BYD hybrid ute leaked

If imitation is the finest form of flattery, the Ford Ranger will be blushing with pride based on these patent drawings showing the final production design for the upcoming BYD dual-cab ute.

Due for release in Australia in 2024, BYD’s disruptive new hybrid pick-up has been exposed in several patent images, revealing a striking resemblance to the current Ford Ranger – particularly the C-shaped LED headlight clusters.

BYD’s new ute will go head to head with the Ranger plug-in hybrid, which is set to follow the first BYD ute on sale here in 2025.

Like the top-selling Ford ute, the BYD hay-hauler (which currently has no name) also features its maker’s logo sandwiched between the headlights, in this case with BYD lettering eating up much of the big, blocky US-style grille.

First published by Chinese website Autohome, the leaked images align with previously spied vehicles wearing camouflage in China.

Following more than a year of development testing there, the new ute will undergo local assessment in Australia from late 2023 “to ensure… [the ute has] every opportunity to meet or exceed what’s in the market,” said BYD Australia chief Luke Todd, indirectly taking a swipe at league leaders like the Ranger and Toyota HiLux.

Last month Todd confirmed to carsales that a team of five engineers would be working on the Australian testing program for the BYD ute, all of whom had “…developed, engineered and designed some of the highest selling products in Australia over the last 20 years”.

He added: “We also want to make sure we do a lot of testing in Australia. It’s commencing later this year and it’ll be very intensive. We’ll put it through its paces in all conditions.”

From 2024 the first powertrain offering will be a petrol-electric hybrid system comprising a 1.5-litre turbo-petrol four-cylinder worth a 103kW and backed up by dual e-motors for a combined output of 364kW of power, according to reports in China.

The cruising range of hybrid variants will reportedly be between 800km and 1200km, but details like towing capacity, payload, ground clearance, wading depth and transmission/s remain unknown.

Expected to be dimensionally similar to Australia’s most popular dual-cab 4x4 utes – roughly 5.4 metres long and 1.9 metres wide – the new BYD ute will also be offered as a full EV from 2025 and Todd said both powertrains are on the cards for this market.

Perhaps most importantly, pricing has not yet been locked in but the local importer’s MD said he was confident it will be competitive with circa-$50,000 to $70,000 utes in Australia.

BYD currently has just one mainstream model on sale in Australia, the Atto 3, which is Australia’s third most popular EV behind the Tesla Model Y and Model 3. The Chinese car-maker is currently launching its second EV, the sub-$40,000 BYD Dolphin city-hatch, and has also confirmed the Seal mid-size electric sedan will be coming to Australian showrooms soon.

Stay tuned for more details on the new BYD electric ute.

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