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BYD topped the 1 million EV sales mark following a record-breaking August. China’s leading EV maker continues surging ahead as new models and tech draw in buyers.

BYD tops 1 million in EV sales for 2024

After selling another 145,627 electric vehicles last month, BYD has now sold over 1 million EV sales in 2024.

BYD reported August sales numbers, showing a record 373,082 new energy vehicles (NEVs) sold, including plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) and all-electric cars.

With over 373K vehicles sold last month, BYD topped its previous record of 342,383 NEVs sold in July. BYD has now set a new NEV sales record for three consecutive months.

Plug-in hybrids accounted for most of the growth, with 222,384 units sold, up 73% compared to August 2023. August marks BYD’s sixth consecutive record PHEV sales month. BYD has now sold over 1.3 million PHEVs through August 2024, up 43% from the roughly 886,000 sold last year.

Meanwhile, BYD sold 148,470 EVs last month, representing 2% growth YOY and 15% from July. The growth was enough to push BYD over the 1 million EV sales mark for 2024.

BYD-1-million-EV
BYD Dolphin (left) and Atto 3 (right) Source: BYD

BYD has sold 1,004,623 EVs through the first eight months of 2024, up 12% from the 897,220 sold at this time last year.

BYD’s overseas sales reached 31,451, up 26% YOY and 5% compared to July, as it expands into new markets.

BYD-1-million-EV
BYD Dolphin Mini (Seagull) launch in Brazil (Source: BYD)

The automaker has sold nearly 265,000 vehicles overseas through August as it expands into new markets.

Electrek’s Take

BYD is driving growth as new tech enables lower-priced, more efficient models. For example, BYD introduced its DM 5.0 hybrid system in May, which is already underpinning several new models. BYD said the new system slashes costs and enables lower fuel consumption.

The company also released its new e-Platform 3.0 for EVs earlier this year, which offers improved efficiency and charging. Will the new tech help boost EV sales?

After topping Honda and Nissan to become the seventh-largest automaker in the second quarter. With new lower-priced, more efficient models rolling out, BYD is making a strong push into the end of the year.

With overseas plants planned in Pakistan, Turkey, Mexico, Brazil, and Turkey, BYD hopes to meet the growing demand for affordable solutions in key overseas markets.

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Lexus cuts RZ electric SUV prices by over $10,000 with its new entry-level 2025 model

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Lexus cuts RZ electric SUV prices by over ,000 with its new entry-level 2025 model

The all-electric luxury electric SUV is getting significantly cheaper. Lexus launched a new entry-level 2025 RZ trim with starting prices over $10,000 less than last year’s model. And you get just as much driving range.

2025 Lexus RZ electric SUV prices and driving range

Lexus launched its first dedicated EV last year, the RZ electric SUV. Starting at $55,175, the 2024 Lexus RZ 300e has a range of up to 266 miles.

The 2024 RZ 450e AWD, equipped with its dual-moto DIRECT4 system, has a range of up to 196 miles. Prices start at just under $60,000. Both models are offered in Premium or Luxury packages.

Lexus is drastically lowering prices for the 2025 model year. The 2025 Lexus RZ starts at $43,975, and that includes the $1,175 delivery fee.

At under $44,000, prices for the 2025 RZ start at over $10,000 less than last year’s model. The lower price tag comes as Lexus added a new entry-level RZ 300e FWD trim to the lineup.

The 2025 Lexus RZ 300e FWD still has an EPA-estimated 266-mile range (18″ wheels), so despite the lower price, it’s no loss from last year’s model. It’s powered by a 72.8 kWh battery pack from global leader CATL.

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2025 Lexus RZ 450e (Source: Lexus)

Lexus modified the subframe for the FWD model, replacing the rear eAxle from the AWD model. The result is a quieter, smoother drive.

Powered by a 71.4 kWh battery, the 2025 RZ 450e AWD has an EPA-estimated driving range of up to 220 miles (18″ wheels).

2025 Lexus RZ model Starting Price* EPA-estimated Driving Range
RZ 450e AWD $48,675 220 miles
RZ 450e Premium AWD w/ 18″ Wheel $52,875 220 miles
RZ 450e Premium AWD w/ 20″ Wheel $54,115 196 miles
RZ 450e Luxury AWD $58,605 220 miles
RZ 300e FWD $43,975 266 miles
RZ 300e Premium FWD w/ 18″ Wheel $48,175 266 miles
RZ 300e Premium FWD w/ 20″ Wheel $49,415 224 miles
RZ 300e Luxury FWD $53,905 266 miles
2025 Lexus RZ electric SUV prices and range (*Includes Delivery, Processing and Handling fee of $1,175)

The 2025 Lexus RZ is available in three grades. These include the new entry-level model, in addition to the current Premium and Luxury trims.

Inside, the electric SUV has a minimalistic feel with a standard 14″ infotainment with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto support at the center.

You can also opt for the available 10″ head-up display (HUD), Mark Levinson Surround Sound System, and a host of safety features.

