BYD would be making an official entry into the Japanese passenger vehicle market in 2023 with three models, the company announced. Earlier to this, the only presence that the company had in the Japanese market was by the sale of batteries, electric forklifts, solar panels, and commercial vehicles like electric buses and forklifts. It is the first time that BYD would be introducing passenger cars here.
The first car to enter that market would be the Atto 3 model, the sales of which are expected to start in January 2023. This would be followed by BYD Dolphin which is slated for mid-2023 and then by the all-new BYD Seal, scheduled for the latter half of 2023.
All three electric cars are based on BYD’s e-platform 3.0. While ATTO 3 and Dolphin are powered by BYD Blade Battery (LFP chemistry and cell-to-pack system, BYD Seal is the company’s first to sport a structural battery pack.
BYD is entering the Japanese market at a time when the domestic BEV offer in Japan is pretty narrow, thus giving the company a fair chance to secure an edge. Beginning in the year 1999, BYD has been in electric vehicle manufacturing for close to 30 years now. BYD has its presence in 70 countries (over 400 cities) but the focus of its plug-in electric cars has always been mainland China till now. With the company bringing its passenger cars into the Japanese market, it certainly would grab the attention of automobile giants like Toyota, Nissan, and Honda whose passenger cars have been plying on Japanese roads for many decades now.
