BYD takes over as China’s largest auto group with low-cost EVs dominating the market

Although BYD was already the best-selling brand in China, it reached an even more significant milestone last month. After overtaking SAIC, BYD is now China’s largest auto group.

BYD tops SAIC to become China’s largest auto group

After sales surged by 62%, with over 3 million vehicles sold last year, BYD officially became China’s best-selling brand.

Last month, BYD hit an even more significant milestone. BYD is now China’s largest auto group after topping SAIC in September sales. The milestone is significant, given that SAIC has joint ventures with leading global automakers, including Volkswagen GM.

BYD Group sold a record 419,426 vehicles last month, a 45% increase from September 2023. The numbers include BYD’s Denza, Fang Cheng Bao, and Yangwang subbrands.

September was BYD’s fourth consecutive record-breaking sales month. Despite an influx of new competition and an intensifying price war in China, BYD is still taking market share.

BYD’s cheapest electric car, the Seagull, was the best-selling EV in China in August, with 40,949 models sold. In September, BYD sold another 43,425 Seagull models.

The BYD Seagull starts at under $10,000 (69,800 yuan) in China and is already stealing market share overseas.

Meanwhile, SAIC is struggling to keep pace. Its joint venture with GM, SAIC-GM-Wuling, is a big reason as sales collapsed 35% in September, with 313,260 units sold.

Through September, SAIC has sold 2,649,333 vehicles (-21.5% YOY) in China, falling behind BYD, which has 2,747,875 vehicle sales (+32% YOY). BYD’s production numbers through September are also now outpacing SAIC’s.

Electrek’s Take

BYD continues to expand in China despite its increasingly competitive market. With low-cost EVs like the Seagull, Dolphin, and Yuan Plus, BYD is leading the market.

Although BYD is best known for its affordable vehicles, the automaker is rapidly expanding its lineup with new pickup trucks, luxury SUVs, and electric supercars.

BYD is also looking overseas to drive future growth. The company is already a leading EV brand in key auto regions like Southeast Asia and Latin America. With new plants planned in Hungary, Pakistan, Mexico, and Turkey, BYD is laying the groundwork to continue its dominant expansion.

After selling more vehicles than Honda and Nissan for the first time in Q2, BYD became the seventh-largest automaker globally. Will it continue to climb the global auto ranks? With new tech and batteries driving down costs, BYD is poised for a run.

Source: CarNewsChina