BYD which is based in Shenzhen, sold 1.86 million pure-electric and plug-in hybrid cars last year(mostly in China). They’re now concentrating their fire power on Asia, Europe and Latin America with environmental cars & buses, BYD looks to dominate the EV markets. And today we’ve seen the official launch in Ireland.
The oddly named but successful Build Your Dreams has been selling affordable electric cars to a welcoming audience and now is looking beyond China to grow sales. It’s already announced plans to sell its vehicles across Europe, including in Germany, Sweden, Norway, the UK, Netherlands, France and now Ireland.
Rival automakers are watching intensely, concerned mostly about staying competitive. BYD is aiming at the biggest markets at home in China and also Europe as they see those territories leading EV adoption with pickup rates of more than 30%.
Reduced lead times and supply chain strength are the benefits of manufacturing its own cells and semiconductors in-house. BYD said it has been looking at potentially setting up more than one European plant to produce electric cars to reduce lead times further.
The company reported a net profit of over CNY16bn (US$2.33bn) for 2022 and has sold 3.5 million cars this year.
BYD Atto 3
At the launch we were shown one of the first cars to land in Ireland, the BYD Atto 3. It’s a mid-sized all-electric SUV available to order online, with the finer details being worked out around development of dealerships around the country. For now you can walk into Navan Road on the Northside of Dublin, Deansgrange on the Southside and also Cork.
Competition comes in the form of the Kia Niro EV and Volkswagens ID.4. The Atto 3 is comfortable with a reasonable battery range and lots of tech for a reasonable price.
The Atto 3 is part of the first wave of a wide range of cars from Chinese manufacturers looking to disrupt the European car industry with these competitively priced EVs starting at €37,128.
The Atto 3 is capable of charging from 30 to 80 per cent in 29 minutes using a 150kW charger. The design comprises a compact battery which means there’s a flat floor inside the car allowing for some good legroom for passengers front and rear. The boot has around 440-litres of space and also has a flat floor when the rear seats are folded increasing space to 1,338 litres. They’ve also included a storage space big enough to tidy away the cables under the floor.
There’s lots of interest in these new brands and what they bring to the table for Irish consumers and with physical showrooms in North Dublin (Navan Road, South Dublin (Deansgrange) as well as Cork, consumers can drop in and have a look at the cars in person.