Chinese electric vehicle giant BYD Co. said Tuesday it has launched the Seal sedan in Japan, its third EV model in the country, as it tries to establish dominance in the fledgling all-electric segment.
The new model, with prices starting at 5.28 million yen ($33,100), can drive up to 640 kilometers on a single charge, longer than its ATTO 3 sport utility vehicle and the Dolphin compact car that are already sold in Japan. The seal brings a sportier design to the brand's lineup, it said.
The Chinese automaker is one of the biggest producers of EVs globally, vying for the top spot with U.S. giant Tesla Inc., but its presence remains small in Japan, where all-electric cars only account for a fragment of new car sales.
"We hope the Seal is to be the model that changes the tide of the market," Atsuki Tofukuji, president of BYD Auto Japan Inc., a BYD unit in charge of sales in Japan, said at a press conference in Tokyo.
The Japanese unit of the Chinese company said in March it would introduce a new model to the Japanese market every year through 2026 as it looks to gain a foothold in the country.
The Chinese automaker, which entered Japan's passenger EV market in 2023, has received over 2,500 orders for its first two models so far, it said.
