China EVs: Great Wall, BYD launch expensive electric SUVs, bucking industry trend towards mass-market models
Great Wall Motor and BYD, two major carmakers in mainland China, have accelerated the development and production of expensive electric vehicles, aiming to carve out their own niches as competition in the market escalates.
Great Wall, the mainland's largest sport-utility vehicle (SUV) maker, officially launched the first plug-in hybrid model under its Tank brand on Monday, which starts at 335,000 yuan (US$46,460).
The debut of Tank's EV edition, known as the 500 Hi4-T, came after BYD, the world's largest electric-car builder, announced last week that it will begin delivering its Yangwang U8, a luxury car priced at 1.1 million yuan, in September.
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"Unlike most of the EV makers that focus on cheaper models to propel sales, the two companies are taking a different approach as they hope to create niche markets in the premium segment," said Phate Zhang, founder of CnEVPost, a Shanghai-based EV data provider.
"The two new models have no direct rivals in the market yet, but the number of their targeted customers is limited."
Tank is a brand of off-road SUVs, or adventure vehicles.
Most SUVs sold in the mainland, the world's biggest automotive and EV market, are crossover vehicles widely used in urban areas. Nearly all off-road vehicles in China are powered by petrol rather than electricity.
The hybrid version of the Tank is fitted with a 37.1 kilowatt-hour (kWh) lithium-ion battery which can power the vehicle for up to 120 kilometres on a single charge.
BYD's Yangwang U8, its first million-yuan SUV, generated the loudest buzz and was the biggest crowd-puller at this year's Shanghai Auto Show in April.
Pre-orders for the U8 started during the annual motor show before BYD, backed by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway, said the first batch of buyers could receive their vehicles in September.
The U8's appearance evokes comparisons with the Range Rover. It can get to 100km/h from standstill in 3.6 seconds, with a massive 1,100-horsepower engine and four wheel-side motors that can rotate the vehicle in a so-called tank turn and even crab-walk sideways.
The two carmakers buck the trend in the mainland's EV market where most players are focusing on developing and assembling mass-market products to lure budget-conscious consumers.
Battery-powered cars priced between 100,000 yuan and 200,000 yuan are popular with Chinese motorists because of their affordability.
BYD and Great Wall are both known for their low-price models, but they are starting to set their sights on wealthy customers with niche products, according to Gao Shen, an independent analyst in Shanghai.
"BYD is doubling its efforts to expand its product portfolio," he said. "As the world's biggest EV maker, BYD hopes its vehicles can target different classes of customers, particularly super-rich people."
At present, Tesla is the runaway leader in China's premium EV segment. But its Shanghai-made Model 3 and Model Y vehicles are priced from 200,000 yuan and 300,000 yuan, mainly targeting middle-class consumers.
Guangzhou-based carmaker GAC Group also plans to shift towards the premium end of the market.
Yin Jie, a spokesman, told a media briefing on Tuesday that the company will strengthen the development of intelligent EVs to move up the value chain, according to state-owned Shanghai Securities News.
Its EV brand Aion recorded 184,000 deliveries in the first five months of this year, up 112 per cent on the year.
This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, please explore the SCMP app or visit the SCMP's Facebook and Twitter pages. Copyright © 2023 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.
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