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BYD Auto
比亚迪汽车
Type Subsidiary of BYD Company
Founded 2003
Headquarters Shenzhen, Guangdong, China
Los Angeles, California, United States
Key people Wang Chuanfu, Chairman
Products Automotive goods
Parent BYD Company Limited
Website byd.com

BYD Automobile Co Ltd (simplified Chinese: 比亚迪汽车; Pinyin: Bǐyàdí Qìchē) is a Chinese automobile manufacturer based in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province. The firm was established in 2003 and is a part of BYD Co Ltd, an innovative rechargeable battery maker.[1]

As of 2010 production capacity is estimated at 700,000 units/year, and that year's sales reached 519,800 making the company the sixth largest Chinese car-maker by units sold.[2] 2010 also saw continued popularity for its F3 model, which became the most-purchased car in China.[3]

History[]

BYD 03

a BYD e6 at the Shenzhen High-Tech Fair, November 2009

BYD Co Ltd created the wholly owned subsidiary BYD Auto a year after its 2002 acquisition of the Tsinchuan Automobile Company.[4] While the Chinese State is credited with development of an indigenous auto industry,[5] BYD Auto may have been created in the absence of a State policy explicitly supporting independently owned automobile manufacturers.[6]

In 2008 BYD Auto began selling the world's first mass-produced, full hybrid vehicle, the BYD F3DM.[7] China subsidizes oil, and Chinese automakers see opportunities in less mature electric vehicles because Western companies have yet to develop much of a lead in the technology.[8] In late December 2008 Warren Buffet spent $230 million buying up a 10% stake in BYD Auto's parent, BYD Company.[9] In 2009 the company sold 448,400 cars in China, and two-thirds of sales were its BYD F3 model.[10] That same year saw BYD exports its cars to Africa, South America and the Middle East.[11]

A future joint venture with Daimler AG, Shenzhen BYD Daimler New Technology Company will focus on EV development and upmarket, BYD-branded sedans.[12] As of March 2011 the new company has received a business license from the Chinese State and BYD, contractual agreement from its German partner.[13]

Recent events[]

Two full hybrid models were on display at the 2011 Geneva Auto Show.[14]

Sales outside China[]

While the majority of sales are domestic, some models are exported to other developing countries. BYD cars are sold in Bahrain by Fakhro Motors,[15] as of 2010 a Russian company, TagAZ, will assemble BYD models in Russia,[16] and in the Caribbean, BYDs are distributed in the Dominican Republic by Peravia Motors.[17] A considerable number of BYDs are brought in specifically to serve as taxis in Santo Domingo.[18]

The company has also expressed a desire to enter the European and Israeli markets, and hopes to sell vehicles in the United States, too.[19] BYD's US headquarters is set to be located in Los Angeles[20] and it plans to start selling an electric car, the e6, there in 2012.[21]


Models[]

BYD 04

BYD G3.

BYD 09

BYD M6.

Past models[]

  • BYD Flyer (2003–2008)

Current models[]

Future models[]

Copying Claims[]

BYD, like many other private Chinese car manufacturers, has been accused of copying designs of vehicles produced by other companies. One staff member at Honda claimed that the BYD F3 was "a known copy" of the Toyota Corolla (with Honda Fit design cues).[23] Another model too, the BYD F1, has been described as "a clear copy" this time of the Toyota Aygo.[24]

Domestic dealerships have been known to take advantage of this and replace the badging of BYD vehicles with those of other car manufacturers, including Toyota.[23] Micheal Austin, vice president of BYD America, has acknowledged the issue saying that the practices of some franchised dealers have made BYD "uncomfortable."[23]

Production bases and facilities[]

Production bases include two production bases in Xi'an, an R&D center and production base in Shenzhen and an R&D center in Shanghai.[25]

In 2010 the Chinese State halted construction of a third Xi'an production base.[26] Building was allowed to resume in Spring, 2011.[27] A production complex in Changsha, Hunan province, will soon become operational.[28]

In the media[]

  • CNN segment TalkAsia interviewed chairman Wang Chuanfu on April 22, 2009.[29]
  • BYD Auto was featured on the cover of Fortune magazine on April 13, 2009.[30]
  • BYD Co Ltd, the parent company of BYD Auto, is mentioned in the 2008 book Globality, written by the Boston Consulting Group.[31]

