2024 BYD ute sheds more camo

BYD’s first pick-up has been spotted in the wild wearing far less camouflage than we’ve become used to, subsequently giving us our best look yet at the all-new Toyota HiLux and Ford Ranger rival.

These unofficial spy images were first published by @TychodeFeijter on X (formerly Twitter) and show the rugged workhorse sitting idle in Chinese suburbia fitted with Mazda BT-50 Thunder-style sports bars, production-spec alloy wheels, a tub liner and even an undisguised cabin.

It’s the latter that piques our interest the most and, in classic BYD style, the dash is dominated by a widescreen infotainment interface and a free-standing digital instrument cluster.

More interesting, however, is the centre console arrangement, which is adorned with dozens of buttons and toggles as well as a notchy gear selector and cup holders, not to mention what looks like a wireless phone charging pad towards the front and a set of air-vents mounted between it and the dashboard.

Finer details include red stitching and trim piping, two grab handles lining the outer edges of the console and a trade-friendly storage bin directly in front of the passenger.

It’s hard to see if there’s a secondary glovebox mounted lower down and out of view, but it’s clear from the images that – both inside and out – the first BYD ute isn’t going to be a pretender.

Its factory tub liner extends to the top edges of the tray and there’s minimal intrusion from the wheel-arches into the load space.

Ground clearance looks competitive for a dual-cab 4x4 ute and in comparison with the other ‘challenger brand’ rivals like the SsangYong Musso and GWM Ute, the sidestep design barely looks like it robs any sill clearance at all.

A couple of the images even give us a look at the front of the Chinese workhorse and to say there’s a bit of resemblance between it and the best-selling Ranger is bit of an understatement, judging by the C-clamp DRLs, in-set headlights, overall body shape and the proportions of the front-end.

BYD Australia has been talking up a big game for the electrified dual-cab, which will be tested locally before its release mid-year, promising it’ll smash the Ranger and HiLux on price and at least match them for capability.

Only a plug-in hybrid powertrain will be available initially but a battery-electric version is expected to follow, meaning the next-generation LDV eT60 and all-new Kia Tasman EV won’t have things all their own way.

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