BYD Launches YangWang Luxury EV Brand, Offering Rugged 4x4 and a Supercar

BYD has launched its second-ever EV brand, dubbed as the YangWang. Focusing on luxury EVs with “professional and personal” touch, the Chinese luxury EV marque unveils its first two models, namely the U8, a rugged-looking 4x4 EV, as well as the U9, a sporty coupe with supercar-rivalling performance.

Known for their relatively affordable EVs with reliable performance and range, BYD is poised to broaden its market scope by also venturing into the luxury vehicles market. The two new EV models are BYD’s attempt to battle against traditional luxury automakers such as Mercedes-Benz and Audi, of which both have dipped their toes in the electromobility space.

Prior to this launch, BYD had just shipped its three millionth new energy vehicles (NEV), as well as recording a total vehicle sale of 1.8 million units in 2022 alone, thus making them the world’s leading electrified automakers.

Following the 2022 success, BYD CEO Wang Chuanfu has set a new sales target of 4 million cars in 2023 for BYD and all its sub-brands. The CEO also said that the new YangWang brand “will reshape the contours of the global luxury car market.”

To kick-start its venture, BYD and YangWang have unveiled its two leading contenders, the U8 SUV and U9 sports coupe. Boasting a rugged, outdoor-sy look, the U8 is the marque’s bid to go against the likes of the new Mercedes-Benz G-Class EQG EV in the 4x4 EV category. The U8 underpins a proper ladder-frame electric platform that houses BYD’s proprietary blade battery packs, as well as its quad motor layout that garners the U8 with sophisticated off-roading capabilities like turning 360-degree in a single spot.

Each of the four motors the U8 harnesses is rated at around 295 to 322 HP and 320 to 420 NM, which results in a total power output of over 1,100 HP. Said output number allows this heavy SUV to despatch from nought to 100 KM/H in only 3 seconds.

Heavily inspired by other off-roading models like the Land Rover Defender, the U8 rides on a set of 20-inch alloy wheels, while sporting few notable off-roading features including the boxy fenders with squared-off wheel arches, spare wheel with hexagonal-shaped cover mounted at its back. Aside from that ,the U8 also comes with stylish design features like the LED headlights that merge with its illuminated faux grille, flush door handles, split LED taillights and more.

The BYD YangWang U8 is poised for a price tag from ¥800,000 to ¥1,500,000 (approx. RM512,215 to RM960,404), though exact price is yet to be confirmed by the marque.

On the other hand, BYD has also unveiled the all-new YangWang U9 sports coupe. This sporty EV comes with a low-slung silhouette, as well as sophisticated aero bits like the shark fin tail mounted on its raking rear windshield. Its front fascia is donned with massive C-shaped LED headlights that go all the way down to its front splitter.

On the rear side, the U9 sports full-width LED taillights, alongside the massive rear diffuser with integrated fins and some blocked inlets.

In the performance department, the U9 is definitely no slouch. Just like the U8, the U9 is powered by a quad motor layout that produces over 1,100 HP – essentially putting it in the hypercar territory. This power output reflects in its real-world performance, as the U9 can despatch from nought to 100 KM/H in a claimed 2 seconds flat.

Though its stellar performance sounds too good to be true, the YangWang U9 is a production-ready vehicle, rather than a one-off concept. Set to launch later this year, the U9 is poised for a price tag well over ¥1,000,000 (RM640,269).