The myth that EVs are very expensive is slowly but surely going away.
Category: eV
Watch Hyundai Ioniq 5 Prototype Perform Crab Walk, 360-Degree Turn
Made possible by Hyundai Mobis' e-Corner System all-in-one package module of brake by wire, steer by wire, damper, and in-wheel motor.
BYD officially launches Seagull to expand its presence in China’s EV market
BYD has officially launched the Seagull with a starting price of just RMB 73,800, after starting pre-sales of the Yangwang U8, which costs over RMB 1 million, last week.
(Image credit: CnEVPost)
The price range covered by BYD's product array is seeing an unprecedented expansion, with the official launch of a new model priced as low as RMB 73,800 ($10,660), after the Yangwang U8 started pre-sales for more than RMB 1 million.
The Chinese new energy vehicle (NEV) giant officially launched the micro battery electric vehicle (BEV) model BYD Seagull, the latest addition to its Ocean series, at a launch event today.
The car is available in three versions with starting prices of RMB 73,800, RMB 78,800 and RMB 89,800 respectively.
BYD unveiled the Seagull and started its pre-sales on the first day of the Shanghai auto show on April 18, with the three versions priced at RMB 78,800, RMB 83,800 and RMB 95,800 respectively.
The company's final pricing announced today means that the starting prices for all three versions are RMB 5,000, RMB 5,000 and RMB 6,000 lower than the pre-sale prices.
(Image credit: CnEVPost)
The Seagull is an A0-class EV based on BYD's e-Platform 3.0 with a length, width and height of 3,780 mm, 1,715 mm and 1,540 mm, respectively, and a wheelbase of 2,500 mm.
The model is powered by a permanent magnet synchronous motor with a maximum power of 55 kW and peak torque of 135 Nm, accelerating from 0 to 50 km/h in 4.9 seconds.
The vehicle is available in two range versions with blade battery capacities of 30.08 kWh and 38.88 kWh, which provide a CLTC range of 305 km and 405 km, respectively.
The BYD Seagull supports fast charging, taking 30 minutes to charge from 30 percent to 80 percent.
For BYD, the Seagull will likely be a model of strategic importance, especially when compared to the high-end Yangwang models.
Prior to 2020, BYD was targeting mainly the RMB 100,000 to RMB 200,000 NEV market, as there were huge barriers for local Chinese car companies to enter the mid- to high-end market at the time.
With the launch of the BYD Han in the second half of 2020, BYD began to gradually expand its presence in the RMB 200,000 to 300,000 range.
In the fourth quarter of last year, the BYD Han, which primarily targets the RMB 200,000 to 300,000 yuan range, sold more than 30,000 units each month.
As BYD gradually gained a foothold in the mid- to high-end market, the company began to move into the higher price range, announcing the Yangwang brand and the brand's first two models, the U8 off-road SUV and U9 supercar, on January 5.
On April 18, Yangwang started the pre-sales of the U8 at the Shanghai auto show, with a pre-sale price of RMB 1,098,000.
In addition to the Yangwang brand, BYD also has the Denza and the yet-to-be-launched F brand, targeting a market with prices above RMB 300,000.
The importance of the Seagull is that it allows BYD's products to cover a lower price range and thus a broader market than these premium models.
In 2022, the price range of RMB 100,000 to RMB 150,000 accounted for 6.68 million retail sales in China, contributing 33 percent of all passenger car sales, according to data released last month by the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA).
Models in the price range of RMB 50,000 to RMB 100,000 sold 3.84 million units at retail in China last year, ranking second with a 19 percent share, according to the CPCA.
The Seagull, currently BYD's lowest-priced model, is targeting a market that the NEV maker has not previously entered but has extensive space.
(Image credit: CnEVPost)
The BYD brand's product array includes the Dynasty and Ocean series, with the former's lowest-priced model being the Qin, which starts at RMB 99,800, and the latter's Dolphin, which starts at RMB 116,800, before the Seagull was launched.
BYD sold 207,080 NEVs in March, including 40,850 units of the Qin family and 30,077 units of the Dolphin, data monitored by CnEVPost showed.
The Seagull's lower prices are expected to meet the demand of younger demographics as well as some families for a second vehicle, helping BYD reach its aggressive sales target this year.
BYD sold 1,868,543 vehicles in 2022, including 1,863,494 NEVs. The company discontinued production and sales of vehicles powered entirely by internal combustion engines in March 2022.
