Chinese EV maker BYD Co Ltd BYDDY on Tuesday said that it has started selling a third electric model in Japan, home to the world’s top-selling automaker Toyota Motor Corp TM.
What Happened: The EV maker will start taking orders for its BYD Seal sedan in Japan starting Tuesday, the company said.
It will be available in two variants namely the rear-wheel drive (RWD) version and the all-wheel drive (AWD) version. While the RWD variant will start at 5.28 million yen (about $33,111), the AWD version will start at 6.05 million yen (about $37,939) including tax.
Deliveries will start around the end of July for the base model and at the end of August for the more premium version. Both variants will be available in five exterior paints with black interiors.
BYD is already selling the Atto 3 and Dolphin in Japan. While the Atto 3 is a sports utility vehicle (SUV,) the Dolphin is a hatchback.
Seal, on the other hand, is a sedan. It has a maximum range of 404 miles and BYD says a 15-minute charge can boost it by up to 124 miles.
Why It Matters: Japan is home to multiple big automakers including the world’s largest vehicle seller Toyota Motor Co. Toyota, unlike BYD, offers multiple fuel options including gas. Other popular domestic players include Honda and Nissan.
To boost sales for the Seal EV at the onset in the highly competitive market, BYD has announced an introductory offer wherein the first 1,000 customers to take the Seal sedan will receive a significant discount. While the RWD version of the Seal will be available at 4.95 million yen as part of the offer, the AWD version will be available at 5.72 million yen.
The Toyota RAV4 plug-in hybrid electric vehicle, one of the company’s most popular offerings, is priced around 5 million yen in Japan.
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Photo courtesy: BYD
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