Five things you should know about the BYD F3 DM
China Car Times is very much looking forward to test driving China’s first plug-in hybrid, the BYD F3 DM, but in the meantime US News has compiled a list of 5 things you should know about the BYD F3DM:
This week, China’s first mass-produced plug-in hybrid car went to market, produced by relative newcomer BYD. The car costs about $22,000, and can run up to 60 miles on a battery charged by a normal electrical outlet. Here are a few things you should know about the F3DM:
1. It may beat American plug-ins to the market. The F3DM may come overseas as soon as 2010. The United States is currently examining the F3DM to see if it is up to standards for the market. If it checks out OK, it would narrowly beat the Volt – and cost almost half as much.
2. BYD builds rechargeable batteries for other things, too. BYD is the world’s largest manufacturer of rechargeable cell-phone batteries, boasting a 30 percent market share. It also makes batteries for laptops, tools, and other electronics. The difficulty in producing a cheap rechargeable battery was part of the reason the Volt has struggled. BYD claims that their ferrous battery technology that he says is superior to the nickel metal hydrate battery used in the Toyota Prius. The company told Bloomberg that the car’s batteries can be fully recharged from a power point in as little as seven hours and 50 percent powered via a quick charge at a specialist station in 10 minutes.
3. BYD doesn’t have a reputation to uphold. Primarily a battery company, BYD only ventured into autos in 2003, after the acquisition of a Chinese automaker, Tsinchuan Automobile Company Limited. Because of this, “They just have to make news, and they’re doing that quite well. There’s a lot of question as to how well this car is going to perform, how long the battery is going to last, and whether the vehicle is at all safe,” said Hank Green of EcoGeek.
4. In China, it may be hard to charge. Chinese drivers keep their cars in group lots for apartment buildings, rather than single-family-home garages. Many of these lots do not have electrical outlets to charge cars overnight, according to Business Week. “Infrastructure is a problem,” said Yale Zhang, director of greater China at automobile forecaster CSM Worldwide in Shanghai.Henry Li, general manager of BYD Auto, predicts sales of a few hundred in the next 12 months.
5. Warren Buffett stands to profit. In September, Des Moines-based MidAmerican Energy, which is controlled by Berkshire Hathaway, paid $231 million for a 9.9 percent stake in BYD Auto’s parent company BYD with a view to helping BYD distribute its cars in the U.S. by 2011.
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Here’s a link to an article about the car that appeared in Business Week http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/dec2008/gb20081215_913780.htm
Businessweek must be smoking something if they think an F3 resembles a Camry (quote-the F3 DM is based on the same platform as the gas-powered F3 sedan by BYD that resembles the Toyota Camry)…… that or they don’t use CCT for research…..shame on them…..
BYD must have been smoking the same stuff….. either that or their media officer doesn’t speak good Englihs. http://www.byd.com/news/newsmore.asp?id=54&show=media
The bottom of that BYD link shows it was taken from Biz Week
I know, makes you wonder if BYD think they borrowed the styling off the Camry instead of the Corolla
Point 4 is the most valid for the success of this within China if they try to sell it from an electric point of veiw. Regular supply is not guaranteed from a retail standpoint in China. It might be fine for the new areas but the older areas (ie, in the city centers) still have too many places with inadequate wiring.
However, if they can make this good enough to be able to sell in the USA then GM better make the Volt a lot cheaper than planned…….. and hope they will establish some charging centers there as well.
I have to point out, even though I can easily (very easily) afford to put gas in my cars without a problem, the prospect of having a plug in car that can do 100km on a single charge is exciting! Even though the cars design is bland, its functions and features are fantastic. That car is perfect for me, I never do more than 100km per day (well, sometimes). I was thinking of a Roewe 550 for my wife next year, but now Im coming around to the F3DM. No more fuel fees, only sky high electric bills instead. Sign me up.
It would be fine if you have a power point beside your parking space……..that or get one of those teaching jobs with free utilities
Ill work it out over the weekened once I get the stats on the BYD F3 DM charger. Would it before expensive to charge a 75kw motor’d car, or fill it with gas once a week?
That would depend on how heavy your foot is
. Might be a good idea to buy that nice long extension cord to hang out the window as well…..100m ought to do it 
.
So how’s the car selling?
Theyre expecting to sell a few 100 cars per year, i think theyll crush that goal within a week.
I hope they sell fast so that hybrids make a major share of their sales.