BYD aims to sell at least 3 million vehicles this year and will strive to reach 3.6 million, the company's chairman and president Wang Chuanfu said at an investor conference late last month.
BYD aims to become the No. 1 automaker in China by the end of this year, Wang said at the time.
The Seagull is expected to be another hot seller in the Chinese EV market, judging by its pre-sale performance.
The model received more than 10,000 orders 24 hours after pre-sales began, BYD said on April 19.
($1 = 6.9212 RMB)
BYD Seagull key specs
| Launch Price (RMB) | 73,800 | 78,800 | 89,800 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-sale Price | 78,800 | 83,800 | 95,800 |
| Dimensions | 3,780×1,715×1,540 mm | ||
| Wheelbase | 2,500 mm | ||
| Max Motor Power | 55 kW | ||
| Max Motor Torque | 135 Nm | ||
| 0-50 km/h | 4.9 seconds | ||
| CLTC Range | 305 km | 305 km | 405 km |
| Battery Capacity | 30.08 kWh | 30.08 kWh | 38.88 kWh |
| 30%-80% Charging | 30 minutes | ||
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Pony.ai starts offering robotaxi service in Guangzhou without safety officer in vehicles
This is the first such permit issued in Guangzhou, where Pony.ai's 17 robotaxis have been approved to provide robotaxi service without safety officers.
(Image credit: Pony.ai)
Pony.ai, a Chinese self-driving startup backed by Toyota Motor and NIO Capital, has been granted a permit for robotaxi service without safety officers in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou, after receiving a similar permit in Beijing last month.
This is the first such permit issued in Guangzhou, where Pony.ai's 17 robotaxis were approved to provide the services, according to a press release today.
Within 803 square kilometers of Guangzhou's Nansha district, passengers will have the opportunity to call a real driverless vehicle via the mobile app PonyPilot+, Pony.ai said.
During the ride, passengers who need remote assistance can communicate in real-time with backstage personnel in the vehicle by voice, the company said.
On March 17, Pony.ai announced that it had received a permit in Beijing to operate a fully unmanned robotaxi service within 60 square kilometers of the Yizhuang Economic Development Zone.
Founded in late 2016, Pony.ai has set up R&D centers in Silicon Valley, Guangzhou, Beijing and Shanghai, and is running robotaxi operations locally.
In late 2019, NIO Capital said it invested in Pony.ai when it announced the completion of more than $200 million in fundraising. In February 2020, Pony.ai announced it had raised $400 million from Toyota.
(Image credit: CnEVPost)
Pony.ai launched the robotaxi app PonyPilot in December 2018 and received a permit to operate the robotaxi service for a fee in Beijing in November 2021.
To date, Pony.ai has accumulated 21 million kilometers of autonomous driving, more than 1 million kilometers of fully unmanned testing and nearly 200,000 paid orders, it said today.
Baidu's robotaxi platform Apollo Go gets permit to offer fully driverless rides in Beijing
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From A V8 Camaro To A Nissan LEAF
Glenn Groves from regional Victoria shares his journey from a V8 Chevrolet IROC-Z Camaro to a fully electric Nissan LEAF via a Toyota Prius hybrid. He contacted me through the Nissan LEAF Facebook page. I have written about people’s love of the V8 Camaro previously. Glenn covers it from a previous owner’s perspective, and now […]
Volkswagen To Build Its Largest Battery Cell Factory … In Canada
The battery division of Volkswagen Group, PowerCo SE, has picked the location to construct its biggest battery gigafactory to date — St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada. A potential final expansion stage could produce of up to 90 GWh of batteries annually. Actually, they already announced it last month. This was more of the formal announcement. PowerCo […]
Improving Recycling Of End-Of-Life Vehicles, BMW Group Leads Car2Car Project
A Car2Car project that explores the circular economy in car manufacturing is being led by BMW Group and is being funded by the German government. BMW Group is collaborating with experts from the recycling sector, commodities processors, and the scientific community to find ways to raise the caliber of secondary raw materials produced through the […]
Zeekr, chipmaker Onsemi sign SiC power device supply deal
SiC power devices offer higher powertrain efficiency, enabling improved performance, faster charging and longer driving range.
(Image credit: CnEVPost)
Zeekr, Geely's electric vehicle (EV) brand, announced today that it has signed a long-term supply agreement with US chipmaker Onsemi involving a partnership for silicon carbide (SiC) power devices.
Zeekr will use Onsemi's M3E 1200V EliteSiC MOSFET products to complement its expanding lineup of high-performance all-electric models, according to a press release.
