After the integration of Zeekr and Lynk & Co, Geely moves again to "absorb" its incubated brands.

Recently, Geely Automobile announced a fully funded acquisition of three core companies under Radar Automotive for approximately 218 million yuan — Radar Automotive (Shandong), Radar Automotive Sales, and Thailand distribution company Radar Thailand. Upon completion of the transaction, Radar Automotive will officially merge into Geely China Star, becoming a core force in Geely's layout for the new energy pickup market.

Why merge a niche pickup brand into "China Star", which focuses on family use? Why, amidst intensifying competition in the new energy pickup sector, does Geely choose full acquisition rather than continued "laissez-faire"? Behind the 218 million yuan deal lies the most thorough execution of Geely's "One Geely" strategy — also a microcosm of Chinese car companies shifting from making additions to making subtractions.

Looking back to July 2022, Radar Automotive debuted as an independently incubated new energy pickup brand by Geely Holding, developing in parallel with brands like Geely, Volvo, and Zeekr initially. The first model, the all-electric pickup RD6, launched in November of the same year. Leveraging its differentiated outdoor ecosystem positioning and passenger-car design, Radar quickly entered the blue ocean track of new energy pickups.

Data shows that in just three years, Radar has continuously held the No. 1 market share in domestic new energy pickups, with the all-electric pickup segment share reaching as high as 98% at one point. Full-year sales in 2025 reached approximately 13,000 units, making it the only new energy brand in China to break into the top five in overall pickup sales across all categories.

However, the other side of growth is financial growing pains. The three companies under Radar involved in this acquisition showed divergent performance last year: Radar Automotive (Shandong) turned from profit to loss, with a net loss of 8.646 million yuan; Radar Automotive Sales turned loss to profit, with profits reaching 12.325 million yuan; The overseas Thailand company's loss expanded further, with a net loss of 10.697 million yuan, and the overall situation remains in the investment phase.

However, why is a brand still in the "growth phase" worth a full acquisition by Geely at this time? Regarding this, the official explanation is very direct: First, to secure a position in the blue ocean market, Radar has already seized the initiative. Directly acquiring a mature leading brand is far more efficient and cost-effective than cultivating from scratch; Second, internal integration will release significant synergistic effects.

In fact, the greater motive behind this deal was already hidden in Geely's "Taizhou Declaration". In September 2024, Geely Holding proposed "Strategic Focus, Strategic Integration, Strategic Synergy, Strategic Prudence, Strategic Talent", clarifying business sectors to reduce conflicts of interest and repeated investment.

Since then, over a year, integration actions have been implemented densely: Galaxy merged with Geometry; Zeekr and Lynk & Co completed equity transfer, establishing Zeekr Technology Group, which was subsequently incorporated into Geely Automobile as a whole... This acquisition of Radar merging into China Star is also a key move under Geely's development logic.

But why merge a pickup brand into "China Star"? As everyone knows, as Geely's high-end CMA series, China Star has always positioned itself in the high-end home market since its launch in 2021, covering popular models such as Preface and Monjaro L. The addition of Radar will supplement China Star with the pickup and outdoor ecosystem product sectors, enabling it to form an all-category layout of "Sedan + SUV + Pickup". At the same time, both parties can achieve deep synergy in three-electric technology, intelligent hybridization, channel networks, etc., accelerating product iteration. From independent incubation to returning to the main brand, Radar's trajectory happens to step on every beat of Geely's integration big year.

However, merging Radar into China Star and upgrading its strategic status from "testing the waters" to core does not mean the road ahead is smooth.

First, the track is becoming increasingly crowded. Great Wall Pickup global sales in 2025 exceeded 181,600 units, firmly holding the leading position in the domestic pickup market. BYD Shark Pickup overseas cumulative sales have reached 46,000 units, rapidly opening the market in Southeast Asia and Australia with hybrid rugged product power, and plans to officially return to the domestic market by the end of 2026. Changan is accelerating its layout of passengerized new energy pickups, and Chery is also accelerating the layout of pure electric and plug-in hybrid product matrices in the pickup sector. The niche track built by Radar Automotive relying on first-mover advantage is being constantly coveted and challenged.

Secondly, domestic market growth is weak. In Q1 2026, domestic new energy pickup sales were only 18,000 units, with penetration rate less than 10%, and growth rate far lower than the overall pickup market. In April 2026, new energy pickup sales were 7,000 units, a year-on-year decrease of 11%; Cumulative sales from January to April were 26,000 units, a year-on-year decrease of 2%, showing a trend where new energy pickup growth at the beginning of the year was slightly weaker than the overall growth of fuel pickups.

In contrast, the proportion of pickup exports has risen from 45% in 2024 to 53% in April 2026. Exports are replacing domestic sales as the main growth engine for the pickup market. This means whoever can get a foothold first in the overseas market can take the initiative.

And this might also be Geely's strategic consideration when acquiring Radar, simultaneously securing Radar Thailand — Thailand is the world's second-largest pickup market, where Japanese pickups have long dominated, while electrification is precisely the breakthrough point for Chinese brands to pry open this traditional fortress. At the March 2026 Bangkok Motor Show, Radar achieved an order of 2,569 units, a year-on-year increase of 283%, which has cast a note of strength in the local new energy pickup market. With Geely's mature international distribution network, Radar is expected to further radiate to Southeast Asia and even global markets.

