BYD Enters Japanese Market With Dolphin Affordable Model

JAKARTA - The success of automotive brands from China in their local market encourages them to penetrate the global market. Several brands such as Chery and Great Wall Motors (GWM) managed to steal attention in the global automotive market share.

Of course, another major Chinese manufacturer, BYD, which has already gone global and has succeeded in marketing its electric vehicles in several countries, does not want to be left behind.

BYD officially entered the Japanese market by launching the Dolphin model this month, following the release of Atto 3 which was launched in the Land of the Rising Sun. This is a strong step showing BYD's commitment to the highly competitive Japanese market.

Reporting from the CarNewsChina page, Sunday, September 3, the pre-ordering period for Dolphin will begin on September 20. This is certainly a bold step for BYD who will compete in countries that are also the basis for large manufacturers such as Toyota, Honda, Nissan, and others.

Of course, BYD has paid attention to this competition by providing a Dolphin model compatible with CHADEMO charging commonly used in Japan, making it easier for vehicle owners to charge.

BYD will offer two Dolphin variants, namely the standard version and the Long Range. The standard variant has an impressive range of up to 400 km in one charge, while Long Range has a longer range of up to 476 km.

Just like what is done in the European market, BYD plans to sell Dolphin at an affordable price. As an illustration, BYD Dolphin is sold in China for around 116,800 yuan or around Rp. 245.2 million.

Previously, BYD had opened its first dealer in Japan located in Yokohama and had sold around 700 units of electric vehicles such as Atto 3.

The next step, BYD plans to open up to 100 more dealers by the end of 2025 to compete with auto giants in Japan.

Currently, BYD is only focused on selling electric vehicles in Japan as a first step. They don't yet have plans to bring other environmentally friendly vehicles, such as Plug-In Hybrid (PHEV), to the Japanese market.