Why BYD Is Now The Clear EV Leader – CleanTechnica

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Steve Hanley wrote an article yesterday about EV sales in China in May. In response, Larry Evans wrote a long, enlightening comment regarding BYD that deserves more attention. Here it is (with only slight editing):

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By Larry Evans

One thing over the past month that is starting to crystalize is that BYD is really embracing that engineering problem solving mindset in China. In a recent address, CEO Wang Chaunfu focused more on the problems they are trying to solve than on highlighting successes or making promises. They have recently been subject to attacks originating from competitors. But that criticism seems to fuel the fire.

For example:

• Last year, people criticized BYD for being behind on intelligent driving (Level 2 ADAS and up). In May, they sold 79% of vehicles with intelligent driving technology in China. In addition to cross-country media drives with no driver interventions (something that Tesla promised years ago and has yet to accomplish), US-based reviewers that have tested it have said that their system is better than anything available here.
• People recently criticized BYD for their supplier payment terms (even though they were outperforming many of their peers in reality). So BYD started the “payment war” that shortened the timeframe and pressured competitors to follow suit. BYD can afford it, but this will put pressure on competitors that will accelerate consolidation.

And there is more … some other overall EV criticisms:

• “EVs are too expensive.”
  Now less than legacy ICE in China and several other open markets.
• “EVs do not make money and are not financially sustainable.”
  BYD revenue, net earnings and margins were up over the past year while average transaction price declined.
• “Too limited product range. Not a perfect fit for my needs.”
  Model proliferation and specialization to a wide range of use cases.
• “Slow charging speeds.”
  Now 400+ km in 5 minutes. Multiple public tests to verify.
• “OK, but where are you going to find that charger?”
  Can take one or more charge guns at lesser chargers to charge at the maximum output available, regardless of voltage. Uses existing power electronics to serve as an onboard fast charger to over 500kW. Also rapidly rolling out 20,000 MW charging stations with multiple terminals. More expected soon, with EU rollout in the next 12 months.
• “Might have torque off the line, but gutless on the highway. Efficiency drops on the highway.”
  Han L does not hit peak power until 140 km/h and has peak motor efficiency extend past the speed limit in China.
• “Battery overheats.”
  Top and bottom refrigerant cooling. Dozens of back to back acceleration runs with no degradation in performance. Also fast charging in below freezing temperatures.
• “Battery life?”
  Now over 10,000 charge cycles for the new Blade batteries, good for millions of miles….

You can keep going….

Arguably the biggest challenge now is “not available in my area” and “too expensive in my area.” Unfortunately, that is often a political problem more than an engineering problem. But expansion is expected where the politics do not get in the way.

Overall, competitors should be careful with their criticism. They are poking the bear. BYD has over 120,000 R&D engineers, more than all US-based OEMs combined and more than any other automaker (by some accounts, more than any other company). And they are working on more advanced systems to better utilize that talent. If you believe in the power of engineering, they have the firepower to solve problems. If you criticize them or point out a problem, they are likely to find a solution relatively quickly and then do it better.

Right now, people are trying really hard to point out a weakness in the growth story. New, significant product is still coming, and 2H will be interesting.