Geely-owned Zeekr has begun a crowdfunding initiative in China to upgrade older 2024 Zeekr 001 and 009 models with enhanced driver-assistance hardware.
Under this program, vehicles equipped with the Mobileye EyeQ5H platform, providing 48 TOPS of processing power, will be upgraded to Zeekr’s proprietary G-Pilot H7 system. The new setup, based on Nvidia’s Drive Thor-U architecture, delivers up to 700 TOPS of computing performance, according to Autohome.
The campaign will run from November 24 to December 24 and aims to reach more than 70,000 qualifying vehicles in China that are equipped with lidar but lack the H7 system.
For the Zeekr 001, the update is priced at ¥13,500, with a minimum of 3,000 backers required. For the Zeekr 009, the price is ¥18,500, with a participation goal of 1,500 owners.
Switching to the H7 platform requires an extensive update of both hardware and software, including replacing core chips, installing new wiring harnesses, and reconfiguring the system architecture. Zeekr says it will cover the R&D costs and part of the hardware bill.
Based on the company’s internal projections, once the crowdfunding goals are completed and customers redeem their ‘ADAS benefit vouchers,’ owners of the 001 will spend no more than ¥15,000, while 009 owners will face costs of up to ¥20,000.
Zeekr acknowledges the upgrade is highly complex, noting that each 001 will need close to 60 components swapped out, with the hardware itself valued at more than ¥30,000, and over 20 hours of labor required for the installation.
The company is also said to have invested nearly ¥200 million during early-stage development to prove the feasibility of the retrofit.
To help reduce costs for customers, Zeekr is providing an ‘ADAS Voucher’ valued at ¥20,000. The voucher can be applied to lower the price of the crowdfunding upgrade or—anytime before the end of 2030—used as part of the down payment on a new Zeekr model equipped with G-Pilot H7.
The initiative is tied to Zeekr’s wider effort to rebuild customer confidence following quicker-than-anticipated model updates.
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