Lynk & Co 02 to become crossover; Geely’s new brand to debut in China, US and Europe by 2019 – report

A third model will soon join the Lynk & Co model line-up, and this time the 02 nameplate will find itself on a new crossover, joining the 01 SUV and the 03 sedan. Previously expected to grace the sedan, that model has since moved on to a new name which frees the ’02’ moniker for the upcoming crossover.

“In between the 01 SUV and 03 saloon will be a type of crossover vehicle that we’ll reveal soon. It’s got SUV cues, but it’s probably a bit lower. You’ll see that most of our cars are relatively small in size,” Lynk & Co senior vice president Alain Visser told Auto Express. The brand will also launch in the United Kingdom by the end of 2019, with China, US, and Europe marque debuts set for mid-2019, Visser added.

According to the report, Lynk & Co’s model roll-out will be in numerical sequence – the 01 SUV will debut first, followed by the 02 crossover in approximately two years after that, with the 03 sedan to come after the crossover’s debut. Each model is said to come with free data connectivity and a lifetime warranty, as announced by the Geely-owned brand earlier this year.

Once the vehicles are available, they will be on offer via the company’s subscription model, in addition to outright sale and leasing methods. “We want to sell cars, but we will most of all sell mobility. So we’ll sell cars via a subscription model, where you pay a monthly fee and extend it or not, but within that fee you can change car every day or swap it whenever you want it,” Visser said.

“So say you pay your monthly fee, we haven’t calculated it but let’s assume it’s £200 and you spend five days a month where the car is at the airport. For these five days you put your car on share, and for £20 a day you get £100 back. It’s a very simple business model for an individual to understand,” he explained.

Lynk & Co is also working on a car sharing scheme with property developers, said chief digital officer David Green. “We’re looking at working with building firms where you build apartment blocks and maybe they have eight cars as part of it. You buy an apartment and it includes mobility. There are eight cars there and you just share them with your neighbours,” he said.

Security for this exercise is also app-based, where co-users of the cars will be granted digitised access, including shopping services which will be delivered directly to one’s car.

GALLERY: Lynk & Co 01 SUV

Looking to sell your car? Sell it with Carro.