The flat platform provides a spacious interior with 37.52″ of rear legroom, nearly as much as the second row of a Ford Explorer (39″).

With the 2025 model arriving at dealerships soon, Lexus is offering closeout prices on 2024 models with up to $18,500 in lease cash discounts. You can use our link to find the best offers on the Lexus RZ at a dealer near you today.

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Why Jim Cramer is nervous about Best Buy, plus a bright spot in this down market

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Why Jim Cramer is nervous about Best Buy, plus a bright spot in this down market

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‘Political malpractice’ if Trump undoes climate-geared Biden projects, outgoing U.S. energy secretary says

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'Political malpractice' if Trump undoes climate-geared Biden projects, outgoing U.S. energy secretary says

U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm speaks to the media on day five at the UNFCCC COP29 Climate Conference on November 15, 2024 in Baku, Azerbaijan. 

Sean Gallup | Getty Images News | Getty Images

A potential decision by Donald Trump to walk back the Biden administration’s climate-geared projects would impact jobs in areas governed by the President-elect’s own party, outgoing U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm told CNBC, urging consistency in Washington’s green transition policies.

Referencing the White House’s withdrawal from the Paris Agreement — a 2015 treaty in which nearly 200 governments made non-binding pledges to reduce greenhouse emissions — during Trump’s first mandate, Granholm said the U.S. pressed ahead with projects linked to the green transition that members of Congress wanted to undertake in their districts.

“We are now building all of these projects. We’re building batteries for electric vehicles, we’re building the vehicles, we’re building the offshore wind turbines, we’re building the solar panels. And all of those are factories. And those factories are in districts of members of Congress,” she told CNBC’s Dan Murphy on Friday at the COP29 U.N. climate conference held in Baku, Azerbaijan.

'Political malpractice' if Trump undoes Biden climate commitments: Energy Secretary Granholm

She estimated that 80% of the funding from U.S. President Joe Biden’s legacy bills — the Inflation Reduction Act and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law — went to U.S. districts represented by Republican leadership.

“It would be political malpractice to undo those opportunities when people are just now getting hired,” she said, stressing benefits to the manufacturing sector and noting that the business community of the world’s largest economy and oil producer now wants a clear course from Washington on its climate policy.

“This isn’t about in [the Paris Agreement], out, shifting back and forth. Let’s have a consistent practice,” she said.

When asked for a response on Granholm’s comments, Karoline Leavitt, a spokeswoman for Trump’s transition team, said the president-elect will “deliver” on the promises he made on the campaign trail.

COP29 discussions are focusing on international community reaction to U.S. election, S&P Global says

International focus has now shifted on the shape of the U.S.’ future role in global climate policy, as Trump prepares to take the helm at the White House for a second mandate in January, following a sweeping victory against Democrat candidate Kamala Harris. Trump — who has yet to announce his own pick to lead the U.S. Department of Energy — put hydrocarbons at the front and center of his campaigning agenda, pledging to “end Biden’s delays in federal drilling permits and leases that are needed to unleash American oil and natural gas production.”

The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) in March said that the country already “produced more crude oil than any nation at any time” for the past six years to 2023, averaging a crude oil and condensate production of 12.9 million barrels per day that year — breaking the previous U.S. and global record of 12.3 million barrels per day recorded in 2019, during Trump’s first mandate.

Yet Granholm on Friday stressed that the clean transition is also “unleashed” and will take place regardless of who is leading the White House — and that ignoring climate change risks sacrificing Washington’s position as a frontrunner in the blooming decarbonization industry.

“Why would we take a second, a backseat to an economic competitor like China?” she asked. “They have an economic strategy, they want to be number one. So if we get out of the game, we’re just going to cede that territory all over again. It’s bad strategy for the United States and for workers and for communities across the country.”

As the world braces for the possibility of a second U.S. exit from the Paris Agreement, some climate activists note that the green transition has now gained a different global momentum than during Trump’s first turn at the White House:

“There is no denying that another Trump presidency will stall national efforts to tackle the climate crisis and protect the environment, but most U.S. state, local, and private sector leaders are committed to charging ahead,” Dan Lashof, U.S. director of the World Resources Institute, said in a Nov. 6 statement.

“Donald Trump heading back to the White House won’t be a death knell to the clean energy transition that has rapidly picked up pace these last four years.”

'We have to be rational,' Saudi Arabia's climate envoy says at COP29

Granholm also identified potential support in Trump’s current entourage, which this week welcomed business tycoon Elon Musk as the president-elect’s choice to head a new Department of Government Efficiency, alongside conservative activist Vivek Ramaswamy:

“His right-hand man, Elon Musk,  is somebody who has been strongly in favor of products that … address climate change. Obviously, he’s the founder of Tesla,” Granholm pointed out.

Musk’s environmental stance has come under question over the years, shifting from telling Rolling Stone magazine that “climate change is the biggest threat that humanity faces this century, except for AI” and backing carbon taxes to holding that the world needs hydrocarbon supplies as a bridge to renewable energy.

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