BYD is gearing up for a new vehicle onslaught.
Luke Todd, CEO and managing director of BYD local distributor EVDirect, has confirmed to CarExpert the Standard Range version of the BYD Atto 3 all-electric SUV is due to arrive in Australia late in 2022 or early in 2023.
Production of the entry-level Atto 3 electric vehicle (EV) for Australia is set to commence in November at BYD’s plant in Shenzhen, China.
Atto 3
The Atto 3 Standard Range will follow the Extended Range, which is now being delivered to customers in Australia.
The BYD Atto 3 Standard Range is currently priced from $44,990 drive-away (depending on your state), and offers a range of 320km on the WLTP test cycle.
It’s $3000 cheaper than the Atto 3 Extended Range, and offers 100km less claimed range according to WLTP testing.
Seal
In addition to the BYD Atto 3 Standard Range, Mr Todd confirmed the Tesla Model 3-rivalling Seal sedan and Dolphin small hatchback will go on sale in Australia late this year or early 2023, ahead of deliveries kicking off in 2023.
Exact delivery dates will be announced shortly, according to Mr Todd.
The BYD Seal sedan is available in China with two single-motor variants, as well as a dual-motor AWD performance model. All feature BYD Blade battery packs of varying sizes. Claimed domestic driving range is between 550km and 700km.
The smaller BYD Dolphin, or EA1, is available in China with two single-motor powertrains and two battery packs. Australian target pricing is between $35,000 and $40,000.
Dolphin
Mr Todd said both of these upcoming BYD models will likely have different names locally, as Seal and Dolphin are what the cars are called in the Chinese market.
“We’ve been working very closely with BYD to get those vehicles as quickly as we can to Australia, and we’re very confident that we’re going to able give some timing very shortly,” said Mr Todd.
“We want to make sure that they’ll be on time, or in the worse case, very close to the date we announce.”
Mr Todd promised customers won’t be waiting “months or years” for the upcoming BYD Seal and Dolphin.
Following the commencement of Atto 3 customer deliveries, Mr Todd said the order bank is currently nearing the 4500 mark.
This is after around 140 people cancelled their orders, according to Mr Todd, due to the recently-announced servicing and warranty programs.
In response to the backlash, BYD recently adjusted its service pricing to include a cheaper, lower-mileage servicing option, but is standing firm on its warranty.
MORE: Everything BYD Atto 3
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MORE: Everything BYD Seal
