China became the biggest automobile market by sales in the world, and it has not stopped growing since. What may be even more astonishing is that it is, still in many aspects, a market in its infancy with huge growth potential. Last year, BYD more than doubled its global plug-in vehicle sales to almost 62,000 vehicles.
This is the brand new BYD Yuan SUV. It will be launched on the Chinese car market next month, and the first cars have arrived at BYD dealers in China. BYD has decided to call the entire range ‘Yuan’, including the petrol and plug-in hybrid versions, just like they did with the BYD Song.
The plug-in hybrid version will be powered by a 1.5 liter (non turbocharged) petrol engine mated to two electric motors, one on each axle, creating a four-wheel drive car. Exact output of the system is yet unknown. BYD says that range in electric mode will be 70 kilometer, and that acceleration from 0 to 100 will take only 4.9 seconds.
BYD has had difficulty entering markets other than Hong Kong's as well for most of the same reasons. BYD said that only 200 of its electric cars are serving as taxis in other countries, including 50 in Britain, and it has released little information about the use of its electric cars overseas.
The company opened its North American headquarters in Los Angeles in October 2011, announcing at the time that it would supply electric buses to shuttle Car Rental customers at Los Angeles International Airport and making plans to sell both an electric sedan and an electric SUV in the US. Wang said that in Europe and the United States, especially in Los Angeles and Long Beach, California, BYD is focusing on promoting electric buses, instead of sedans.
