BYD is making great strides in Australia with strong orders, huge interest and expanding partnerships
Australian netizen Lachlan Smith spotted the upcoming 2023 BYD Dolphin in Australia in Sydney this week.
Dolphins on the streets of Sydney
Full details of the BYD dolphin exported to Australia are still to be announced, but Luke Todd, managing director of BYD Australian distributor EVDirect, confirmed in early discussions with Wheels Media in August that pre-sales will begin before the end of 2022.
Given that it's almost December, these plans may have changed, and we'll update the progress as we get more details.
What is BYD Dolphin?
As previously reported, the BYD Dolphin is a small Yaris-sized electric car. While yet to be confirmed, it is expected to be Australia's first electric vehicle priced under AU$30,000.
EVDirect, an Australian distributor of Chinese electric vehicle giant BYD, has confirmed the arrival of BYD Dolphins and BYD Seals in the first half of 2023.
Following a media event at Eager Automotive's 'Automall' at Brisbane's Indooroopilly shopping centre, EVDirect managing director Luke Todd reiterated in an interview with Wheels that pre-orders for both models will begin at the end of 2022.
Fig. BYD seal, meta plus, dolphin
BYD Atto 3: 3,000 units per month
Figure: BYD ATTO3
Todd said the BYD Yuan PLUS right-hand drive model (ATTO3) has a capacity of 3,000 units per month, and only 1,000 units are allocated to Australia every month.
BYD Seal is a competitor to the best-selling Tesla Model 3. The smaller dolphin, the Dolphin, about the size of the Toyota Yaris, is on track to be Australia's cheapest electric car, with prices expected to start at AU$30,000.
Both models are BYD e-Platform 3.0 pure electric architecture, can be produced right-hand drive, and are equipped with Blade blade battery technology.
Pictured: BYD dolphins
EVDirect's service partnership with MyCar has expanded from an initial 8 locations to 30 planned locations. MyCar (formerly Kmart Tire and Auto) has scheduled a series of locations to deliver and repair BYD cars, but pre-order orders show more need, and more are being evaluated as MyCar itself establishes new locations.
Todd also confirmed that a memorandum of understanding had been signed with Eagers Automotive, a publicly traded car dealership network, but said he could not comment further because of public disclosure rules that could affect the company's share price.
BYD's first public sale model in Australia, the ATTO3, has exceeded 7,000 orders and has resumed deliveries, with plans to deliver at a rate of 1,500 units per month.