Electric Car Sales: Chinese BYD Closes in on Tesla

In a rapidly growing Chinese automotive industry, BYD is delivering impressive performances and is gradually but surely becoming a major player on the global scale.

In 2022, its sales increased by 155%, reaching just over 1.8 million units worldwide. And this total does not even include BYD’s thermal vehicles, which were withdrawn from the market in March. For comparison, Hyundai and Kia sold 3.9 million and 2.9 million cars respectively in the same year.

BYD excels in the electric vehicle sector. Tesla remains the biggest seller worldwide (with just over 1,300,000 cars in 2022), but BYD, with 911,140 electric vehicles in 2022 (+184%), can aspire to someday surpass Elon Musk’s brand. If the momentum seen this year continues, the curves could even intersect quite rapidly.

Although electric vehicles are achieving impressive figures, plug-in hybrid vehicles have played an even more significant role for BYD. These vehicles accounted for 946,239 sales in 2022.

Europe as the New Springboard for BYD?

The Chinese industrialist has reason to be optimistic, as a new market is opening up to him: Europe. After outlining its strategy at the Paris Motor Show, BYD is currently in the launching phase on the Old Continent, where its offer will initially consist solely of electric vehicles.

Among the three vehicles in its catalog, the most promising for the brand seems to be the BYD Atto 3, a compact SUV specifically designed for Europe. This 4.46-meter-long model promises a range of 420 km (WLTP cycle). Sold starting at €43,690 in France, it is not as competitive financially as a MG ZS EV, but it is also more modern than the latter.

Source: CNEVPOST

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