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The All-New Chinese Electric Pickup Truck is Coming to Southeast Asia: Starting Price of Over 500 Million VND, and Its Arrival in Vietnam is Just Around the Corner

The Geely-owned brand, Riddara, has set its sights on the Southeast Asian market with an ambitious plan. By establishing a subsidiary in Thailand, the company aims to use this base to export its innovative electric pickup truck model to the region. With a strategic focus on this market, Riddara is poised to make a significant impact in the electric vehicle space, offering a unique and forward-thinking product to a market with immense potential.

Administrator

11 July, 2024

According to Car News China, Geely’s Riddara brand officially announced the establishment of its first overseas subsidiary on July 9. Thailand was chosen as the country to develop its globalization strategy, expand the Riddara brand, and bring electric pickup trucks to Southeast Asian countries.

The subsidiary in Thailand will independently operate the Riddara brand and use Thailand as a springboard to create a left-hand drive market throughout the ASEAN and Pacific regions. With pickup truck sales accounting for over 40% of Thailand’s automotive market, far surpassing SUVs and sedans, Geely considers Thailand a key market for the Riddara brand.

Riddara will participate in the 41st Thailand International Auto Expo in November. Currently, the brand’s only model is the RD6 pickup truck, available in 2WD and 4WD versions. It is equipped with a multi-channel attachment platform (MAP) derived from Geely’s SE platform, also used by Zeekr, Smart, and Lotus vehicles.

Battery capacities available in the Chinese market are 63, 73, and 86 kWh. The vehicle is equipped with a rear electric motor that produces approximately 270 horsepower. With the 63 or 86 kWh battery options, the RD6 offers a range of 385–517 km according to China’s CLTC cycle.

The RD6 can charge from 30 to 80% using a 120kW DC fast charger in 30 minutes with the 63kWh battery and 32 minutes with the 86kWh battery. With a 7kW AC wall charger, it takes 7.9 and 11 hours to charge from 20 to 100% for the respective versions.

The wading depth is 815 mm, and the hill-climbing ability without load can reach 95%, while the hill-climbing ability with a full load can reach 65%. The Riddara RD6 has dimensions of 5,260 x 1,900 x 1,865 mm (LWH) and a wheelbase of 3,120 mm. Prices in China range from $20,870 to $30,500, which is approximately VND 530 to 775 million.

Geely has a clear plan to expand the reach of the Riddara brand throughout Southeast Asia. Riddara intends to enter nearly 20 countries across Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Latin America, and other regions. Therefore, it is possible that Riddara’s pickup trucks will soon be introduced to the Vietnamese market.

In China, the Riddara brand holds 60% of the market share for new energy pickup trucks. Electric vehicle sales in Thailand are growing rapidly and reached a total of 68,000 units in 2023, a 405% increase compared to the previous year. In 2022, electric vehicles accounted for about 1% of the Thai automotive market, while last year this figure rose to 8.6%. Current expectations predict that electric vehicle sales in Thailand will reach 85,000 to 100,000 units this year, equivalent to a market share of 10 to 12%.

According to CNC