TOKYO: China’s BYD Co has unveiled its first battery-powered kei for Japan, betting the popularity of the pint-sized vehicles will help it make greater inroads in the country.
The Racco is scheduled for release in summer 2026, BYD said as it unveiled a prototype of the boxy four-door car at the Japan Mobility Show held in here yesterday.
This will mark BYD’s fifth model in Japan, yet the Chinese electric vehicle (EV) giant has struggled to find a foothold there as its still dominated by domestic brands and petrol-electric hybrids.
Small, affordable kei cars cars account for the lion’s share of Japan’s nascent electric vehicle market.
BYD has struggled to gain traction with its current models in Japan, including the Atto 3, Sealion 7 and Dolphin, selling just 5,300 vehicles since the electric car maker entered Japan’s passenger vehicle market in January 2023 through June this year.
Lately, it has resorted to steep discounts to ignite demand. The company is offering discounts of up to one million yen (around US$6,500) that, in addition to government subsidies, can slash sticker prices by as much as 50%.
EVs accounted for about 140,000 units or around 3.5% of the country’s total vehicle sales in 2023, according to BloombergNEF, and kei cars make up more than half of that.
BYD eventually plans to roll out up to eight models in Japan, including plug-in hybrids, and has previously outlined plans to open 100 locations across its domestic dealership network. — Bloomberg
