Chinese carmaker BYD has unveiled the latest version of hybrid technology, cutting fuel consumption and costs and increasing competition with companies like Toyota and Volkswagen that still sell gasoline cars.
The company launched the fifth generation hybrid technology, which achieves a record consumption of 2.9 liters per 100 kilometers by discharging the battery.
The company indicates that this technology can guarantee a range of up to 2,100 kilometers with a fully charged battery and a full fuel tank.
BYD also launched sedan versions of the Qin L and Seal 06, both equipped with new technologies and starting at $13,775.
The company says customers who use the new technology can save up to $1,340 annually in fuel costs compared to customers who drive gasoline models.
Since 2021, BYD has been leading the rapid development of plug-in hybrid technology with models such as the Qin Plus DM-i and Song Plus DM-i.
Plug-in hybrid technology offers a range of tens of kilometers via the battery and fuel consumption of up to 3.8 liters per 100 kilometers via the petrol engine.
Hybrid cars, whose price starts at $11,000, accounted for a large portion of BYD's sales over the past three years, as the company sold 3.6 million cars of this type.
In the first quarter, the Chinese company reduced the price of hybrid cars by 10-22%, with sales of the Qin and Song models exceeding sales of gasoline models such as Lavida and Sagitar in a market where prices and fuel economy are lower. under. consumer. The Chinese are very cost sensitive.
Globally, BYD continues to accelerate its international expansion, even as sales lag behind multi-brand automakers such as Toyota, Volkswagen, General Motors and Stellantis.
BYD, like other Chinese electric car makers, poses a major challenge to Japanese automakers in overseas markets such as Southeast Asia, Australia and the Middle East, where governments have imposed few trade barriers and tariffs.
Unlike the hybrid technology that Toyota introduced with the Prius in 1997, the Chinese automaker's hybrid cars use high-capacity batteries and can run on electricity for long periods.