BYD cuts price of best-seller Yuan Plus/Atto 3 with 12% in China

After announcing new price cuts every day last week for nearly every model in its lineup, BYD announced a 12% price reduction for its best-selling compact SUV, the Yuan Plus, better known in Europe as the Atto 3. In China, the Yuan Plus Glory Edition has a starting price of 119,800 yuan (€15,338).

In Belgium, for instance, the basic Atto 3, with its 60.48 kWh BYD-made blade battery offering a range of 420 km (WLTP), starts at €38,740. It is eligible for the €5,000 Flemish EV premium, but still 120% more than in China, although in all fairness, we have to admit the Chinese base version comes with a smaller 49.92 kWh FinDreams battery.

Family Car of the Year

The compact Atto 3 was launched on the European markets in 2022 and was elected ‘Family Car of the Year 2023’ in the yearly contest by the Flemish mobility organization VAB. For 2024, the BYD Dolphin was the families’ favorite in a competition dominated by Chinese cars in the EV segment. This compact car retails in Belgium from €29,990.

In China, the Yuan Plus comes in five versions, each seeing a 16,000 yuan (€2,047) price reduction, with the most expensive now at 163,800 yuan (€20,963). The updated version remains unchanged regarding core specifications, just adding black exterior and black interior color options and upgraded voice calling.

Same battery packs

The Yuan Plus Glory Edition has the same battery packs as the previous Champion Edition, 49.92 kWh for the cheapest versions and 60.48 kWhj for the three others. All have a single electric motor on the front axle delivering 150 kW and 310 Nm.

Last year, BYD sold 412,202 Yuan Plus EVs, of which some 100,000 were exported as Atto 3, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers. In 2023, BYD sold 3,024,417 NEVs, reaching its target of 3 million units, a 62.3% increase year-on-year.

Target of 4.2 million NEVs

The target for 2024 is over 4 million. According to Chinese media, even 4.2 million cars, with 2 million battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and 2.2 million plug-in hybrids (PHEVs). Last month, at the Geneva Motor Show, the carmaker introduced its first plug-in hybrid version of the Seal U SUV targeted at European markets with low(er) EV demand.

Like Germany and Belgium, for instance? Here, local studies show a negative public feeling about ‘too expensive electric vehicles’, making the still expanding EV market slow down in growth since last year.