This Chinese Land Rover Defender lookalike has AI-powered off-roading – and Geely says it will ‘definitely’ come to the UK

No, you’re not seeing the latest facelifted Land Rover Defender – this is the Geely Galaxy Cruiser concept, the latest of a few Chinese SUVs that certainly seems to have been ‘inspired’ by the iconic off-roader.

It features a glut of cool features under the skin, though, and unusually for a concept car is very close to production spec – and it could hit the UK market within a couple of years, something that the iCaur V27, Jetour T2, ROX 01 and Fengchengbao Tai 7 haven’t managed. We headed out to Geely’s R&D and design centre in Ningbo, China, to see the car in the flesh and chat to the people behind it.

Geely Galaxy Cruiser concept: styling

There’s no getting away from the Galaxy Cruiser’s similarities to that well-known SUV. The Land Rover Defender’s DNA is present everywhere from the clamshell bonnet to the blacked-out ‘floating’ roofline. It even gets LED headlights that look very similar to the Defender’s circular daytime running lights, not to mention the side-mounted ladder and storage pods that could have come straight from JLR’s accessories catalogue.

Not everything is the same, though – the rear has a distinctive set of upright taillights, while a black styling line runs from the tailgate through to the spare wheel cover. The front grille is also illuminated.

Inside, the Galaxy Cruiser is much more of its own thing. There’s a big floating touchscreen while the gears and drive modes are selected via a chunky aircraft-style handle in the centre console.

What does an AI-powered off-roader mean?

Don’t worry – your car’s not about to start hallucinating and insisting you use the em dash. But it should make off-road driving more effortless than ever, with a system that can recognize obstacles and hazards and brake, accelerate and steer the car accordingly. Self-driving greenlaning might seem to be missing the point a bit, but it’s certainly impressive.

Other features are enabled by the Galaxy Cruiser’s chassis and underpinnings. Already used in the (production) Geely Galaxy M9 SUV, it’s a fully by-wire system, so there’s no physical connection between the driver and the wheels for steering or braking. That enables things like variable-ratio steering, where the same amount of rotation on the steering wheel will turn the front wheels different amounts depending on speed.

With four-wheel steering, the Galaxy Cruiser can also crab-walk. It’s also capable of on-the-spot ‘tank turns’ and can wade up to 800mm of water. Or if you find some water that’s a bit deeper, it can even float for up to two hours, and ‘drive’ at up to 4.6 knots.

That sounds slightly fanciful, but the Galaxy M9 platform does mean that when the Galaxy Cruiser hits production it should have some very impressive real-world numbers. The M9 has a plug-in hybrid engine with up to 130 miles of electric range, and up to 870hp.

Who’s the Geely Galaxy Cruiser for?

Off-roading will clearly be a focus, and Geely’s designer Flavien Bachet told us that during testing it ‘went way beyond what we were expecting in terms of capacity’. But it’s also meant to be a sensible, super-safe family car. Part of that is the so-called ‘Golden Short Blade’ battery pack, which has a bulletproof coating and an internal makeup designed to resist catching on fire – even if it’s completely punctured.

Will it come to the UK?

The Galaxy Cruiser isn’t just some flight of fancy – Dachet told us the car was ‘90-95% production-ready. And Geely’s UK marketing director Tianxiao Yan told us ‘We will definitely launch the car in the UK’. That seems pretty concrete to us.

Whether it comes under the Geely name or under a different sub-brand is yet to be seen, and while the car is set to launch in China within a year it we probably won’t see it in Europe for a while after that.

As for pricing, Chinese brands are notorious for undercutting the established European, Japanese and Korean alternatives – so you can expect the Galaxy Cruiser to look particularly keenly priced next to the plug-in hybrid Land Rover Defender.

Car change? Carwow!

Looking for a new set of wheels? With Carwow you can sell your car quickly and for a fair price – as well as find great offers on your next one. Whether you’re looking to buy a car brand new, are after something used or you want to explore car leasing options, Carwow is your one stop shop for new car deals.

Click here to follow us on WhatsApp, where you can keep up-to-date with all the latest news, reviews, advice guides and videos.