview guide
Meet the Lynk & Co 01
The 01 is, appropriately enough, the first production car from the new start-up. It’s a five-door crossover and will be sold with a new, car-sharing mentality baked into its DNA.
Tellingly, Lynk will sell it with a lifetime warranty to cover all defects (ring any bells, sister company Volvo and its discontinued Lifetime Care?) and with free connectivity, to make sure that those on board can stay online.
This is about more than just surfing the internet and plugging in to your apps, however; all Lynk & Co vehicles will depend on a signal to be shared and used among online subscribers, rather than just outright buyers and owners.
Read more on the Lynk & Co 01 SUV here
A caring and sharing future: the new ownership model
The company demonstrated its app-based sharing service with 800 users live on Sunday 16 April on the eve of the Shanghai auto show.
Senior vice president Alain Visser said that Lynk & Co cars would be sold online and with home delivery services or via old-school outright payment, but also via a subscription model on smartphones.
‘We believe Lynk & Co will offer the most connected cars in the world, with the world’s first in-car digital share function,’ he claimed. ‘We also offer a completely new business model, with a simplified product offer, transparent fixed pricing and an attractive purchase and ownership experience starting here in China this year.
‘We will bring a unique offer of connected mobility, with the option to share your car, where everything is included. The key to everything we do is simplicity.’
The Lynk & Co 03 Concept
As well as the SUV, the new Geely-owned brand will showcase the Lynk & Co 03 Concept at Shanghai, a four-door sedan to demonstrate that a willingness to appeal to more traditional buyers too. Saloons sell well in various global markets, after all.
While the 01 is ‘production-ready’ the 03 is a ‘design prototype’ overseen by design vice president Peter Horbury, formerly of fellow Geely subsidiary Volvo Cars.
Can he make a decent fist of launching perhaps the first Chinese car brand to be taken seriously in the West? Be sure to sound off in the comments below.
Sounds great… when and where can I buy these cars?
Both Lynk & Co launch products have global aspirations; they are designed and engineered in Sweden and will be sold globally – first in China from 2017, with European and US sales soon after.
Click here for more from the 2017 Shanghai motor show