China’s BYD wants its sales down under to quadruple by the end of next year, which would see the company eclipse Tesla’s current volumes and become one of the top ten car brands in Australia.
David Smitherman, CEO of local BYD distributor EVDirect, said CarExpert the company’s ambitious sales and volume targets in the Australian market.
The goal is growth of 100 percent in 2024 and then again 100 percent in 2025.
In 2023, BYD sold 12,438 new vehicles – 11,042 Atto 3 SUVs, 925 Dolphin hatchbacks and 471 Seal sedans. Currently, all BYD models sold in Australia are battery-electric vehicles.
With these increases, BYD is therefore aiming for around 50,000 sales in 2025.
For reference, Tesla sold 46,116 vehicles in Australia in 2023.
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BYD Shark has leaked a prototype -
“As a brand, the more products we offer, the more we will grow. We are a product-driven company, and the way this company grows is by offering more products in other segments that people want,” Mr. Smitherman said.
Mr Smitherman said at a recent media presentation that BYD plans to launch new vehicles in 2024, 2025 and 2026 to drive this growth forecast – a key one of which is the upcoming Shark plug-in hybrid ute, which is said to be is slated for an Australian launch later this year or early 2025.
The local BYD dealer has also previously confirmed that the Sealion 6 plug-in hybrid SUV (known elsewhere as Seal U) is scheduled to launch in the second quarter of 2024.
A previous Australian government filing confirmed two variants: Dynamic and Premium. According to the registration documents, the Dynamic will have a 72 kW internal combustion engine and a 145 kW front electric motor, giving a total system output of 160 kW.
The Premium will feature a 96kW internal combustion engine, a 150kW electric motor at the front and a 120kW electric motor at the rear, for a total system output of 238kW.
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BYD Seal U -
These documents don’t detail all of the Sealion 6’s specifications, but we do know that it will offer a choice of 18.3 kWh and 26.6 kWh batteries worldwide, providing a range of between 110 on the milder NEDC cycle km and 150 km offer.
Further details are expected to be announced at an event in Melbourne on May 16 CarExpert will take part. According to the invitation, BYD will launch its “super hybrid” technology – the brand’s plug-in hybrid branding.
An electric version of the SUV is also scheduled to come onto the market in Europe this year, with a range of up to 500 kilometers in the WLTP cycle with its 87 kWh LFP battery pack.
Neither BYD nor its local dealer have confirmed if or when the Seal U EV might make it to local showrooms, although it is on the wish list to sit above the Atto 3 and serve as a true competitor to the Tesla Model Y.
Stay tuned CarExpert for all the news.
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