Following on a year that saw the company climb to become the top plug-in electric vehicle manufacturer in the world, the Chinese company BYD will be releasing two new electric sedans into the Chinese market in 2016, according to recent reports.
The two new cars — the BYD Qin EV300 and e5 — are both all-electric vehicles (EVs), apparently intended to solidify the company’s position as the preeminent Chinese EV manufacturer.
Both sedans will reportedly possess a range of 300 kilometers (~186 miles) per charge on the Chinese testing cycle. With pricing varying somewhat — the Qin EV300 will start at 259,800 yuan ($40,171) reportedly, and the e5 will start at 229,800 ($35,553).
Green Car Reports provides more:
The Qin (pronounced “chin”) EV300 appears to be an all-electric version of the Qin plug-in hybrid first glimpsed at the 2012 Beijing Auto Show. The plug-in hybrid version has been on sale in China for a few years, as well as Costa Rica. The car itself is based on the BYD F3, a compact sedan that resembles older versions of the Toyota Corolla.
The all-electric EV300 has a 160-kilowatt (80-horsepower) motor that also produces 228 pound-feet of torque. That will get the Qin EV300 from 0 to 62 mph in 7.9 seconds, BYD says.
…BYD had less to say about the e5, noting only that it has the same 186-mile range as the Qin EV300. The e5 is based on the gasoline BYD Sui Rui sedan, and uses the same powertrain as the Qin EV300, according to Car News China. It’s “basically a cheaper and less fancy” version of the Qin EV300, the website concludes.
Interestingly, the Qin EV300 will reportedly feature an “advanced” air-purification system — implying that Tesla’s decision to include one in the Model X to improve sales in regions and countries with bad air pollution was likely going to help sales in China.
Both models will also be able to serve as backup power supplies, reportedly.
160 Kw is that the equivalent of 80 Chinese horses??