097 - BYD Boss talks 2026 in Australia and the new Atto 1

This is Two Blokes Talking Electric Cars with Trevor Long and Stephen Fennig, thanks to NRMA Insurance and Unidan.

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Massive show today.

We want to unpack the announcement of about a week and a bit ago of the Addo One and Two pricing.

We're going to be joined shortly by the Chief Operating Officer of BYD Australia, Stephen Collins.

We appreciate him taking some time.

We'll get to him shortly.

But Stephen, like this is aggressive.

Now, the Addo One is a fascinating car because it's a nice compact hatchback.

But for real perspective on this, this is exciting for a very important reason.

This is the first time we have come anywhere near parity on pricing between petrol and electric cars.

It is a watershed moment, they call it, mate.

It is.

I've just done a quick look and look, I think when we get to see it and it's on the road and you drive it,

it may not be 100% equivalent to these vehicles.

But without question, there's three cars that come to mind when I think compact hatchback.

They are the Kia Picanto, the Toyota Yaris and the Mazda 2.

You might argue the Mazda 2 kind of feels a touch bigger.

It might be.

But the Mazda 2 starts at about $28,999.

Starts.

Drive away.

Drive away price.

The Toyota Yaris, drive away price $32,790.

The Kia Picanto, $19,190 plus driveaways, which takes it to $22,000.

So driveaway prices are hard to work out at the best of times.

But if you say roughly a Kia Picanto is $3,500 for the on-road costs, then the Addo 1 at $23,990

is probably going to be driveaway $27,000.

Maybe they'll do some...

It's in the ballpark.

They'll do some sharp driveaway pricing, which will probably take it to, I think, $27,999.

Which means it's on par with a Mazda 2 and just cheaper than a Toyota Yaris.

That was the issue, I think, for people who were keen to buy an EV was price, right?

And also the class of car they want to buy, in this case a compact car, a smaller car.

And so up until now, there was really no choice for them.

But now, suddenly, BYDs come through with...

And basically what they've done with these announcements is just plugged the gaps in their range.

That's right.

They thought, right, we need an ultra-cheap here and we need another one here.

And that's basically what they've come up with at prices that we expected and see very competitive.

You think about our main game, smartphone technology, right?

Think about Samsung, right?

They've got a smartphone from $250 all the way up to $2,500.

Just at every price point.

That's what BYDs do.

They go, we want for every person that has a budget for a car,

we want to have one that's under that budget, right?

Now, the biggest criticism you could objectively make of these cars,

especially the Auto 1, is range.

The Auto 1 has a range of between 220 and 320 kilometers, right?

That's because it's a small car with a small battery.

Smaller battery, yeah.

It's not made for highway driving.

No.

It's made for city driving, of course.

You wouldn't buy this car if you're driving from Canberra to Sydney every week, right?

Yeah, but again, having said that, if you're buying a Yaris

or you're not driving in the country every weekend.

I've taken our Mazda 2, which we've owned for 13 odd years.

It's been to the country once.

There you go.

Because I had no other choice one day, right?

Yeah.

But it's not like you can't do it.

No.

In this case, you can charge halfway.

You definitely can.

Not a problem.

You could charge every 150Ks, no dramas at all.

Yeah.

But this is a ultimate city run about.

So, and again, I'll be demographically, it's not, you know, anti,

no, not anti.

I don't want to pigeonhole this as an old person's car.

Okay.

That's what I want to say.

Well, that, it could pretend to be a young person's car.

It sits at both ends of the spectrum.

This could be your first car.

Yeah.

Because mate, Jackson has never driven.

He's driven to Barrie a few times down south, but he'll take our car.

He's taking our care for that, right?

The bigger car, yeah.

This is perfect for him, right?

Yeah.

So it's a perfect first car.

But it's also perfect.

It sounds terrible.

Last car.

So lovely lady who lives across the road from me.

If you haven't watched this show, Gail, hello.

I don't think she does.

But Gail owns a Toyota Corolla.

Yep.

Now, Gail, I don't know if she's got solar.

But if you're retired and you've put solar on your house,

you put a battery in and you're buying a new car

and you're probably going to buy a Toyota Yaris

or Toyota Corolla and those kind of things.

When you buy this, it's essentially free upkeep

because you're either charging it

at a tenth of the price of petrol overnight.

You're charging it for free while you're at home

because you don't work.

Yeah.

That ongoing saving.

Because I think about my mum who's on a pension.

Yeah.

And I go, there wouldn't be for her

because she drives hundreds of kilometres.

She's just driven to Armour.

Yeah.

That's just insane.

Be good for my mum.

Yeah.

And she could plug this in at night.

She's at home during the day.

No promise.

Plug in.

Yeah.

It's just, it's simple, right?

Easy.

And that battery is going to recharge overnight

even on basic AC power.

Well, that's good.

Well, I think it's, look,

it's opened up the possibilities

for people who had no option before.

The Addo.

Good on BYD for creating that option.

The Addo 1 makes sense to me.

The Addo 2 I struggle with

because I actually don't think it's as good looking,

good looking car as the Addo 1.

It's like there's two design teams at BYD.

Yeah.

One that does these awesome,

the Seale, the C-Line 7.

Yeah.

The Addo 1.

And then there's a design team

that did the C-Line 6.

They did the Addo 3.

Yeah.

And they've done the Addo 2.

So you reckon there's not,

there's not the consistency

across the board?

