BYD beats Tesla to 6m plug-in car production milestone
Chinese car-maker becomes the first to pass six-million-unit mark for rechargeable vehiclesBYD has become the first car-maker to pass the six-million-unit mark for the production of New Energy Vehicles (NEVs), beating rival Tesla which isn’t expected to reach the milestone until early 2024.
While Tesla produces only battery-electric cars, NEV is a category in China that includes not only pure EVs but plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) and range-extender PHEVs.
The production record is all the more impressive for BYD when you consider it has only been in existence for 20 years.
It has risen to become China’s largest car-maker and has overtaken Tesla in the NEV segment, where it now commands an incredible 36 per cent market share.
BYD only dropped pure combustion engines back in April 2022. It’s not known just how many pure battery-electric cars the Chinese brand has produced, but the total will land it behind Tesla – which hit 5m in September 2023 and is on track to reach 6m in early 2024.
When it comes to the broader segment of electrified vehicles (rather than rechargeable/plug-in cars), both BYD and Tesla are both humbled by Toyota, which has produced a jaw-dropping 15 million regular hybrids and PHEVs.
The six-millionth BYD car was the new Fang Cheng Bao Leopard 5 plug-in hybrid SUV that rivals the Toyota Prado in China.
Currently, BYD has nine factories across China that export to 57 countries worldwide.
In Australia, the Chinese brand currently offers an all-electric line-up that includes the cut-price Dolphin hatch, Atto 3 SUV and sleek new Seal sedan.
Thanks to the domestic and export success of its EVs, BYD is now on track to overtake Tesla when it comes to annual production of electric cars.
BYD is expected to produce almost 1.75 million EVs in 2023 – putting it just behind the US brand, which is on track to build 1.8m cars this year (most of them in China) – but BYD’s growth trajectory is forecast to be steeper than Tesla’s in the years ahead.
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Related: BYD Dolphin 2023 Review
Related: BYD Atto 3 Extended 2023 Review
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