Proprietário de um Zeekr 9X fica bloqueado no exterior após funções inteligentes serem desativadas por 30 horas, gerando debate nas redes sociais

Recently, a Chinese owner of a Zeekr 9X faced severe restrictions on the vehicle's smart functions while crossing the border into Kazakhstan. Essential features, including the navigation system, the electronic fuel filler cap, and the storage compartment, were remotely blocked for over 30 hours , generating widespread concern about the limitations of using smart electric vehicles for international travel.

According to the owner, Mr. Liu, he set off on a road trip to Europe on July 8th and, upon entering Kazakhstan on July 16th, the vehicle's infotainment system suddenly displayed an anomalous location warning, followed by the progressive failure of several intelligent functions unrelated to driving. Mr. Liu stated that he purchased the vehicle six months ago for approximately 500,000 yuan renminbi (RMB) and had previously informed the dealer of his international trip, but had not received any warning about potential system restrictions.

On July 23, Zeekr responded to the Economic Observer newspaper , confirming that, after verification, the system identified the vehicle's location as being outside of China, thus activating its internal security protection mechanism. "The system initially displays a notification on the screen; if the location status remains unchanged, it then continuously displays alert messages." The company emphasized that this measure is common practice in the industry for theft prevention and regulatory compliance, aligned with international import and export control requirements, aiming to prevent smuggling or illegal transfer of vehicles.

Zeekr has expressly clarified that this mechanism does not interfere with essential driving functions—such as the powertrain and brakes—keeping the vehicle fully operational. The fuel tank cap can be physically unlocked by pressing the hazard warning light button inside the passenger compartment for five seconds; the fuel filler cap can be manually opened by pressing. After verification of the authenticity of cross-border use, the user receives an authorization code for temporary unlocking—although this authorization is only valid for a single country, and the lock may be reactivated when crossing new borders.

Currently, Mr. Liu's vehicle has already completed the verification process and the system notifications have been removed. Zeekr stated that it will continue to improve this policy, "based on user feedback, to enhance the cross-border travel experience."

Data indicates that, in June 2026, Zeekr delivered 35,169 new vehicles, an increase of 111% compared to the same period of the previous year; in the first half of the year, total deliveries reached 178,370 units, with annual growth of 97%. As the premium brand of intelligent electric vehicles of the GEELY Group , Zeekr is accelerating its global expansion — and this incident also highlights new hardware and software integration challenges faced by connected cars in the internationalization phase.