BYD presents compact electric concept car at Auto China

BYD has presented its new Ocean M electric car model as a concept at the motor show in Beijing. The production version of the hatchback model will launch on the Chinese market in the third quarter of 2024 at a price of between around 150,000 and 200,000 yuan (approx. 19,300 to 25,800 euros).

It is not yet known whether BYD will also bring the Ocean M to Europe. However, “given the shape and appearance of the hatchback model”, the portal Car News China, for example, assumes that the Ocean M was “almost certainly developed with the European market in mind”.

In terms of technology, the model is to be based on a new electric platform – possibly the successor to the current e-platform 3.0, which may be called e-platform 4.0. However, this has not yet been confirmed – BYD has not provided any technical data, but has only made two rather general statements: Firstly, the OceaN M will feature a rear-wheel drive system, and secondly, it will use a new generation of cell-to-body batteries – so possibly a further development of the current blade batteries. BYD has already dispensed with a separate floor panel for the Seal electric saloon; the cover of the battery housing also forms the floor of the interior.

The Ocean M, which was exhibited at the trade fair, has an emphatically sporty design with a rear spoiler and a hint of a diffuser. BYD itself claims that the Ocean M is “the first high-performance hatchback model with rear-wheel drive”. In fact, other high-performance compact cars such as the MG4 XPower have all-wheel drive.

It has now been confirmed that BYD will be bringing its Seagull small electric car to Europe next year, as a version adapted to the European market. However, it is not yet known how this version will differ from the current Chinese model. Stella Li, Executive Vice President of BYD, told journalists at the trade fair that even she had not yet seen the European version.

So it remains to be seen whether the changes go beyond adapting the charging standard from the Chinese GB/T to CCS, which is widely used in Europe. In its current version, the Seagull is a 3.78-metre-long subcompact car with a battery of up to 39 kWh. This puts the BYD Seagull slightly below the upcoming small electric cars from European manufacturers: Both the Citroen e-C3 and the VW ID.2 are just over four metres in length.

The new Z9 GT of the Denza brand from BYD and Mercedes-Benz also celebrated its trade fair premiere in Beijing. The first images and information about the Shooting Brake had already emerged in advance. The 5.18 metre-long vehicle is said to have three engines with a system output of 710 kW.

cnevpost.com, carnewschina.com (both Ocean M), autoexpress.co.uk (Seagull), cnevpost.com (Denza)