"Okay to Eat Hot Pot in the Car"... Chinese Geely Faces Backlash After Promoting Electric Vehicles

"Spacious Interior, Usable as Dining Area"
"What About Smell and Grease?" Netizens Criticize
"Equipped with Powerful Air Purification System" Explanation

The vice president of the Chinese electric vehicle brand Zeekr faced public backlash after posting a video of eating hot pot inside a car.
[Source=South China Morning Post (SCMP), Hong Kong]

A representative of a Chinese electric vehicle brand sparked controversy by promoting that "there is no problem eating hot pot inside the vehicle."

According to the Hong Kong South China Morning Post (SCMP) on the 22nd, Yang Dacheng, Vice President of Zeekr, a premium electric vehicle brand under China's Geely Group, posted a video on the Chinese social networking service (SNS) Weibo on the 11th. The video showed him and his companions placing hot pot and other dishes on a table inside the newly released Zeekr MIX vehicle. The passengers inside the car were sitting facing each other, preparing food on an extendable table. Vice President Yang emphasized the vehicle's air conditioning performance and promoted it by saying, "We have secured enough space to even play mahjong inside."

The vehicle, first introduced to the public at the Beijing Motor Show held in China last April, also emphasized its spacious interior at that time. It was advertised as not only usable as a dining space but also as a place where one could enjoy foods like hot pot. The media reported, "As this promotional video was posted, criticism arose from various quarters." In fact, netizens responded with comments such as, "Whose idea was it to eat hot pot inside a car?" and "What about the smell and grease?" expressing strong criticism.

Two days after the controversy, Vice President Yang stated, "The original intention was to show various situations where the Zeekr MIX can be utilized," adding, "I did not expect it to cause such a big controversy. I appreciate the diverse opinions." He also added, "A powerful air purification system is equipped to solve the problem of food odors." However, despite his explanation, netizens continued to criticize, calling it "nonsense."