But integration is only the starting point, the market is the endgame. 218 million yuan, Geely "absorbing" is not just a pickup brand, but giving a clearer "One Geely".

Editor's Note: Incorporating Radar Automotive is seen as another important measure to advance the "One Geely" strategy and continuously optimize resource allocation.

Recently, Geely Automobile announced on the HKEX that it plans to invest approximately 218 million yuan in cash to acquire 100% equity of three core entities of Radar Automotive. Upon completion of the transaction, Radar Automotive will be consolidated into the listed company's financial statements as a wholly-owned subsidiary, marking the formal transition of this new energy pickup brand from a group incubation project to a core business segment of the listed entity.

This move is a key step for Geely Holdings to implement the "Taizhou Declaration". Released two years ago, the declaration established five key directions including strategic focus, integration, and synergy, aiming to reverse resource redundancy and low efficiency caused by independent operations of multiple brands in the past, and promote the group's transition towards centralized synergy.

Guided by this strategy, Geely has successively completed adjustments such as Geometry merging into Galaxy, and Zeekr integrating Lynk & Co. This incorporation of Radar Automotive is seen as another important measure to advance the "One Geely" strategy and continuously optimize resource allocation.

Radar Automotive, Profitability Still in Climbing Phase

Radar Automotive was incubated by Geely Holdings four years ago, and the first model RD6 quickly gained traction after its launch. In 2025, the brand became the only new energy brand to rank in the top five in total pickup sales with 13,040 units sold, with its pure electric segment market share reaching as high as 98%.

However, Radar Automotive has not yet achieved overall profitability. Recent financial data shows divergence in profit and loss among the three core entities: The Shandong company operating the entire industry chain narrowed its loss to 8.646 million yuan, the domestic sales company earned a profit of 12.325 million yuan, while Radar Thailand responsible for overseas expansion expanded its loss to 10.697 million yuan, and the overall business is still in the investment phase.

Equally challenging are market capacity constraints and intensifying competition.

In the first quarter of 2026, domestic new energy pickup sales were only 18,000 units, with penetration below 10%, and growth rate far lower than the overall pickup market. Currently, the main growth in pickups is overseas, with exports accounting for more than half.

At the same time, the track is becoming increasingly crowded. In the domestic market, Great Wall Motor continues to firmly hold the leading position in the domestic pickup market, with global sales exceeding 181,600 units in 2025. BYD Shark Pickup has long prioritized deep cultivation of overseas markets, with an average monthly export volume stable at around 3,000 units. Relying on its hybrid rugged product power, it quickly opened up the Southeast Asian and Australian markets. Recently, the Shark brand was also confirmed to enter the domestic pickup market to compete.

More participants are constantly joining. Changan is accelerating the layout of passenger-oriented new energy pickups, and Chery is also perfecting the pure electric and plug-in hybrid full-category pickup product matrix relying on the Ruilin brand.

Against this backdrop, the advantages Radar Pickup established in the new energy pickup field are being constantly eroded, and whether it can maintain leadership in competition afterward remains unknown.

Another Move in Geely's Grand Integration

The Geely Group is continuously deepening the strategic implementation of the "Taizhou Declaration". In the past year, the group's integration moves were frequent: Geely Galaxy merged with the Geometry brand, Zeekr and Lynk & Co completed equity transfer and formed Zeekr Technology Group, which was subsequently merged into Geely Automobile. Through these adjustments, the group's brand count was streamlined from 6 to 4, and subsidiary holding companies were reduced from 3 to 1, completing a deep internal cleanup.

This acquisition of Radar Automotive will further expand Geely's business landscape. A Geely representative stated that bringing Radar under the China Star umbrella aims to perfect product coverage in luxury, mid-to-high-end, and mass markets, complete the pickup category, and form a complete matrix of sedans, SUVs, MPVs, and pickups to meet diverse user needs; from a strategic value perspective, this acquisition marks the upgrade of new energy pickups from a group-level incubation project to a core strategic category of the listed company.

From the value perspective, the transaction price is 218 million yuan, basically flat with the assessed fair value of the target company, with no premium risk. Geely has acquired a top domestic new energy pickup brand at a low cost, which not only fills the product matrix gap but also provides growth space for pickup overseas expansion, reflecting efficient resource allocation.

For Radar Automotive, although it had previously laid out the Thai market, independent expansion overseas faces high cost and low efficiency issues. Relying on Geely's mature global distribution network, Radar Automotive can quickly penetrate more markets, convert technical momentum into sales volume growth, and accelerate the realization of scale profitability.

In addition, injecting Radar Automotive into the listed company system marks that the holding group no longer manages homogeneous brands dispersively, but instead hands over mature business to core segments for unified operation. This move connects product planning, supply chain, and channel resources, achieves reuse of overseas networks, and is conducive to Radar brand expansion and cost control in domestic and international markets.

In response, industry insiders believe that Geely adopts a "platform incubation + mature recycling" model, relying on group resources to share the early risks of start-up brands, and implementing asset integration after the brand stabilizes its position in the niche market. This strategy balances risk control and asset operating efficiency.

This inclusion of Radar Automotive into the listed system is yet another key execution of this strategic logic.