BYD, aiming to fortify its position as China’s best-selling car brand, plans to introduce two more crossovers and three sedans covering a price range of 300,000 to 800,000 yuan in the next three years.
BYD Co., China’s best-selling car brand, unveiled a new electric crossover — the Denza N7 — at a glitzy event in a former factory in Beijing on Monday, stepping up its push into the premium sector.
The model, which comes in six versions, has a starting price of 301,800 yuan ($41,680), which Morgan Stanley noted was in line with market expectations for 300,000 yuan.
Pre-orders have exceeded 20,000 units since the Shangha auto show in April, according to BYD, which showcased five different-colored N7 crossovers in a giant exhibition hall at the unveiling in Beijing, attended by several hundred people. The EV will initially be sold in mainland China.
The N7 launch follows the introduction of another BYD crossover early this year, the U8, which falls under the company’s Yangwang brand. The Shenzhen-based automaker then unveiled another higher-end range last month called Fang Cheng Bao, which translates as Formula Leopard.
Morgan Stanley analysts including Tim Hsiao and Cindy Huang said BYD expects N7 monthly sales to rise to 5,000 to 10,000 by the end of the year, adding that it will be worth monitoring the impact on comparable EVs such as Nio Inc.’s ES6 and Li Auto Inc.’s L7, as well as luxury brands’ internal combustion engine models like BMW’s X3 and the Mercedes-Benz GLC.
BYD plans to introduce two more crossovers and three sedans covering a price range of 300,000 to 800,000 yuan in the next three years, the analysts said. They have the equivalent of a hold rating and HK$215 price target on BYD.
The company sold a record 251,685 new-energy vehicles in June, and its deliveries of fully electric vehicles almost doubled from a year earlier in the second quarter to over 352,000 units.
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The Denza N7, which comes in six versions, has a starting price of 301,800 yuan ($41,680).
