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BYD just hit a new weekly EV sales record for 2024 in China ahead of key model launches

China’s leading electric car maker, BYD, just hit a new YTD EV sales record last week in its home country. BYD expects the momentum to continue with new EVs rolling out in key segments globally.

BYD hit a new weekly EV sales record in May

New data from Morgan Stanley (via Investing.com) shows electric vehicles outpaced their gas-powered rivals last week after recovering from the recent holiday in China.

Domestic brands had the biggest gains, with automakers like BYD, Li Auto, and NIO all seeing double-digit week-over-week (WOW) sales improvements. BYD had the biggest WOW improvement, with registrations up 30% to 69,500 last week.

Through May 12, BYD had 101,300 registrations in China. BYD sold 300,114 EVs globally in the first three months of the year, up 13.4% YOY. In April, BYD sold another 134,465 EVs, up 17% over April 2023. Through the first four months of 2024, BYD sold 434,579 electric cars.

Other domestic EV makers like Li Auto saw sales climb 50% WOW to around 8,000. NIO had a 23% improvement with new promotions pushing sales to 4,400 units.

BYD-EV-sales-record
BYD SEAL (Source: BYD)

NIO introduced the first EV, the L60 electric SUV, under its mass-market Onvo brand Wednesday. Starting at just $30,500 (219,900 yuan), NIO aims to compete with Tesla’s Model Y.

Meanwhile, Tesla’s sales declined 11% in China last week, with around 9,800 units sold. According to China Passenger Car Association data, Tesla sold 31,421 cars in China in April, down nearly 50% from the 62,398 sold in March.

BYD-EV-sales-record
BYD Atto 3 production (Source: BYD)

New models launching

BYD launched its own Tesla Model Y rival last week, the Sea Lion 07. The BYD Sea Lion 07 starts at $26,250 (189,900 yuan) as the first EV based on its new e-Platform 3.0 Evo.

Designed by ex-Lamborghini and Audi designer Wolfgang Egger, you can see influence from the iconic brands integrated into the electric SUV’s design.

BYD-launches-Sea-Lion-07
BYD Sea Lion 07, the brand’s first “mid-sized urban smart electric SUV” (Source: BYD)

The new electric SUV is available in three powertrains, two single-motor, and one dual-motor AWD option.

BYD Sea Lion 07 trimStarting priceRange (CLTC)
550 Standard189,800 yuan ($26,250)550 km (341 miles)
610 Long Range199,800 yuan ($27,625)610 km (379 miles)
610 Smart219,800 yuan ($30,389)610 km (379 miles)
550 4WD Smart Navigation239,800 yuan ($33,154)550 km (341 miles)
BYD Sea Lion 07 prices

The single motor variants are offered with 71.8 kWh or 80.64 kWh BYD Blade batteries for up to 550 km (341 mi) or 610 km (341 mi) CLTC range, respectively. The dual motor model gets up to 550 km (341 mi) CLTC range.

BYD’s new electric SUV undercuts Tesla’s best-selling Model Y, which starts at 249,900 yuan ($34,550) with up to 554 km (344 mi) CLTC range.

BYD-Seagull-EV
BYD Dolphin Mini (Seagull) testing in Brazil (Source: BYD)

The new electric SUV comes after BYD revealed a series of lower-cost “Honor Edition” versions of its most popular EVs. For example, its cheapest Seagull EV Honor Edition starts at just $9,700 (69,800 yuan).

Top comment by springer

Liked by 8 people

BYD is first to crack mass market EVs with BYD seagull (dolphin mini) at $10K and with such prowess at EV design and manufacturing, their sales can only go up as they go global. This super cheap EV is actually shockingly good and achieves price point previously thought unattainable for practical mass market EV. Detroit and Elon Musk had better get their act together in a hurry to compete with BYD.

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BYD plans to launch a new Seal electric car, which currently competes with the Tesla Model 3. Little is known about the new EV, but it’s expected to debut in June.

BYD-EV-sales-record
BYD’s wide-reaching portfolio (Source: BYD)

The automaker is expanding into new segments like luxury with its Yangwang brand launching several new EVs.

Most recently, BYD introduced its first PHEV pickup, the BYD Shark, this week in Mexico. The BYD Shark will start at 969,800 pesos ($58,100) to rival the Toyota Hilux and Ford Ranger.

Source: CnEVPost, Investing.com

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Avatar for Peter Johnson Peter Johnson

Peter Johnson is covering the auto industry’s step-by-step transformation to electric vehicles. He is an experienced investor, financial writer, and EV enthusiast. His enthusiasm for electric vehicles, primarily Tesla, is a significant reason he pursued a career in investments. If he isn’t telling you about his latest 10K findings, you can find him enjoying the outdoors or exercising

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