China’s Lynk & Co hopes that the all-electric replacement for the only vehicle it currently sells in Europe will allow it to break into the U.S. market. Due to go on sale in 2024, the company’s CEO, Alain Visser, said that the car is being designed to be adapted for American regulations.
Lynk & Co is owned by Geely, which controls a growing empire of global brands, and the EV will be a followup for the plug-in hybrid 01, currently the only model the brand sells in Europe. It is expected to be based on the SEA (Sustainable Experience Architecture) platform, which also underpins the Smart #1.
“There is still some work to be done but [U.S. entry] is definitely very high on my agenda, and I am sure it will work here,” Visser told Autonews Europe recently.
Read: Lynk & Co 01 Subscription Cost Is Now 10% More Expensive In Europe
That the chassis will be able to underpin a vehicle sold in the U.S. shouldn’t come as a surprise, though. Although the Smart #1 won’t be sold in the U.S., the SEA platform is also expected to form the basis for a number of vehicles, including a small electric crossover from Volvo.
What is proving more vexing for Visser is U.S. franchise law, which he called “insanely complicated.” As in Europe, Lynk & Co plans to mainly make sales online, and to get most drivers into its vehicles through a subscription model.
On the continent, customers pay €550 ($583 USD at current exchange rates) per month for the 01 plug-in hybrid, and have the ability to cancel their subscription with as little as a month’s notice. The strength of American dealers, though, makes such sales models complicated. It may, however, be able to get some help from Polestar and Volvo (also Geely brands) which have been working to crack the subscription model in the U.S.
The all-electric replacement to the Lynk & Co is expected to launch in 2024, and Visser said that it would also be used to break into the U.K. market. The work needed to homologate the EV for U.S. sales, though, is likely to mean Americans will have to wait a few months before they can get one.
