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Electric & new energy vehicles
BusinessChina Business

China’s BYD launches cheaper plug-in hybrid EV to lure customers away from petrol-powered rivals by Volkswagen, Toyota

  • The car starts at just over US$11,000, lower than bestselling petrol-powered cars like Volkswagen’s Lavida and Toyota’s Corolla
  • The world’s largest EV maker, BYD has been ramping up efforts to make its mass-market electric cars more affordable for Chinese consumers

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BYD Qin Plus DM-i. Photo: Handout
Daniel Renin Shanghai
BYD, the world’s largest electric-vehicle (EV) maker, has launched a new version of its plug-in hybrid model the Qin Plus DM-i, pricing it lower than bestselling petrol-powered cars like Volkswagen’s Lavida and Toyota’s Corolla.
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The company, backed by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, said on Monday that the new variant, known as the Glory Edition, aims to accelerate customers’ conversion from fossil fuel-powered vehicles to EVs amid a slowing economy.

The new version starts at 79,800 yuan (US$11,086), lower than the previous edition by 20,000 yuan or 20 per cent. Its battery-only driving range is 55 kilometres.

“The price will make petrol car assemblers tremble,” BYD said in a statement on the microblogging site Weibo. “The Glory Edition will become a benchmark for the Class-A [compact] car segment.”

Visitors look at a BYD Seal electric vehicle at the Auto Shanghai show, in Shanghai on April 18, 2023. Photo: Reuters
Visitors look at a BYD Seal electric vehicle at the Auto Shanghai show, in Shanghai on April 18, 2023. Photo: Reuters

In China, where two out of every five new cars taking to the streets are powered by batteries, thousands of young, budget-conscious drivers are looking to buy low-priced EVs due to worries about job prospects and wages.

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