In 1973, Alain Peyrefitte, French writer and politician, published the essay When China wakes up…the world will shakethe result of a trip to the Middle Kingdom in 1971. The key idea of this book was that China would impose itself – given the size and growth of its population – on the rest of the world from when it masters a sufficient sum of technologies.
For a long time, such reasoning did not apply to the automotive sector, at least to thermal vehicles, an area in which China has never been able to compete with European, Japanese, American or Korean manufacturers. On the other hand, when it comes to electric vehicles, the situation has changed.
The BYD Tang EV600 SUV, second generation. © BYD
For about two years, Europe has seen the arrival of Chinese car manufacturers offering only electric vehicles. Norway is the main showcase for this technological know-how, a testing ground for many automotive firms of all origins. Thus we have seen the arrival of players such as MG Motors, Aiways, Xpeng Motors, NIO, Voyah or BYD. Between January and July 2022, 5,726 electric vehicles of Chinese brands were registered in Norway, an increase of 204% (source Cnevpost).
Among all these players is BYD, the second Chinese car manufacturer behind SAIC Motor, which arrived in Norway in May 2020 with the Tang EV600, an electric SUV with a range of 520 km (former NEDC cycle).
Since then, everything has accelerated, with a first announcement last August indicating that BYD would be present at the next Paris Motor Show. The opportunity for the latter to present three electric vehicles, the Han sedan, the large SUV Tang and the SUV Atto 3.
This week, BYD held a press conference dubbed BYD Europe Product Premiere, where the brand’s history and upcoming strategy for Europe were reviewed. The immediate goal is to open orders in important markets such as Norway, the Netherlands, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Belgium and Luxembourg. As for France and the United Kingdom, it will be possible to order a BYD model before the end of the year.
The Chinese manufacturer is betting a lot on the small Atto 3 SUV based on an in-house platform called e-platform 3.0 and using an 800 V electric architecture. The Atto 3 has a 152 kW (206 hp) electric motor and has a range of 420 km (WLTP cycles). Its attack price will be €38,000.
As for the large SUV Tang, it is equipped with a double electric motor developing 380 kW (516 hp) for an average autonomy in WLTP of 400 km. Its price: €72,000.
Finally, the Han sedan, whose engine is identical to the Tang, with the added bonus of being able to serve as a backup generator, will also be sold for €72,000.
During its conference, BYD indicated that the details and specifications as well as the final prices would be communicated at the next Paris Motor Show which will be held from October 17 to 23, 2022.