Geely's 93,000-vehicle LiDAR recall: what it means for Smart #1 buyers in the UK

Geely Group filed two recall notices with China's State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR), both taking effect 24 August 2026. The first covers 18,878 Geely Galaxy M9 PHEV SUVs built between July and October 2025. The second covers 74,037 Lynk & Co 900, 10 EM-P, 07 and 08 models built between January and December 2025. Together they total 92,915 vehicles. The cause in both cases is the same: a process variation at a component supplier may have damaged the power integrated circuit inside the LiDAR unit. On the Galaxy M9, a damaged chip can cause driver-assistance functions to exit unexpectedly or fail to activate. On the Lynk & Co models, the system may fail to adequately identify, warn about, or respond to unusual objects while assisted driving is engaged. In both cases the fix is straightforward: free replacement of the LiDAR unit. This is a supply-chain quality issue, not a fundamental design flaw.

The recalled vehicles are sold only in China and are not available in the United Kingdom. More importantly, the UK-spec Smart #1 and Smart #5 do not carry LiDAR hardware at all. Geely's export strategy has always involved stripping the most advanced ADAS hardware from right-hand-drive exports, partly due to geofencing (Chinese city-NOA and HD maps do not function outside China) and partly to manage cost and regulatory approval timelines. UK Smart models use a camera-and-radar-only ADAS suite. There is no LiDAR power IC to fail. This recall therefore has no direct safety implication for the UK fleet. What it does flag is a broader point about Geely's ADAS component quality controls, which is worth holding in mind as the group moves towards LiDAR-equipped exports in future years.

Geely's LiDAR recall is one piece of a much larger recall wave that swept through China in August 2026. The SAMR called in more than 10 automakers in a single round over door emergency-release handle visibility, producing a combined recall of more than seven million vehicles. Tesla, BYD, XPeng and Geely all filed recall notices over the door-handle issue; Geely's portion covered vehicles whose interior mechanical emergency door releases are coloured similarly to interior trim, making them hard to identify in low-voltage emergencies. The LiDAR recall is a separate notice but sits alongside the door-handle wave, making August 2026 one of China's busiest recall months on record. This volume of regulatory activity is, in the round, a positive sign: China's SAMR is actively enforcing safety standards and automakers are filing recalls rather than suppressing issues. UK buyers should not conflate the volume of Chinese recalls with poor underlying build quality; the recall mechanism functioning actively is preferable to problems being concealed.

Despite the recall headlines, Geely's financial and commercial position entering the second half of 2026 is broadly healthy. H1 revenue rose 15% year-on-year to 173.6 billion yuan, core profit jumped 46%, and exports surged 158% to 474,228 vehicles. NEV sales inside the group grew 616% year-on-year in H1 2026, and Zeekr alone contributed 178,000 units at a premium average selling price. The domestic Chinese market retreated 22.6%, but exports are now the group's sole growth engine — a structural shift that makes Geely's international commitments, including Smart's UK presence, more financially anchored than at any point in the brand's history. Under new group chairman Andy An, a former architect of Zeekr's international expansion, the strategic direction is unambiguously outward-facing.

The Geely LiDAR recall is a China-only event that does not affect UK Smart #1 or Smart #5 vehicles. Take it as a data point on ADAS supply chain quality within the Geely group, but not as a direct concern for your car or your warranty. The broader context is a group growing its exports, improving its margins and placing increasingly focused leadership in charge of its international businesses. Smart's UK position looks more stable in August 2026 than it did a year ago.