Verbose script across the back to go, in favour of a simple badge.

DREAM building aspiration will be less pronounced on BYD models, including soon for the sales leading Atto 3.

Warren Willmot, national manager for BYD New Zealand, says removal of the ‘Build Your Dreams’ bootlid script in favour of a more discreet logo has already begun.

First to lose the verbose tagging is the just-arrived Seal sedan. The process of de-naming will progress to other products as the year unfolds.

Among candidates for a rebranding is the Atto 3, the model that kicked off BYD’s presence here two years ago.

The compact model, which categorises as a sports utility but delivers more closely as a hatchback, has enjoyed a strong 2023, siting not only as the brand’s top performer - an easy task as, for much of the year, it was the sole choice - and the sector’s second-best selling electric passenger vehicle. 

Its 3171 registrations tally for the full 12 months was surpassed only by the Tesla Model Y, which nailed 3936 units. Atto 3 has a strong finish in December, with 429 registrations, though the MG4 was better, on 623. Model Y did 358.

The debadging for NZ follows trend in Australia, Europe and the United Kingdom.

In those markets the Chinese make’s local divisions have decided the full blown badge was too polarising and, rather than being inspirational, has become a detraction.

New Zealand presently shares a common specification Atto 3 with BYD Auto Australia, which recently told media in Australia having the factory remove the script was in response to customer feedback. It also noticed some buyers were immediately removing the lettering.

Willmot offers no comment about that also being an issue here, but has indicated the Atto 3 will revert to a BYD badge, at some point after March and before the the end of August.

“You won’t see it (removed) until at least second, maybe third, quarter.”

The Seal U, a medium electric sports utility version of the just-landed Seal sedan, will also take that course from delivery start, which is planned to be enabled within the first quarter. 

The SeaLion car here between March and June, the much anticipated utility - the make’s first, which has a plug-in hybrid drivetrain - set to land within the third quarter and vans here before the end of year are also very likely to have a BYD badge, rather than fully spelled-out script.

The Dolphin hatch, however, is exempt and will keep the full ‘Build Your Dreams’ lettering as it's embedded in a perspex strip within the tail-lights (similar to the Hyundai Ioniq 6 sedan), rather than a simple glued-on badge, as per the others.

Dolphin is expected to be as popular as Atto 3, whose status might well have benefitted from it being the current holder of New Zealand Car of the Year.

Determined by the New Zealand Motoring Writers’ Guild, the prize is thought to be the first COTY taken by any BYD car, anywhere. 

BYD locally had expressed confidence the Dolphin would be another dead ringer, but it failed to make the top 10 for the 2023 award, set to be announced next month. In response, BYD cancelled test bookings.

Meantime, the parent brand also made headlines this week for having begun construction on its first sodium-ion battery plant, marking a significant step towards diversifying the EV battery landscape. 

The $2.25 billion project boasts a planned annual capacity of 30 GWh and comes amidst growing interest in alternative battery chemistries. 

While lithium-ion batteries currently dominate the market, concerns regarding sustainability, cost, and resource scarcity have prompted some big brands - notably, other than BYD, Volkswagen Group and Toyota - to explore innovative solutions. 

Sodium-ion batteries, with their abundant and readily available sodium resources, offer a promising alternative.

Also in the news cycle is an announcement to build a manufacturing and production centre in Szeged, Hungary. The facility will be the first of its kind built by a Chinese automotive company in Europe and will have the advanced car production line. 

This all comes atop release of data suggesting it has overtaken Tesla as the world’s biggest producer of electric cars.