BYD Cars

Brand Overview : Build Your Dreams, popularly known as BYD around the world, has emerged as one of the fastest-growing auto companies worldwide. After making a mark in many parts of the world, BYD announced its entry into India as a passenger vehicle brand in 2022. Hailing from China, BYD started its innings as an electric vehicle-only car brand for India, a decision with which it now stands firm, and intends to gradually expand its presence in the country only with electric vehicles in the future.
 
Key Milestones In India : While BYD now has a retail network dealing in passenger vehicles in India, the Chinese automaker started its journey in India as a supplier of battery and bus chassis to Olectra Greenwich Limited. Ahead of commencing sales of electric passenger vehicles, BYD expanded its manufacturing facility in Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu.
BYD entered the passenger vehicle business with the e6 MPV in 2022, which was also the Chinese brand’s first car locally manufactured in India. In the same year, BYD also launched the Atto 3 electric premium compact SUV, which was also locally assembled in India.
However, after the Government of India’s crackdown on Chinese companies and stringent scrutiny checks introduced for them in July 2023, BYD halted future investments in local production and started importing its vehicles from China through the CBU route.
BYD launched Seal as its third all-new product in India in 2024, and after a few months, it launched the eMAX 7 MPV, a heavily updated and renamed version of the e6 MPV.

Product Range And Segments : While BYD has a versatile lineup of ICE, hybrid and all-electric vehicles in other global markets, it has affirmed its stance as an EV-only brand for the Indian car market. The vehicle lineup of BYD India comprises three vehicles – eMAX 7 compact MPV, Atto 3 premium compact SUV and Seal mid-size sedan, all of which are born-electric models.
 
Unique Selling Propositions (USPs) : Despite its positioning in the market as an automaker hailing from China and border tensions emerging between India and China in the recent past, people are singing praises for BYD. The prime reasons are its future-ready electric vehicles that are rich in tech and high on the visual drama when it comes to their interior designs. BYD has also emerged as one of the biggest auto giants worldwide, surpassing Volkswagen to become the largest automaker in China, further bringing it more recognition among the Indian masses too.
 
Technology And Innovation : BYD focuses primarily on electric vehicles for the Indian car market, with all of its products based around the ‘blade battery’ platform, one of the most remarkable battery technologies in recent times. Featuring thin battery packs that are integrated into the platforms of vehicles, the BYD electric vehicles are light-weight compared to other electric vehicles with conventional Li-ion and NMC battery packs.
 
Sustainability And Future Goals : While BYD is one of the newest automakers even globally, this Chinese brand has emerged as a pioneer of modern automotive technologies. BYD was the first carmaker to officially introduce a plug-in hybrid vehicle in the form of F3DM back in 2008, while its current crop of born-electric models features the new-age blade battery technology. While BYD might not bring hybrid vehicles to India, it will expand its product lineup in India with more born-electric vehicles in the coming months.
 
Customer Perception And Competitors : While BYD is a very new carmaker in the Indian context with a not-so-rich or long-standing legacy as other global auto giants, people have gradually been accepting BYD products for their new-age EV technologies.
The BYD eMAX 7 might not have any other electric MPV in its direct competition, but it is a good alternative to Toyota Innova Hycross and Maruti Suzuki Invicto, both of which are hybrid MPVs. The same goes for BYD Atto 3, which is an alternative to mid-size SUVs like Volkswagen Tiguan, Skoda Kushaq, Citroen C5 Aircross and Hyundai Tucson. The BYD Seal also has no direct competitors but does compete with similarly-priced sedans like the Toyota Camry hybrid, Mercedes-Benz A-Class, Audi A4 and BMW 2-Series Gran Coupe.
 
Closing Thoughts : Due to geopolitical ups and downs between India and China, BYD has faced challenges in launching new products and expanding its operations in the Indian car market, despite showing early commitment to the same. Instead, BYD’s new approach of keeping things at a slow and steady pace deserves attention, which it is getting thanks to its new-age products.