Toyota, Honda, and Nissan gradually worry about it: This ‘win-win’ electric car company begins to extend its ‘octopus’ to their ‘home turf’

Chinese automaker BYD started selling electric vehicles in Japan last week to realize its global ambitions, surpassing traditional automakers.

BYD’s appearance in the world’s 4th largest auto market comes in the context that the company has firmly established the No. 1 position in the domestic electric vehicle market and begins to reach out to other potential markets. against Tesla in the global game.

In addition to Japan, BYD also started selling electric vehicles in Australia and Thailand, and opened a production plant in South America.

“We are excited to bring our cars to Japanese consumers,” said Atsuki Tofukuji, President of BYD Auto Japan. BYD opens its first showroom in Yokohama, a port city south of Tokyo.

Despite being one of the world’s largest electric vehicle manufacturers, BYD’s sales are still mainly from the domestic market. The company is trying to close the gap with Tesla – the globally famous electric car company of billionaire Elon Musk. BYD has also started exporting vehicles to India – one of the most potential markets in the world, and Thailand – where it has its first production center in Southeast Asia.

BYD entered the Japanese market with a major competitive advantage in terms of price. The company’s most advanced model, the Atto 3 mid-size SUV, sells for 4.4 million yen ($33,800), much cheaper than electric cars from Tesla and Nissan. If subsidized by the government, the price will be even lower.

The car will be delivered from March.

The Yokohama showroom will be the first of 20 to open across Japan this year. The company will also cooperate with more than 100 dealers in the country until the end of 2025. This is in stark contrast to Tesla, which mainly sells cars online.

This year, BYD will bring two new models to Japan. Japanese customers can also visit the showroom to test drive the car and according to initial information, they have received “a large number” of orders.

Each BYD dealer here will be equipped with 50 kW fast charging posts, which will allow an Atto 3 to be fully charged in 60 minutes.

The Japanese electric vehicle market is expanding rapidly, though still slower than in some other countries. Electric vehicle sales here in 2022 reached 59,000 units, nearly 3 times higher than in 2021. This number accounts for about 1.7% of total vehicle sales in Japan, surpassing 1% for the first time.

Much of this growth, however, has come from the so-called “kei car” segment. These are cars designed to be ultra-small to maneuver on busy streets. Due to their small size and low power, it is also easier for manufacturers to convert them into electric vehicles.

Meanwhile, the electric vehicle industry here faces a major hurdle: many charging stations offer low-capacity charging posts, taking hours for users to fully charge a typical electric vehicle.

BYD’s strategy is to “provide products tailored to each country’s charging environment,” according to Tofukuji, “unlike Tesla, which only uses its own charging posts.”

Although there are many advantages to develop the market, BYD also faces a lot of competition. Luxury car brands such as Mercedes-Benz, Tesla or Audi are ready to attract young users here. Besides, the Japanese market is also famous for domestic brands that are not too excited about electric cars. These names will slow down the pace of the whole market.