BYD premium brand Denza celebrates its debut in Europe

Denza was fully taken over by BYD last year, after the Mercedes-Benz Group sold its last ten per cent stake in Denza in July 2024. At the time, a Mercedes spokesperson confirmed to electrive that the current Denza models no longer contain any Mercedes-Benz technology.

Now, China’s largest electric car manufacturer BYD is bringing its premium brand to Europe. The strategic decision was made last year. “We’re thrilled to be introducing Denza to European customers, starting here in Milan and accelerating as 2025 progresses,” Stella Li, executive vice president at BYD, said in a statement. “The Denza brand has European influence at its heart, and we are confident that buyers will find distinctive, unique appeal in the car’s mix of sophisticated, elegant design, strong performance and astounding technology.”

The Z9 GT was designed by Wolfgang Egger, the former Head of Design at Audi. His aim with the Denza brand is to combine elegant finesse and first-class craftsmanship to create a strong sense of resilience, safety and power. The clean, sleek surfaces of Denza vehicles are inspired by silk, said Egger.

The most important details about the Z9 GT are already known, as it went on sale in China in September 2024. The car is a luxuriously equipped vehicle with a sports car engine that is reminiscent of the Porsche Taycan Sport Turismo and is positioned between the Xiaomi SU7 and SU7 Ultra in terms of system performance. That is because its three engines have a combined output of 710 kW, which is almost 1,000 hp. The car should be able to sprint from 0 to 100 kph in just 3.4 seconds. The battery has a capacity of 100 kW. The range according to the Chinese CLTC method is 630 kilometers. The European WLTP value, which is likely to be lower, is still to follow.

In addition to the all-electric Z9 GT, Denza also intends to launch a plug-in hybrid version on the European market. This version, called the Z9 GT Super DM, combines a 2.0-litre petrol engine with 200 kW on the front axle with two electric motors on the rear axle with 220 kW each. The battery has a capacity of 38.5 kWh and is said to offer a purely electric CLTC range of 201 kilometres. The total range according to CLTC is 1,101 kilometers.

A special highlight of the model is the ‘crab-walk function’: if required, the rear wheels can turn to match the angle of the front wheels. This works up to an angle of 15 degrees and should make parking parallel to the road much easier. It also significantly reduces the turning circle.

BYD has not yet announced exactly when the Denza Z9 GT will be available or in which European countries. The brand should be able to draw on BYD’s existing sales network and not have to start from scratch. Officially, the Denza Z9 GT is set to arrive in European showrooms in the fourth quarter of 2025. Until then, the vehicle will be optimised for the European market in terms of powertrain, performance, range, tyre sizes and specifications as well as load capacity.

Meanwhile, the company also announced the second Denza model for Europe in Milan: the D9, a seven-seater premium van, which was unveiled in 2022. Here, too, there is no exact timetable yet.

Source: Information per e-mail, cnbc.com, fleetnews.co.uk