The BYD Shenzen, its new ro-ro ship that can carry 9,200 vehicles, has officially undocked. BYD’s new car carrier is the world’s largest as the EV giant aggressively expands overseas. After sales surged last year, the Chinese EV leader looks for even more global market share in 2025.

BYD Shenzen undocks as the world’s largest car carrier

BYD sold a record 4.25 million new energy vehicles (NEVs) last year, over 40% more than it did in 2023. That includes electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrids (PHEVs).

Although several automakers have yet to release full-year sales results, BYD is expected to outsell several global auto leaders, such as Ford, Honda, and Nissan. Meanwhile, this year could be even bigger for China’s largest automaker.

According to a new report from China News Service (via IT Home), the BYD Shenzen, the company’s fourth ro-ro (roll-on/Roll-off) ship, finished undocking and is ready to set sail.

BYD’s new car carrier is the world’s largest, capable of transporting up to 9,200 vehicles. Since 2024, BYD has launched four ro-ro ships as it expands into new overseas markets.

The first, the BYD Explorer No 1, was launched in January 2024. It has already completed several trips to Europe, including Spain and Germany, and also docked in Brazil.

BYD’s second (BYD Changzhou) was put into operation in early December 2024, followed by the BYD Hefei, which set sail last week. All three can carry up to 7,000 vehicles.

The Hefei hit the seas last week, carrying 5,000 NEVs. BYD said the vessel will “accelerate the internationalization process of China’s new energy vehicles.”

The BYD Shenzen, named after its hometown, is not only the world’s largest but also the most environmentally friendly. According to the report, the new ship includes BYD box-type battery packs and shaft-belt generators for the first time.

Electrek’s Take

BYD has already entered 100 countries and regions globally, but it’s poised for even more growth in 2025. After producing over 1.77 million vehicles last year, BYD topped Tesla by about 4,500 units to become the world’s largest EV maker.

Meanwhile, Tesla delivered slightly more fully electric vehicles, with 1.78 million in 2024, compared to BYD’s 1.76 million.

With an influx of new rivals in China, BYD is aggressively expanding into new overseas. After entering Japan in 2023, a market dominated by domestic automakers, BYD sold more EVs than Toyota in 2024.

After launching its first EV in South Korea this week, starting at just over $20,000, BYD will now challenge Hyundai and Korea on their home turf.

BYD’s growing presence is forcing legacy automakers to take drastic actions to keep up. After falling behind, Japan’s Nissan and Honda are now teaming up on EVs to fend off BYD’s surge.

In Thailand, or the “Detroit of Asia,” as it’s called, Japanese automakers have watched their market share fall from 90% to just 76% over the past two years amid BYD’s growing presence.

With new vehicles launching in Mexico, Brazil, Europe, Singapore, Thailand, and many more regions this year, BYD is poised for more growth in 2025.

Rivian’s (RIVN) stock is trending on Friday after Volkswagen CEO Oliver Blume hinted at expanding upon their new EV partnership. Volkswagen’s boss said the company could offer “great opportunities” for Rivian. Here’s what the new plans could include.

Rivian stock climbs on Volkswagen EV partnership plans

After launching their new joint venture in November, “Rivian and VW Group Technology, LLC,” Volkswagen is already looking to expand its partnership with the EV startup.

Blume told German news outlet Spiegel that “The Volkswagen Group offers great opportunities for a small brand like Rivian” on Friday. For example, Volkswagen’s head honcho said, “We are thinking about sharing modules and bundling purchasing volumes.”

Volkswagen already plans to invest up to $5.8 billion in the collaboration, which, according to Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe, is a “meaningful financial opportunity.”

So far, the partnership is mainly software support. Rivian is using its software expertise to develop a new EV architecture to power up new SDV (software-defined) electric vehicles.

Rivian already uses the platform and software stack, which consists of seven control units. Volkswagen models typically have over 100 of these units. The next steps could involve a joint purchase, deepening the VW/ Rivian EV alliance.

The architecture is designed to cut costs and speed up output. According to the report, a new ultra-luxury three-row Porsche electric SUV, codenamed “K1” internally, and the electric Golf successor will be among the first EVs to feature the new architecture.

Audi, Porsche, and the upcoming Scout brand for the US will use the new tech. Scout will launch an off-road electric SUV and pickup built at Volkswagen’s new plant in South Carolina from 2027.

The news comes after Rivian closed a loan agreement with the US Department of Energy (DOE) on Thursday for up to $6.6 billion in funding for its new EV plant in Georgia.

Rivian’s second manufacturing plant will house its midsize R2 and R3 electric models. The smaller, more affordable electric SUV and crossover will also benefit from the Volkswagen alliance.

On Friday, Rivian stock trended up over 5% after Volkswagen’s Blume hinted at expanding the new EV partnership. Since reporting third-quarter earnings in November, RIVN shares are up over 57%. However, they are still down nearly 10% over the past 12 months.

Police have seized an imported Tesla Cybertruck in the UK as it is not road-legal in the country and deemed dangerous for pedestrians.

Tesla has always known that its Cybertruck design would be complicated to get homologated in other markets than North America, where the rules are similar between the US, Canada, and Mexico. The company admitted that it might limit the markets where Cybertruck would be sold, which is why Tesla doesn’t plan to expand beyond current markets.

However, it hasn’t stopped people from privately importing Cybertrucks to their home markets.

We have seen two Cybertrucks traveling through Europe, and they were stopped at Lithuanian customs due to suspicions that they were going to Russia.

Sure enough, Russian warlord and Chechen ruler Ramzan Kadyrov took delivery of Cybertrucks and outfitted them with machine guns a few months later and then claimed that they joined the war effort in Ukraine.

Other Cybertrucks made their way to other markets like China.

Now, we learn that one has made it to the UK, but it didn’t last long.

The Greater Manchester Police (GMP) announced that the seized the Cybertruck pictured above that was roaming the streets in the UK illegally. They wrote on social media:

Whilst this may seem trivial to some, legitimate concerns exist around the safety of other road users or pedestrians if they were involved in a collision with the Cybertruck.

Tesla had brought the vehicle in the UK, but only for demonstration. It never tried to make it legal in the country.

The police added:

The Tesla Cybertruck is not road-legal in the UK and does not hold a certificate of conformity.

The authorities said that the Cybertruck was registered and insured abroad, but the driver was a UK resident. They will have to show prove of ownership and insurance to release the vehicle.

Electrek’s Take

The authorities are clearly right here since the vehicle is not road-legal currently, but could it be road-legal? It’s hard to say.

The police here repeat claims that the Cybertruck might be dangerous for pedestrians in crashes. That has been a concern that has often been raised since the truck launched in 2023.

It looks obvious based on the design of the Cybertruck. However, we haven’t seen third-party crash testing of the Cybertruck yet, and it might take a while before we do.