See also[]

Factory 1b Companies portal

References[]

  1. For year established and parent company information, see Company Profile BYD Auto Official Site
  2. For 2010 production capacity estimate, see Beijing Halts Construction of BYD Auto Plant wsj.com, OCTOBER 14, 2010
  3. Top 10 Best-Selling Sedans and SUVs in 2010 chinaautoweb.com, January 14, 2011
  4. Company Profile BYD Auto Official Site
  5. How the Chinese government promoted a global automobile industry. Wan-Wen Chu. Industrial and Corporate Change First published online: April 5, 2011.
  6. The Emergence of the Independent Chinese Auto Industry Crystal Chang (Berkeley)
  7. ""BYD Auto to Offer F3DM Plug-in Hybrid to Chinese Individuals Starting Next Week" Green Car Advisor". Blogs.edmunds.com (2010-03-23). Retrieved on 2010-06-26.
  8. For China's oil subsidy, see China's fuel subsidy costs the world reuters.com, Wed Jun 4, 2008 8:08am EDT
  9. 12:29 p.m. Nov. 1, 2010 (2008-10-09). "Warren Buffett looks to electric car in BYD stake". Marketwatch.com. Retrieved on 2010-11-02.
  10. For 2009 sales figures, see "2009 Chinese Auto Sales". Nitrobahn.com (2010-01-20). Retrieved on 2010-11-02.
  11. Marc Gunther (13 April 2009). "Why Warren Buffett is investing in electric car company BYD". Fortune. Retrieved on 2 May 2009.
  12. "BYD and Daimler in EV Joint Venture". ChinaAutoWeb.com. Retrieved on 2010-05-30.
  13. Joint Venture between BYD and Daimler Receives Business License BYD Auto Official Site, March 1, 2011
  14. BYD is at Geneva Auto Show with two cars chinacartimes.com, March 2, 2011
  15. BYD models to appear in Bahrain globaltimes.cn, December 08 2010
  16. BYD ties up to assemble cars in Russia globaltimes.cn, December 08 2010
  17. Dominican capital turns Chinese yellow, with taxis dominicantoday.com, 5 February 2010
  18. For Israeli and Europe sales, see Israel's Clal to import China's BYD electric cars reuters.com, Thu September 25, 2008 4:29am EDT
  19. "BYD Is Coming to LA". ChinaAutoWeb.com. Retrieved on 2010-05-30.
  20. BYD sees mass U.S. entry in first quarter of 2012 with e6 reuters.com, Tue Jan 11, 2011 2:31am EST
  21. BYD S6 to launch at Shanghai Auto Show chinacartimes.com, March 29, 2011 at 10:00 am
  22. 23.0 23.1 23.2 Ben Berkowitz, Kevin Krolicki and Lee Chyen Yee (2011-03-09). "Special Report: Warren Buffett's China car deal could backfire". Reuters. Retrieved on 2011-03-11.
  23. "BYD's bid to break the Chinese mould". Easier Cars (2008-03-05). Retrieved on 2011-03-11.
  24. For production bases, see Beijing Halts Construction of BYD Auto Plant wsj.com, OCTOBER 14, 2010
  25. BYD says to restart construction of China Xi'an plants reuters.com, Tue Apr 5, 2011 10:19pm EDT
  26. Beijing Halts Construction of BYD Auto Plant wsj.com, OCTOBER 14, 2010
  27. "Wang Chuanfu: Building electric dreams in China". TalkAsia (20 April 2009). Retrieved on 28 April 2009.
  28. Marc Gunther (13 April 2009). "Why Warren Buffett is investing in electric car company BYD". Fortune. Retrieved on 2 May 2009.
  29. "'The world of globality is not flat'". Business-standard.com (2008-08-12). Retrieved on 2010-06-26.

External links[]

Smallwikipedialogo This page uses some content from Wikipedia. The original article was at BYD Automobile. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with Tractor & Construction Plant Wiki, the text of Wikipedia is available under the Creative Commons by Attribution License and/or GNU Free Documentation License. Please check page history for when the original article was copied to Wikia


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