When Chinese automaker BYD announced it surpassed Tesla in global electric vehicle sales, the world took notice. BYD has been on a mission since then to expand its presence in the EV sector and has formally unveiled two models that look to further solidify its lead over Tesla, the U9 BEV supercar and an updated version of the mass-market-focused Dolphin hatchback.
Yangwang U9 Aims for Ferrari and Lamborghini with performance models.
The new versions were unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show, which is making an unveiling of its own, returning to the auto show circuit after being on hiatus for four years in the wake of the pandemic.
BYD beats Tesla to BEV supercar party
A key part of BYD’s strong growth is its diverse presence in the auto market with the Chinese auto giant making models that cover a wide range of segments and price points. That includes luxury cars with Yangwang being in the spotlight for the recently unveiled U9 supercar.
A key part of BYD’s strong growth is its diverse presence in the auto market with the Chinese auto giant making models that cover a wide range of segments and price points. That includes luxury cars with Yangwang being in the spotlight for the recently unveiled U9 supercar.
The Yangwang U9 will serve as BYD’s flagship offering and will have a price tag to match, with the company saying that a base model will start at 1.68 million yuan, or $233,450, when current exchange rates are applied. Any skepticism about the astronomical price tag rapidly disappears when you look at the U9’s performance figures with BYD reps claiming the car can make the sprint to 62 mph in 2.36 seconds.
That figure puts the U9 in the same territory as offerings from Ferrari and Lamborghini while also beating the updated Tesla Roadster to the punch with that latter model still not entering formal production after it made its concept car debut several years ago.
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Going upscale
In addition to its performance credentials, the U9 also has several features to reflect its secondary role as a status symbol vehicle for wealthy buyers including the ability to spin in place as well as a “dance mode” which you can see in action in the video above.
Dolphin Honor Edition lowers price of admission for BYD Dolphin family.
In addition to the exotic Yangwang U9, BYD also unveiled an updated version of its strong-selling Dolphin hatchback. The Dolphin has rapidly become a vital cog in BYD’s sales machine with the model selling 367,419 units in 2023.
That represents 12% of BYD’s total global sales and the new Dolphin Honor Edition aims to build on these gains with BYD revealing that the EV will have a base price of 99,800 yuan ($13,900) for the base Vitality model.
This value-focused pricing continues across the entire trim ladder with the range-topping Knight model starting at 129,800 yuan ($18,000). BYD is hoping that this low pricing ladder helps increase demand which will be key since the Dolphin is also expanding into other global markets including Brazil, Japan, Mexico & Europe.
Performance for the Dolphin EV still comes from two electric motors, but the base Vitality model gets a 32-kWh battery pack with the rest of the family getting a bigger 45-kWh pack. That latter pack allows the Dolphin to get up to 261 miles of range between charges (Knight models get 250) while the base model’s smaller battery pack can go a max distance of 187 miles between charges.
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