SiC power devices offer higher powertrain efficiency, which enables improved performance, faster charging and longer driving range, according to Zeekr.
"With cutting-edge technologies such as advanced SiC, Zeekr will be able to offer electric vehicles with improved performance and even lower carbon emissions," said Andy An, CEO of the company.
Zeekr, which was officially launched as an independent company in March 2021, saw its 100,000th vehicle delivered yesterday, making it one of the fastest new car makers to reach the milestone in China.
Its first model, the Zeekr 001, was launched on April 15, 2021, and deliveries began in October 2021.
On November 1, 2022, Zeekr's second model, the Zeekr 009 MPV, was launched, and its deliveries began on January 15.
On April 12, Zeekr launched its third model, the Zeekr X, which it hopes will become the benchmark for luxury compact cars.
Zeekr delivered 71,941 vehicles in 2022 and aims to double deliveries to about 140,000 in 2023.
As EV makers build higher-performance models, higher voltage platforms require more advanced power devices.
SiC modules are an upgrade to IGBT (insulated gate bipolar transistor chip) modules, a third-generation power semiconductor with higher efficiency, higher temperature resistance and higher voltage characteristics.
The module will help upgrade the electrical architecture of EVs from 400V to 800V and enable vehicles to charge from 0 to 80 percent in 10 minutes.
EV makers including Tesla, BYD, NIO, and XPeng are already using SiC chips in their models.
Zeekr releases Europe strategy, 2 models to debut in Sweden and Netherlands in Q4
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GM To Pull The Plug On Chevy Bolt/Bolt EUV This Year
The Chevy Bolt and Bolt EUV production will end this year, GM says. There are no plans to replace it with an affordable EV.
NIO sees cumulative user mileage exceed 10 billion km
This equates to a reduction of 1.07 million tons of carbon emissions, as well as saving customers about RMB 7 billion in energy costs. | NIO US | NIO HK | NIO SG
(Image credit: NIO)
NIO (NYSE: NIO) saw its cumulative user miles exceed 10 billion kilometers on April 25, marking a new milestone in the company's history.
NIO announced the milestone today on its mobile app, saying its total number of users to date exceeds 320,000.
NIO delivered 10,378 vehicles in March, bringing cumulative deliveries to 320,597 as of March 31, according to data monitored by CnEVPost.
"Reaching this landmark is a proud moment that confirms NIO is a trusted and proven solution for our loyal users. Our compelling range of power solutions, such as our battery swap stations, offers the freedom to travel freely, knowing a robust power solution is never far away," said William Li, founder, chairman, and CEO of NIO.
The company -- all of whose vehicles are zero-emission battery electric vehicles -- said the 10-billion-kilometer mileage represents a reduction of 1.07 million tons of carbon emissions and a savings of about RMB 7 billion ($1 billion) in energy costs for users.
To date, NIO user footprints have covered over 370 cities worldwide. More than 11,000 of them have driven more than 100,000 kilometers, with the longest one reaching nearly 450,000 kilometers.
(Image credit: CnEVPost)
Users have driven more than 821 million kilometers with NIO's assisted driving system, with a cumulative usage time of about 10.76 million hours.
The total mileage of NIO's NOP (Navigate on Pilot) system reached 310 million kilometers, and the total mileage of NOP Plus reached 2,730 kilometers.
As of April 25, NIO has provided more than 21 million battery swap services, and the percentage of power provided by battery swap stations exceeds 60 percent, according to the company.
NIO's battery swap stations provided a peak of 62,356 battery swap services in a single day, equivalent to one NIO vehicle receiving a fully charged battery from these stations every 0.7 seconds, it said.
(Image credit: CnEVPost)
As of April 25, NIO had 1,369 battery swap stations in China, 362 of which are located along highways.
It also has 2,512 charging stations in China, offering 14,903 charging piles, and its charging map has access to 690,000 third-party charging piles.
The company will add 1,000 battery swap stations in China this year, according to its previously announced plans.
In Europe, NIO plans to add up to 70 battery swap stations this year, according to a press release today.
During the upcoming Labor Day holiday, all NIO owners will have unlimited free access to battery swap stations located along highways, it announced yesterday.
This year's Labor Day holiday in China runs from April 29 to May 3. NIO owners will have free access to these battery swap stations from April 28 to May 4, although vehicles used for operational purposes are excluded.
($1 = RMB 6.9239)
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