Geely Okavango

The Geely Okavango carries an all-black theme for the interior, which has fabric upholstery in the Comfort variant and artificial leather upholstery in the Urban and Urban Plus variants. The contrast silver and chrome finishes for the surrounds of AC vents, steering wheel and door panels add more to the premium appeal of the cabin. 

The Geely Okavango has a three-spoke multi-functional steering wheel with chrome accents on the spokes and tilt and telescopic adjustability while having a modern 12.3-inch instrument console behind it – a coloured LCD screen for the Comfort and full-TFT screen for the Urban and Urban Plus variants. The large touchscreen infotainment system sits at the top of the centre console as a floating unit. 

The middle layer of the dashboard has six-sided AC vents shaped like butterfly wings, which have satin silver surrounds that extend to the AC vents placed on the dashboard corners. The lower centre console has toggle-like switches for the automatic climate control, which also has a smartphone compartment below it.

The second row in the Geely Okavango has three individual seats, all of which have ISOFIX mounts for child seats. Meanwhile, the third row here has a 50:50 split arrangement. However, none of the seats here have ventilation or heating functions.

Pros and Cons:

Pro: Spacious cabin with modern screens

Con: No seat ventilation  

Features and Technology

Mid-size crossovers and SUVs are getting luxurious and feature-equipped day by day, and the Geely Okavango hasn’t missed the bus as it gets many of the in-trend features, most of which are common across its entire variant lineup.

All three variants of the Geely Okavango come with a 12.3-inch touchscreen infotainment system, which also features the brand’s QDLink technology for seamless smartphone connectivity. A three-zone automatic climate control with rear AC vents for both second and third-row seats is also standard in all three variants of the Okavango. 

The base-spec Comfort variant has a 4-speaker audio system, fabric upholstery and a manual seat height adjustment for the driver’s seat. On the other hand, the Urban and Urban Plus variants get a more premium 8-speaker audio system, leather upholstery and power front seats with electrical adjustment for driver’s seat height. The top-spec Urban Plus variant also gets an anti-pinch and rain-sensing panoramic sunroof, sunglass holder and a 12.3-inch full-TFT instrument console. 

Pros and cons:

Pro: Modern screens for instrument console and infotainment system

Con: Audio system of the base-spec Comfort variant feels very basic

Boot Space and Storage

Even with the third-row seats up, the Geely Okavango has a decent boot space of 257 litres. This boot space shoots up to 1200 litres after folding the third-row seats, which is massive by midsize SUV standards. And even if that’s not enough, this SUV can have a space of 2050 litres after folding both second and third-row seats. There are a good number of cup holders in all three rows, with the Okavango also having bottle holders and map pockets in door panels. 

Pros and cons:

Pro: Massive boot space in all seat folding configurations

Con: Nothing much actually

While the Geely Okavango has remained unchanged in all these five years of its existence, the midsize crossover SUV has remained fresh and relevant in the current times. For a midsize SUV, the Okavango has a decent road presence, with chrome elements on the exterior all around giving it a premium feel.

The Geely Okavango has a smart-looking front end, with the SUV having a U-themed grille with chrome garnish on the outer edges of the grille. The SUV also gets large headlamps with curved lower edges, which get all-LED treatment in the Comfort and Urban variants and Matrix LED treatment in the Urban Plus variant. The Urban and Urban Plus variants also get automatic on/off functions for the headlamps. 

All three variants get LED DRLs with headlamps and LED fog lamps within trapezoidal housings on the corners of the front bumper, which also get a chrome finish around them. For a rugged touch, the Okavango also gets silver skid plates below the front and rear bumpers.

The side profile of the Okavango has 17-inch silver alloy wheels in the Comfort variant and 18-inch dual-tone machined alloy wheels in the Urban and Urban Plus variants. All three variants have chrome surrounds for the window panels, chrome door handles, electrically adjustable rearview mirrors and side body mouldings, while Urban and Urban Plus variants also get silver roof rails and auto fold and heated rearview mirrors.

At the rear, the Okavango gets wide LED tail lamps with a chrome garnish strip between them. A roof-mounted spoiler is standard, with the Urban and Urban Plus variants also getting a powered tailgate. 

Pros and cons:

Pro: Premium-looking front and rear profiles

Cons: No roof rails in the Comfort variant

Geely claims a maximum fuel efficiency of 12.98 kmpl for the Okavango. The midsize crossover SUV delivers a decent fuel efficiency of 8-9 kmpl in city traffic conditions and 11-12 kmpl in long-distance highway driving conditions. 

Pros and cons:

Pro: Decent efficiency on highways

Con: Real-world city efficiency could have been better

The Philippines-spec Geely Okavango misses out on ADAS features, which is a big miss considering the segment to which it belongs. However, apart from ADAS, the Okavango is pretty well-equipped with other basic safety features.

The standard safety net in all the variants of the Geely Okavango includes ABS with EBD, dual front airbags, reverse parking sensors, reverse parking camera, hill descent control, hill start assist, tyre pressure monitoring system, electronic stability control and remote start. The Urban and Urban Plus variants of the Geely Okavango further get safety features like side and curtain airbags and a 360-degree parking camera. 

Pros and cons:

Pro: Most of the safety features are standard across the range

Con: No option for ADAS

The Geely Okavango is being offered in all the markets, including the Philippines, with a 1.5-litre four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine. Available with a 7-speed dual-clutch automatic as the standard transmission, this turbo-petrol engine of the Geely Okavango produces 190 PS of maximum power and 300 Nm of maximum torque.

This engine is assisted with a 48V mild-hybrid technology for optimal performance and efficiency, especially in urban traffic conditions. The Geely Okavango also features three drive modes – Eco, Comfort and Sport, all of which have different throttle responses and driving characteristics. While the engine is quite refined and barely audible at idle, we do wish that the low-end grunt of this engine was strong, for there is a noticeable turbo lag. 

Pros and cons:

Pro: Refinement levels

Con: Bottom-end grunt could have been stronger

The Okavango comes with vented disc brakes in the front and solid disc brakes in the rear. It also makes use of a CN95 cabin filter which functions as a filter to keep particles, dust, aerosols, and viral hosts with diameters greater than 0.3 microns out of the cabin.

As per usual, the higher variants are decked with more safety features. This includes additional front, side, and curtain airbags. On the other hand, the standard features include dual front airbags, ISOFIX mounts for the middle row, hill-descent control, hill-start assist, and electronic stability control. Also, there is a 360-degree panoramic camera and three driving modes, namely Eco, Normal, and Sport.

Competitor Comparison

There are a few Chinese mid-size crossover SUVs that are direct alternatives to the Geely Okavango, the list which includes the Jetour X70, Chery Tiggo 8 Pro, and Maxus D60. In addition to these, there is a wide range of five-seater premium compact SUVs that are priced similarly to the Okavango, including Hyundai Creta, Kia Seltos, Ford Territory, Nissan Kicks e-Power, Honda HR-V, Toyota Yaris Cross, Mazda CX-3 and MG One.

Conclusion and Final Verdict

There are very few options in the midsize three-row crossover SUV which are priced competitively compared to the premium compact SUVs. Among those limited options, the Geely Okavango comes across as a decent option with its well-equipped and spacious cabin, comfortable ride quality, and refined petrol engine.