BYD's cheapest electric vehicles. Orders open Monday 13th January for March delivery, confirmed by most major car news websites. Competitive cars for the price.
Range for these models is the same as the current base models. 340km Dolphin and 345km Atto 3. Very competitive options for urban drivers.
How long will legacy car makers continue to rely on loyalty before having to put prices down instead of increasing prices every year?
What are the new brands that are worth considering?
I'm looking at the Leapmotor C10. Wish the range was a bit longer though.
Xpeng, Leapmotors, Deepal have just been released. All three are SUV only at the moment but very high quality.
This year you will also see GAC and their sub-brand AION.
It's strongly rumored that NIO and their sub-brands FIREFLY and ONVO are on the way over the next few years - the NIO brand is China's equivalent of Tesla.
Time to set up shopify store that sells lil "<" stickers that convert the L to a K for Deepal cars.
When will VinFast be here ?
@z28: 11112007 covered most of them but there is also the Zeekr 7X
I have been following a few guys in China who review electric cars over there and I am glad that we will get to experience and test out some of them.
The reason I started following these youtube guys and went down a rabbit hole is I was at a shopping centre rooftop carpark with my fam getting back in to our car and I saw a middle aged Asian man walk up to some strange compact/small SUV type vehicle, then I saw a screen of some sort pop up on the freaking b pillar of his door, not sure if it scanned his face or fingerprint, but then he was able to open the door and a few seconds later flew off like a rocket.
@h0mbre: you talking about the Zeeker X with the little face on the pillar? doesn't do anything just gives you info on charge left and all that stuff. The proximity key unlocks and turns the car on for you when you get close and turns off and locks when you walk away.
you know they pay for positive reviews right?
these things are far more likely to bite prospective buyers down the road
Agree. Although there is an underbelly to all of this that gets overlooked. There is a sizable risk to consumers of picking a brand that dies in the local market, or a model that turns out to be problematic/a lemon, that only time will tell. But it's a fact, its always existed with the car industry that increases with so many young companies. Of course a little time and effort you manage/minimize this risk as a savvy consumer, but fact is alot of consumers are not that discerning.
Sadly as with all new tech these days, the early adopting end-consumers are the beta testers.
The cars that are coming should have been out in China for at least 2 years so if there are issues with certain models it would have been known already over there.
at least 2 years
easily solved, just buy a brand new 2 year old car.
Your also beta testing the dealer/importers/brands willingness to help when things go wrong, or worse case their adherence to consumer garentee/law. And parts servicing technical know how and probably lot more.
high quality chinese EVs
ye…. nahhhh
waiting for the Sealion 7 otherwise definitely consider the ATTO 3
I want to see the BYD Seagull released here. Already in RHD configuration and being sold in Thailand I believe. Ideal replacement for our ICE Honda Jazz, shopping cart, being almost identical in size.
Reckon i could get it cheaper with ABN GST refund and 10% off Coles Myer when they run the promo. ATTO 3 for around $33k is a bargain
Can also get Officeworks to price beat
Costco*
Don't forget 2% shopback.
Just add in the post that these prices are RRP and these models removes lot of features from standard model.
Well the Essential is now the "standard" model…… Dynamic is now mid-range even though the only real difference between that and the Premium is the battery size (which is applies to to Atto 3 as well).
Dolphin Dynamic/Essential — Max power 70kw, 12.3s 0-100km/hour. I guess it's still livable for the Sydney city traffic.
Perfect for my 70 year old mother. If it went any quicker she'd have a heart attack!
Sounds super slow, but faster than a picanto, not to mention instant torque. So would be pretty zippy at lower speeds.
just get a 2nd hand picanto
don't hassle your grandmother with charging an ev unless she has the infrastructure to charge at home
If my mum can plug in her vacuum/toaster/kettle/lamps/phone etc she can plug in a car.
0-60 is more important for the real world city driving.
