BYD 2025: Seven-seat SUV a top priority for BYD as it prepares to expand its model range, and double its sales in Australia

By the quit of 2025, BYD hopes its standing in Australia will beginning up to duplicate its quantity and stature in its home market, with expectations of over 40,000 annual sales and a model vary narrate to encompass the Atto 2 dinky electrical SUV, a three-row seven-seat SUV and the highest rate U8 big SUV, branded as Denza (rather than ‘Yangwang’ love in China).

Chasing Vehicles spoke to David Smitherman, CEO of BYD’s Australian importer EV Relate, on the scorching Sealion 7 open and he mentioned the amount 1 priority for BYD in Australia is to introduce a seven-seat SUV.

“Whatever is on hand in China we favor to bring to Australia – we favor to beget out [BYD’s] product portfolio because we don’t accumulate adequate product,” mentioned Mr Smitherman. “We favor to make obvious we accumulate a elephantine product portfolio.

“The priority for me would be a three-row, seven-seat SUV – that roughly thing is what we’d love to get back of. Nothing is evident at this level nevertheless that will most likely be my next goal, I’d disclose. All people knows Australians love seven seaters [and] we don’t accumulate a seven-seater, so we favor to construct up that available in the market,” he mentioned.

The seven-seat SUV Mr Smitherman is referring to is most likely the BYD Tang – a gigantic roam-in hybrid and fully electrical SUV that launched in 2018 in China nevertheless has been facelifted no lower than twice since then, the closing time in 2024.

Styled below the direction of German vogue designer Wolfgang Egger – outdated chief vogue designer for Audi, Lamborghini and Alfa Romeo, and now create director for BYD – the handsome, neatly-proportioned Tang has defied its age neatly, with the electrical model differentiated by a peculiar grille-much less entrance equipped closing yr.

Through sizing, the BYD Tang is a little longer and spherical 50mm wider than a Kia Sorento or Hyundai Santa Fe, nevertheless rides on a cessation to-identical wheelbase (2820mm). And its powertrains are up up to now – the twin-motor EV featuring a 109kWh battery, all-wheel pressure, 0-100km/h in a claimed 4.9sec and a WLTP vary of 530km.

Whether it retains its Tang nameplate for Australia is risky, although the automobile is marketed as the Tan in Brazil, which would per chance perhaps impartial sign more appropriate.

The Atto 2 dinky electrical SUV – impartial launched in the UK market – appears to be like a straightforward assignment for BYD’s Australian line-up in 2025, carrying the identical Atto 2 nameplate because it does in Europe rather than rumoured suggestions similar to Atto 3 Up, Yuan Up or Yuan Pro.

The UK’s entry-stage Atto 2 substances a 45kWh lithium-ion phosphate battery, a 130kW/280Nm electrical motor driving the entrance wheels, a 0-100km/h time of seven.9sec and a WLTP vary explain of 312km, with an coming near long-vary model extending that electrical vary to 420km.

As for a impartial 4 wheel pressure, Mr Smitherman reiterated his desire for BYD to construct up a automobile in every section. “I must make obvious we’ve got the elephantine product in market, and that can imply we favor to construct up some real 4x4s,” he mentioned.

“Behold at our opponents and at the same time as you ogle our competitor has that selection of product, BYD must accumulate the identical. And if we test on the build we’re searching to be, we’ve got to construct up big SUVs.”

Chief rival for BYD in this department is GWM (Essential Wall Motors) with its Tank 300, Tank 500, Cannon and now the Cannon Alpha roam-in hybrid ute.

Whereas BYD’s roam-in hybrid Shark 6 ute has already long gone on sale right here, there’s a gamble the closely connected Fangchengbao Bao 5 (mid-dimension roam-in hybrid SUV) and Bao 8 (big roam-in hybrid SUV) would per chance perhaps come to Australia to compete with GWM’s Tank fashions, among others.

Seemingly marketed as BYDs, nevertheless doubtlessly carrying the more upmarket Denza trace (and equipped as Denza B5 and B8), the Bao 5 and Bao 8 (‘Bao’ this means that Leopard in Chinese) portion their physique-on-frame underpinnings with the Shark 6 ute.

The more compact and arguably better-searching Bao 5 shares the Shark’s powertrain – a 1.5-litre turbo-petrol engine, a 32kWh battery and a pair of electrical motors for combined outputs of 505kW/760Nm and a 0-100km/h time of 4.8sec. It substances three diff locks and affords a flagship model with height-adjustable suspension.

The larger Bao 8 is a little wider and rides on a 120mm-longer wheelbase (2920mm) nevertheless is a lot longer general – measuring 5195mm (a stretch of 305mm). It moreover weighs spherical 400kg more and will get a a lot increased specification, along side height-adjustable air suspension, a ground clearance of up to 310mm, and three automatic diff locks.

Its 2.0-litre turbo-petrol engine with twin electrical motors and 37kWh battery produces a combined vitality output of 550kW, thrusting the elephantine Bao 8 from 0-100km/h in the identical 4.8sec as the Bao 5.

Confirmed for Australia is BYD’s upmarket YangWang U8 big SUV – to be branded in Australia as the Denza U8. Lately photographed testing in the Australian outback in barely-hand-pressure compose, the U8 is a gigantic and pricey SUV/4 wheel pressure – intended to be China’s resolution to the Land Rover Defender and Mercedes-Benz G-Class.

Its specification is breathtaking – a person electrical motor for every wheel, electronically controlled all-wheel pressure, energetic suspension, a combined 60-inches of dashboard monitors plus a 70-accelerate augmented actuality head-up sign, a 2.0-litre turbo-petrol engine acting as a unfold extender for the 49kWh battery, and combined outputs of 880kW/1280Nm.

BYD says the 5.3m-long U8 can hit 100km/h in barely 3.6sec, in spite of having to shift nearly 3500kg, and is in a position to up to 124km of electrical-completely WLTP vary.

As for what else is doubtlessly coming for BYD, there’s moreover the Seal 06 GT (a smaller hatchback model of the Seal sedan), although Mr Smitherman wouldn’t interpret on exactly what we’ll ogle in 2025, or past.

“The impartial reality is I will’t define you what’s coming, nevertheless there is loads coming,” he mentioned.

He used to be fully happy to discuss BYD’s sales ambitions for Australia, nonetheless.

“Closing yr we equipped spherical 20,000 automobiles – we’re searching to double that this yr. So I maintain we’re in for a truly robust yr, and if I test at our fresh orders, we’re neatly-positioned for that amount.

“I’m very assured we are able to discontinuance that,” he mentioned – little doubt boosted by the impartial-launched Sealion 7 mid-dimension electrical SUV, which BYD expects will turn into its finest-promoting automobile in Australia.

Intriguingly, that 40,000 annual sales goal doesn’t truly encompass BYD’s impending onslaught of unusual fashions. So for any doubters of the ‘Produce Your Aims’ trace and its long-timeframe viability in Australia, all we are able to reveal is ‘test this location’. On story of issues are with out note changing.