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While officially, BYD stands for "Bring Your Dreams", some wry industry observers have said that the moniker really stands for "Bring Your Dollars". ;-)
However, BYD has recently introduced products from a luxury division, Yangwang, and this *should* be interpreted as the "Bring Your Dollars" brand.
Last fall, they introduced their:
U8 model: "Yangwang launched its first vehicle, the U8 off-road NEV SUV, in September. The luxury off-roader starts at over $150,000 (1,098,000 RMB) but is designed to tackle any terrain with 1,200 hp, tank turns, tire blowout stabilization, and other cool features."
and they just previewed the 1,000HP U7 model: "The brand calls it a 'million-level new energy flagship sedan'."
It's still early days, but I think that even if this new luxury division succeeds, the total revenues will be modest - there just aren't a lot of buyers for cars starting well over $100k. However, much like when Honda, Toyota and Nissan introduced their Acura, Lexus and Infinity divisions, I think that part of the goal of the parent company, is to send a message to the market that says "Sure, we build inexpensive Everyman cars, but we can do this fancy stuff too" - i.e., to burnish their image.
Particularly with EVs big HP numbers don't really mean anything. Even with established companies, I was very unimpressed with the BMW i4 when I drove that one. It's quick, nauseatingly so... but it drives like crap. It's fine for 7/10ths. Leave it in comfort mode and drive around like an old lady and it's good. It's when you want to drive it though where it falls apart. It's just bad everywhere. Throttle response, suspension tuning, stability/traction, it's like driving a Hyundai. Bad. I haven't driven the Vinfast. I wouldn't say the i4 is that bad. It's just not much better than the Ioniq 6 which is a floaty cruiser that also doesn't drive well at all when you push it past 7/10ths. That'll be where BYD will make it or break it, not on big HP numbers.
Particularly with EVs big HP numbers don't really mean anything. Even with established companies, I was very unimpressed with the BMW i4 when I drove that one. It's quick, nauseatingly so... but it drives like crap. It's fine for 7/10ths. Leave it in comfort mode and drive around like an old lady and it's good. It's when you want to drive it though where it falls apart. It's just bad everywhere. Throttle response, suspension tuning, stability/traction, it's like driving a Hyundai. Bad. I haven't driven the Vinfast. I wouldn't say the i4 is that bad. It's just not much better than the Ioniq 6 which is a floaty cruiser that also doesn't drive well at all when you push it past 7/10ths. That'll be where BYD will make it or break it, not on big HP numbers.
I agree with you on many of the big number EVs, but I got to drive a Lucid Air Grand Touring and not only was it blisteringly fast, it seriously was a good dance partner in undulating twisty backroads at speed. It really feels smaller around you the faster it goes, much like my old E38 740i Sport. A big car shouldn't handle that good, but man, it was impressive. But for $130k+ it should be impressive.
I agree with you on many of the big number EVs, but I got to drive a Lucid Air Grand Touring and not only was it blisteringly fast, it seriously was a good dance partner in undulating twisty backroads at speed. It really feels smaller around you the faster it goes, much like my old E38 740i Sport. A big car shouldn't handle that good, but man, it was impressive. But for $130k+ it should be impressive.
I've never read anything but good things about the Lucid Air. That said, they're just not selling a lot of them (probably not the best time to sell a high end sedan), and Lucid, while it's solvent for the time being, I think its finances are a question mark once you start to look out 2-3 more years. GM or Toyota can have a dud with their first EV model(s) because they still have plenty of money coming in from their ICE vehicles, but Lucid doesn't sell anything besides the Air sedans, and they sold 6,001 of them in 2023. Yes, they're pricey, but these unit sales still won't translate to massive gross revenue. https://techcrunch.com/2024/01/11/lu...-pure-gravity/
They do have another model in late development - the Gravity - a big crossover that's due out late this year that's said to start around $80k, and they're reported to have some smaller and less expensive models in the development pipeline, but they clearly *need* something else beyond the Air to thrive so hopefully one of the pending models will be more commercially successful for them. I think the Air has been a technical success, but it isn't making the dollars just flood into their coffers.
Last edited by OutdoorLover; 01-18-2024 at 10:28 PM..
I've never read anything but good things about the Lucid Air. That said, they're just not selling a lot of them (probably not the best time to sell a high end sedan),
Definitely. Selling a sedan is hard now, and a luxury one in an era of high interest rates is simply bad timing, considering when they started development.
Quote:
and Lucid, while it's solvent for the time being, I think its finances are a question mark once you start to look out 2-3 more years.
They are backed by the Saudi Royal Fund and they aren't going anywhere. It's mostly an excuse to make something that can withstand the end of the oil economy.
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