BYD is becoming increasingly popular in the New Zealand market. It came out in New Zealand one year ago with only one model.
Still, it immediately dominated the electric vehicle sales charts. It won the Car of the Year award from the New Zealand Motoring Writers’ Guild.
The Chinese automaker will also release the Dolphin hatchback and the Seal sedan shortly, but there are more. BYD is working on constructing a ute.
BYD’s electric pickup truck
It was discovered for the first time in November of 2022, but Car News China has brought some new images to light.
The pickup truck appears quite large, about the same size as a Toyota Hilux or a Ford Ranger. It is supported by reports of a length of slightly less than five meters (about 300mm shorter than the Hilux and 200mm off the Ranger).
The camouflage conceals most of the design. Nonetheless, some details are apparent, including the following:
- rounded edges
- boxy light clusters cut in half by LED daylight running lights
- what seems to be a slim, rectangular grille
The interior features a digital dashboard that provides a power output readout in kilowatts as well as, if you squint just right, a nearly full charge bar that indicates a range of more than 1000 kilometers.
That is enormous for an electric vehicle, much less a ute or truck. As a point of comparison, Ford’s F-150 Lightning is said to have a driving range of 514 kilometers. Meanwhile, Ram’s forthcoming 1500 REV electric truck will have a range of “up to 800 kilometers,” but nothing more specific than that.
Electric pickup truck near production
BYD also employs a ladder-frame chassis, just like most diesel-powered workhorses currently on the market and LDV’s eT60.
According to Car News China, the pickup truck will be available in electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid configurations.
According to reports, plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) variants will be equipped with either one or two additional electric motors and a 1.5-liter turbocharged gasoline engine.
The power output will range from 134 kilowatts all the way up to 375 kilowatts.
The report goes on to say that a concept that is “near-production” could be shown off at the Chengdu Auto Show in September, with a rollout on the Chinese automotive market planned for the middle of the fourth quarter.
See Also
- BYD purchasing Ford factories shows EV shift and overcapacity
- Three Southeast Asian countries are competing for China’s BYD plant
- Legendary US investor says BYD is outselling Tesla in China by a margin that is “almost ridiculous” BYD plans to build another $1.2 billion EV battery plant in China, per filings
- India website lists 700km range BYD Seal EV: Release date and specs