In terms of speed 80-120 is a better indication of how fast a car is. This takes out how well a car launches out of the equation.
scotty
12.3s 0-100KPH? That's faster than the mighty and much beloved Rover P6 V8 sports saloon that I was just watching a video about…. that was lauded as fantastic power and engineering before its time!
Isn't it funny how a few seconds has become so financially vital over a 60 year period. It's a crying shame we don't earn enough in that handful of seconds to make it meaningful.
Just need to project eyes to the windscreen and a open/shut front grill and you'll have Lightning McQueen.
Jumping spikes might be useful for a getaway car but hard to see much practical use.
How does this compare to MG4?
MG4 the superior vehicle imo
FWD vs RWD.
There a special rear wheel drive dynamism with the mg4 that you won’t find with the Dolphin. The dolphin has a floaty suspension at high speed but very comfortable during bumps. The Mg4 is all around good suspension in all road environment. High speed, bumpy, twisty b roads the mg4 is a better drive
Is currently what we are also deciding between.
Prices should be DRIVE AWAY Australia wide like MG and GWM did. Just looks better on paper.
So how much is the Driveway price for the Dolphin essential in VIC?
Waiting for "These Chinese brands are CCP entities or under CCP influence" comment/s.
These Chinese brands are CCP entities or under CCP influence
correction: chinese brands are only an extension of the CCP when they get enough market share
Hopefully it brings down prices of nice cars like the Hyundai Inster and Toyota Corolla.
Corolla base model hybrid is going to be fearful.
some insider told me sealion 7 premium will be $54,888 before onroads
i shall wait for cybertruck Essential lite economy base SE version.
Cybertruck has a MAGA version also. :)
hopper I was watching a story on a USA cybertruck stealership that was trying to flog them off cheap before they closed down. Apparently there's a crapload of folks that put down $2.5K deposit, but have worked out if they abandon that deposit they can then buy them at market price, saving quite a few bucks.
I've no idea if they're any good, but they seem more honest than coles, with that "prices are down down down" mantra.
BYD sold 3.7m cars in 2024 and you link somewhere with 17 bad reviews?
try 24 thousand cars in australia
as if chinese sales figures matter, its no like you can read their complaints lol
https://www.productreview.com.au/listings/toyota-dealers
BYD's score is higher than Toyota's (and Mazda, and probably a bunch I didn't check).
The idiot left a negative on BYD because he blown a Continental tyre then wants a freebie. genius like you highlighted that. what a joke. Didn't know any brand in the world that comes with tyre blown/puncher guarantee.
My BYD Seal is super quiet in the cabin, it's amazing, very happy after 10,000kms
This sharp pricing is just a CCP gambit to destroy our domestic car industry. We must tax the crap out of them to protect Australian consumers from these dangerously good deals. Blocking all competition is the only way we can defend our free market from the evils of communism.
/s
Domestic car industry? Do you mean these manufacturers??
Current manufacturers
ACE EV Group (2017–present)
AUSLEY AUTOMOTIVE (2019–present)
Bolwell (1962–present)
Borland Racing Developments (1984–present)
Brabham Automotive (2018–present)
Devaux Cars (2001–present)
H2X Australia
Jacer (1995–present)
Minetti Sports Cars (2003–present)
Python (1981–present)
Quantum (2015–present)
Roaring Forties (1997–present)
Spartan-V (2004–present)
Stohr Cars (1991–present)
Yes. Those companies employ literally dozens of hard working Aussie battlers who are the heart and soul of our nation.
TBH I would love to drive Quantum car. It would probably cost 1.5 million though.
@Naigrabzo: I see 'CCP gambit' has entered the chat.
https://turo.com/blog/australia/gearheads/australian-car-bra…
When it comes to car manufacturing, all local car production in Australia ceased in 2017. All vehicles sold in Australia are now imported. The last car to be manufactured in Australia was a red VF Commodore SS-V Redline, manufactured by Holden. which was/is a fake brand Opel.
Ozybargdias
thanks for the giggle!
Electric washing machine.
