The company's ambitions are lofty. A year ago, at the 2010 NAIAS, BYD announced its intention to be China's biggest automaker by 2015 and the biggest automaker in the world by 2025 -- this from a company that only formed its car business in 2003.
The car that BYD plans to launch first to consumers is the five passenger E6 electric car. Slightly smaller than a Hyundai Sonata, it has a top speed of 140 km/h (86 mph) and can travel 200 miles on one charge of its batteries, the automaker claims. After the E6 will come the S6DM dual-mode crossover, a hybrid which features both electric and gasoline drivetrains.
The BYD E6 has been sold to government and taxi fleets in China. The sedan would retail in the United States at an MSRP potentially as low as $35,000. The S6DM's dual-mode system gives it a range of 38 miles on battery power alone or 310 miles when using gasoline as a range extender, akin to the Chevy Volt. The vehicle uses the internal combustion engine to power the front wheels while the electric motor moves the rear wheels.
BYD placed 10 units of another model, the F3DM into fleet testing in December at the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles. The company plans to complete all crash testing for both models needed to pass U.S. safety tests.
BYD has ambitions, but as any automaker can attest, getting consumers to buy unknown brands is not easy, especially when it comes to automobiles. "It's an interesting technology company, but they haven't shown anyone they understand the U.S. market and the way vehicles are distributed and sold," says auto industry consultant Jim Hall of Group 2953 Analytics.
"What is most interesting about the company so far is who has invested in them -- Warren Buffett and Mercedes-Benz," says Arnold Gray, an engineer and auto industry consultant on alternative drivetrains such as electric and hydrogen. "I don't doubt they will make a splash in the U.S., but I'm doubtful it will be a wave."
No comments:
Post a Comment