Earlier this month, BYD, one of the fastest-growing EV brands, announced a premium brand called Yangwang. Within a fortnight, spy shots have emerged of new SUVs that are suspected to be Yangwang’s off-roading SUV according to cnevpost.
Car transporters were spotted carrying 4 camouflaged vehicles that resemble the shape of Land Rover Discovery.
Photos also show a rear-mounted spare wheel as these vehicles are transferred for testing in various parts of the country.
Yangwang, which translates to “look up”, will be launching premium vehicles that start at above $80,000 AUD. The brand is expected to be officially launched in early 2023 which would be the same time this off-roading vehicle will be debuted.
With BYD’s big focus on new energy vehicles (NEVs), the Yangwang off-road vehicles are expected to be powered by a full electric or a plug-in electric drivetrain.
There is also a focus on technology and driver experience that’s expected to be one of the main differences between Yangwang and other premium NEV brands. More will be known as the official launch approaches in the coming months.
The new brand is already hiring for many roles as it gets set to launch with the off-roading model being its first.
BYD is planning on launching many more models under this brand and if the previous pace of launches is anything to go by, there could be a range of Yangwang models available in China by the end of 2023.
With BYD entering the Australian market in the affordable EV segment with the recent BYD Atto3 ground-up EV, it’s unlikely that the new premium brand will land in Australia anytime soon.
The Atto3 has already helped BYD become the second-best-selling EV brand during October in Australia. This trend is set to continue as the demand for affordable EVs remains at an all-time high.
Riz is the founder of carloop based in Melbourne, specialising in Australian EV data, insight reports and trends. He is a mechanical engineer who spent the first 7 years of his career building transport infrastructure before starting carloop. He has a passion for cars, particularly EVs and wants to help reduce transport emissions in Australia. He currently drives a red Tesla Model 3.