Mine goes way faster than my old Miele
Will this stripped down Dolphin be the cheapest EV in Austrlian now?
I believe the MG4 prices have increased again.
wow 0-100 in 13 secs, that's insanely so fast. Definitely safe to hug the inner lane on highways.
Yep certainly slow for an EV. I would get the premium version that is 7 seconds 0 to 100kph
It's 2024. No one needs things that this has dropped.
Power-folding exterior mirrors
Panoramic glass roof - unless you can shade it, this is stupid anyways. Burns ya head in Summa.
Rain-sensing wipers
Wireless phone charger
Heated front seats
Rear privacy glass
BYD Digital Key
BYD Bluetooth Key
I do like that a price war is forming though….
What if BYD bring V2G for the future model of this car… Not bad given battery size.
Agreed - pano sunroof and heated seats in particular don't make much sense for the Australian market.
BRING ON THE ventilated seats though. MY friend has a Porche Macan T and the seats are soooooo good. 145k though.
You can get ventilated seats from most brands selling cars between $40 and $100k, not just Porsche!
@PhilToinby: I didn't try those. My friend has M3 without the stalks. Maybe I should stalk her and check out the seats….
@Naigrabzo: Naigrabzo
there's stalking, and there's the porking stalking kind.
I do hope you're going to be doing the legal variety.
So many have vented seats from years ago, our old Renault does.
@PVA: Renault is an under appreciated brand. My friend bought a Renault Megane rs 2021 for 45k. It's very sporty and nice inside. Shocks are shocking though.
Too bad they will leave soon. (My prediction).
They are in the $50k BYD Seal, love the cooling
Heated seats in the middle of winter are quite nice IMO.
Have a spicy curry -> heat your own (HYO)
The only things I could not do without are the power boot and app car access. Find those both very useful.
Remote AC is a nice little luxury. Mercs have it. ;)
Yes I love cooling the car after 2 hours of shopping on a 41 degree day. I could never go back to getting into a +60 to 70 degrees car parked in the sun for hours…
I love the heated seats in our Renault. Great on long drives.
I also think auto wipers are a really good improvement too, think they work well.
Privacy glass (window tint) is also good as its the glass not some stick on film.
I AM SELLING BYD. I DO NOT WANT THIS TO BE OZBARGAINER BADGE
You mean OZB =/ ##BYD**
Happy to see the pano roof go but the folding mirrors and auto wipers would be missed.
What's the point of auto wipers? Wouldn't you as the driver turn them on when you can't see?
Have you ever driven in rain! Auto wipers are great. Rain and car speed is rarely constant, so Auto wipers save you having to constantly adjust the speed manually. Given limited visibility in the wet, it's also a safety feature
I like auto wipers but have never seen them perfectly implemented. I thought it is 2025 but maybe I am still living in the 1970s when they were invented.
Auto wipers save you having to constantly adjust the speed manually
The stalk is on the steering wheel. It's the flick of a finger when holding the steering wheel. Not seeing an advantage or disadvantage.
PhilToinby
It's just another thing to fork up.
I'll leave my thoughts on that being a "safety feature" with the memory of driving the MK 2 zephyr. Those wipers were semi automatic, so not much different than full auto. You want them faster, you put your foot down a bit more….. the vacuum line from the carby to the wiper motor takes care of that automatically.
Yup. I had them on my old MC Mondeo and they were great. Just leave them set to on and the moment a raindrop touches the windscreen they leap into action.
they always go a little bit too fast/slow for my liking.. or get triggered by a slight spray and smudge the windscreen
Does Dolphin Essential still keep V2L feature?
Yes it does.
Thats the building company contracted, not byd themselves.
![[Pre Order] BYD Dolphin Essential $29,990, Atto 3 Essential $39,990 + On-Road Costs @ BYD](https://files.ozbargain.com.au/n/03/888203.jpg?h=2137d65a)
A massive wave is coming this year with Chinese EVs.
Lots of high quality cars from new brands will hit our market soon.
Say what you want, but consumers (us) will win in the end.