Last week, BYD surpassed 60,000 sales in under three years of delivering cars into the Australian market, and is about to launch some new models into the market, including at the premium end.
An avid reader of The Driven, Adam C, has spotted a new model from the brand, charging at Tesla’s supercharger in Sydney The off-road looking model was seen covered in camouflage wrap, charging at the V4 supercharger in Chatswood.
This model is the Bao 5, a plug-in hybrid (PHEV) which is being tested on Australian roads, before a potential launch locally under BYD’s premium brand, Denza. Its wheels appear to display BYD’s off-roading brand Fangchengbao’s logo.
The Bao 5 is available in China in multiple PHEV powertrains. It uses the DM-O (Dual Mode Off-Road) platform found in the very popular BYD Shark 6 ute.
It not only has two electrical motors producing up to 505 kW backed by a 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol engine, but also features three differential locks.
Like the BYD Shark 6 ute, also a PHEV, the Bao 5 also has a blade battery pack which feeds the electrical motors. This Lithium-Iron-Phosphate (LFP) pack has a 31.8 kWh capacity and can provide up to 100 km of WLTC range.
Combined with the petrol engine, it’s got a claim NEDC range of 1,200 km on a single tank of fuel and a full battery pack.
BYD established its Fang Cheng Bao brand in June 2023, focusing on off-roading vehicles. The first two models are mid and large off-roading SUVs driven by a PHEV drivetrain.
The Bao 5 was the brand’s first model, making its debut back in 2023. This mid-size SUV quickly gained popularity across China.
This was seen in the pre-sales figures with the company receiving 10,000 orders within three days of its launch. Over the next 6 months, the Bao 5 sold over 20,000 cars.
Then in 2024, the brand released the larger Bao 8 SUV, which gained traction from buyers wanting a premium large SUV that had some off-roading capabilities.
By July 2024, BYD lowered prices of the Bao 5 when it started to compete with other rugged small SUV-based off-roaders such as those from ICE brands like GWM.
This helped in getting almost 50,000 sales of the Bao 5 in China during 2024.
In 2025, the off-roading brand launched a new off-road model under its Fang Cheng Bao brand, calling it the Tai 3. This car was also the company’s first fully electric model aimed at the family adventure SUV market.
Last month, the brand also teased another upcoming model, which it will call the Tai 7, that’s expected to slot between the Bao 5 and the Bao 8 in terms of its size.
As for the Bao 5 spotted charging at the Tesla Supercharger in Chatswood, it provides a hint of what’s to come from BYD in the premium SUV market. This gives something for off-roading fans who might want to think about getting something quieter for off-roading than the Diesel engine offerings from most legacy automakers today.
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.