Geely Holding Group, which owns Volvo, Polestar, Lotus, Zeekr, and many others, launched a brand new sub-brand in China on July 12, 2022, known as Radar Auto. On the similar occasion, the Radar RD6 pickup truck made its official debut. Since then, Geely has launched the electrical truck in over 50 markets throughout Jap Europe, Asia, the Center East and Latin America, below the ‘Riddara’ model.
I spent a while with the RD6 pickup truck on the Bangkok Worldwide Motor Present 2025, making an attempt to grasp if Volvo might see a possibility rebadging the truck, and right here’s what I discovered.
The RD6 has a clear, trendy look with refined styling. On the entrance, a clamshell hood carries the daring ‘Riddara’ badge, and an LED gentle bar stretches throughout the width. A closed grille sits between sharp full-LED headlights. The bumper options massive consumption housings and a fake skid plate under.
From the facet, the RD6 appears sharp with sculpted fenders, chunky mirrors, and a mixture of chrome and matte black trim. The 17-inch wheels appear small for its adventure-focused picture. On the again, X-shaped LED tail lights add character to the clear design.
After spending a while carefully inspecting its exterior, three options actually stood out to me: the daring illuminated model inscription, the high-quality chrome window encompass, and the linked back lights.
The RD6’s cabin feels trendy and well-finished. It incorporates a 14.6-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Carbit Hyperlink, a 50W wi-fi cellphone charger, dual-zone local weather management with rear vents, and a CN95 PM2.5 air filter.
The entrance leather-based seats which might be ventilated, power-adjustable in six methods, and recline 180 levels. Security options embrace as much as 14 ADAS capabilities, a encompass view digicam, six airbags, and a physique construction manufactured from over 70% high-strength metal.
I’m 5 ft 7 in, and given the peak of the RD6, which is similar to a Jeep Wrangler, I discovered ingress and egress easy.
Once I sat within the driver’s seat, I instantly seen that all-around visibility was excellent. The steering wheel, with a manually adjustable column, had a thick rim and felt grippy. My head was comfortably decrease than the headliner. The lumbar assist felt good, whereas under-thigh assist was first rate however won’t be sufficient for somebody 6 toes or taller.
The general high quality of supplies was surprisingly nice with loads of soft-touch surfaces and nice plastics all through the cabin. Throughout my time with the truck, I particularly appreciated the contact and tactility of the switches, the green-colored padding, and the copper-colored cross-stitching on the dashboard, door panels, and middle console.
The gauge cluster had crisp image high quality and sharp graphics. There was an attention-grabbing knurled dial under the right-most AC vent for adjusting brightness. The infotainment display was straightforward to make use of, and there was a separate local weather management panel under it, which is a sensible design.
Within the second row, sitting behind the motive force’s seat adjusted for a 5’7-tall individual, I had loads of legroom and knee room. The default angle of the backrest felt fairly snug. A recline perform wasn’t accessible.
Below-thigh assist was okay, and I felt that the cushion might’ve been a little bit longer. Right here I had greater than 4 inches of headroom. Rear seat passengers get a middle armrest with two cupholders, two AC vents, and outer-position air flow, all of which I discovered helpful.
The RD6 measures 207 in. lengthy, 74.8 in. broad, and 73.4 in. tall. The pickup truck has a wheelbase of 122.8 in., whereas its minimal turning radius is 6.1 meters or 20 toes. As for the mattress, it’s 60 in. lengthy, 57 in. broad, and 21.2 in. excessive. The payload capability of the truck is 2,270.7 lbs, the towing capability is 6,613.8 lbs., whereas the entrance trunk (frunk) brings in a further 70 liters or 2.4 cubic toes.
The RD6 pickup is constructed on Geely’s pure electrical platform and technical structure, higher often known as the Sustainable Expertise Structure or SEA. The electrical pickup truck is provided with McPherson impartial suspension on the entrance and a multi-link impartial setup on the again, with 4 disc brakes.
The highest-spec RD6 is powered by a everlasting magnet synchronous motor on every axle, producing 315 kW (422 hp) of most energy and 595 Nm (439 lb-ft) of torque. The twin-motor powertrain makes use of an 86 kWh NMC battery, providing a driving vary of as much as 455 km (283 miles, NEDC) and a high velocity of 190 km/h (118 mph). For charging, the truck helps DC quick charging from 30% to 80% in 32 minutes at 100 kW, and AC charging from 20% to 100% in 11 hours utilizing a 220V/240V outlet at 6.6 kW.
In Thailand, the RD6 begins at 899,000 baht (approx. USD 26,970) for the 2WD model with a 63 kWh battery. The highest-spec 4WD mannequin with an 86 kWh battery is priced at 1,299,000 baht (approx. USD 38,970).
Don’t mistake us, the RD6 is trendy and succesful, and is nicely positioned to be the primary all-electric truck for a lot of patrons in rising markets. Nevertheless, it doesn’t align with Volvo’s model attributes, which give attention to Scandinavian design and premium consolation.
The RD6 targets the mass-market phase with a tempting bundle. That’s not an area Volvo goals to compete in, particularly after the Mercedes X-Class experiment, the place the upmarket cousin of the Nissan Navara failed to satisfy premium expectations.
Lastly, buyer wants differ throughout Europe, North America, and Asia, in the case of the kind of electrification and powertrain preferences. As a substitute of restyling an present product, we really feel that Volvo could be higher off growing a devoted truck to satisfy its model promise, if it ever decides to enter this phase.
