Having made its Chinese debut all the way back in 2022, the Radar RD6 is finally going global, with its first ASEAN appearance earmarked for Thailand this November. But there’s a difference here – the all-electric pick-up truck is set to wear the Riddara badge when it touches down in the Land of Smiles at the Thai Motor Expo in Bangkok.
It’s been confirmed that Riddara is the global brand name for Radar Auto, Geely’s lifestyle EV marque. According to Australian portal CarExpert, the firm abandoned a trademark application for “Radar” after Singaporean tyre company Omni United, which owns the Radar Tires brand, objected to the registration.
The RD6 may look like it’s based on the Proton X90, but in actual fact it’s built on a new Multiplex Attached Platform (MAP), itself a derivative of the Sustainable Experience Architecture (SEA). It has a unibody rather than body-on-frame construction and is powered by a single rear motor producing 272 PS (200 kW) and 384 Nm of torque – the same as the smart #1 Pro and Premium.
Geely electric pickups on the way to Thailand pic.twitter.com/YFRsLlUtFj
— Geely Group (@GeelyGroup) July 3, 2024
With a choice of either a 63 or 86 kWh battery, the RD6 has a range of between 385 and 517 km on China’s notoriously lenient CLTC cycle. Charging from 30 to 80% with a DC fast charger up to 120 kW takes 30 minutes for the 63 kWh battery and 32 minutes for the 86 kWh unit; a 7 kW AC wallbox will top them up from 20 to 100% in 7.9 and 11 hours respectively.
Radar has beefed up the truck’s payload since its launch, from a measly 430 kg to a much more usable 775 kg (755 kg with the 86 kWh battery). Cargo space is rated at 1,200 litres at the back, and there’s also a 70 litre front boot. You also get a 6 kW vehicle-to-load (V2L) function.
The RD6 is around the same size as a typical one-tonne diesel pick-up, measuring 5,260 mm long, 1,900 mm wide and 1,830 mm tall, with a wheelbase of 3,120 mm. By comparison, the Toyota Hilux is 5,325 mm long, 1,900 mm wide and 1,815 mm tall, with a wheelbase of 3,085 mm.
The pick-up’s Thai debut is no surprise, given that Geely has already shown a Riddara RD6 converted to right-hand drive. Unfortunately, there’s no word on whether the truck’s revised all-wheel-drive sibling, the Horizon, will also make it to right-hand-drive markets.
GALLERY: Riddara RD6 (right-hand drive)
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after this rada-rada
RIDARRA – what a stupid, ridiculous name