I don't think, like these two cars

don't look like brother and sister

from the same year.

Yeah, maybe.

They look like generationally

different cars.

And that's fine.

Well, yeah.

The Addo 2 looks more like

the 3, don't you?

Exactly.

That's what I'm saying.

Whereas the Addo 1 is sort of like

you reckon the adopted child

might not look the same.

Which I think is a better looking car.

I see.

The Addo 2, it's almost the same size

of the Addo 3.

No, it's slightly smaller.

But in terms of sitting

and looking at them,

it really is plugging a gap

just on price in the middle there.

It's fascinating that the way

they've done that.

Yeah.

I don't know.

I see what you're meaning here.

The one that does sort of have

more of a, would you say more

a European sort of looking style?

It has a sporting look.

Yeah, more sporty.

Whereas the Addo 2

sort of your more family

sort of size car and more for

maybe, like I look at the Addo 1

is sort of like a single person,

young person's car,

older person's car.

Addo 2 more, a family car.

You know, mum and dad

dropping off the kids and stuff.

BYD, after six months of sales

of the Addo 1 would be mad

not to come out with a

Addo 1 Sport version, right?

So all you do is you refine

the motor to give it some more

oomph.

Maybe you need a bigger battery.

I don't know.

But you give it little flares

on the wheels.

If anyone's seen the Toyota Yaris GR

which is a legitimate sports car,

I will say,

but mate, the appeal of the Hyundai i20N,

the i30N of a sporty version

of a hatchback.

Hatchbacks are all,

like ever since I've been an owner,

I've always been a hatchback owner.

There's always been the sporty version,

you know, your Golf GTI.

They would be mad

because of those lines

and that style

to not come out with a

souped up version.

Yeah, I know we're going to talk to

Steven Collins from BYD in a moment.

So I'm assuming they're going to

keep all of these

as well as the Dolphins.

I have to ask him,

because in reality,

the Addo 3 and Dolphin

are like the old versions of these.

Yeah.

Yeah, maybe.

So if it's true,

they're bringing the range

into a different price,

but it also works to that Samsung

analogy of having something

at every price.

Something for everybody.

Correct.

You can spend top range

or entry level.

And as I understand,

they're going to be in showrooms

next month.

These will be on sale next year.

So we are going to see

in January, February sales data,

we're going to see BYD.

BYD at every level.

Dude, the C-Line 7

is going nuts.

The BYD Shark 6 is going well.

The Addo 3 is still doing well.

You throw these in.

Yeah.

This is a super exciting time.

They've got choices for everyone.

I know.

Well, that's why the brand's

doing so well.

They've just given people options

and doing it

at a very offering value

as well as quality.

Yeah.

That's the key here.

They've nailed,

they've really nailed that zone

where you're getting

the value and the quality

at the same time.

Check it out.

The BYD Addo 1

and Addo 2

cracking prices,

but let's dig into it a bit more

and actually talk to the boss

of BYD after this.

Steven, we talk about

every electric car brand

and I've got to say,

if you had to pick,

just think about all the callers

we've had on the show

and if you want to get in touch,

by the way, folks,

send us a text

at 3477-657-657.

We'd love to hear from you

if you've bought a car,

you're buying a car,

you've bought and sold a car

or you're in the market

or you just don't like it.

Whatever it is,

we want to talk EVs with everyone.

But think about the top three brands

we've had callers about.

Yep.

What would be number one?

I would say BYD.

I agree.

Yeah, BYD with,

yeah, that was the first one.

It's probably Tesla would be second

because I think early on

we had a lot of that

and just in the last few months,

probably there's been a bit of hype on that.

So we've taken the opportunity

to get in touch with the great people at BYD

and we would say newly appointed

but feet are well under the desk.

The chief operating officer

from BYD,

Australia Stephen Collins

joins us on the line.

G'day Stephen,

how are you doing?

I'm fantastic.

Great to join you guys.

Mate, thank you so much

for spending some time with us.

You've had a massive,

massive couple of weeks

because you've announced

two brand new cars.

Let's talk about them first

and then we might just unpack

a bit of the BYD story.

But the Addo 1 and the Addo 2

are coming very soon into Australia

and the sharpest pricing

we've ever seen for electric vehicles.

You must be firstly excited and proud.

We will certainly

I'm proud, very excited

about launching both

Addo 1 and Addo 2

to the Australian market

and it really I think is

an illustration of

our desire to bring

the world's best technology

to the masses.

And we launched the vehicles

last week.

They've both gone on sale.

We've got Addo 2s in dealerships

as we speak

and Addo 1s will start arriving

in December.

So yeah, it's a fantastic time

to be about the brand that's growing

and will continue to grow

into next year.

You mentioned the growth

of the brand Stephen.

I'd say it's like a start-up

where you see all this

sudden growth.

How was that to deal with

as a company

with the massive sales

you were getting

and all the attraction

from drivers?

Well, it's been quite amazing really.

The brand entered

the Australian market back

in late 2022

under the

distributorship of EV Direct.

And EV Direct did a fantastic job

and we took over as the full

OEM in July of this year.

So when you look back

over the last three years

this month will sell

our 80,000th vehicle.

So the growth has been

really phenomenal

and I think

when I look back

from this year

has been really extraordinary.

In the first half of this year

we probably averaged

around sort of 4,000 units a month

and more recently

sort of 4,000 to 5,000 units a month.

So it's on the back of

some great product.

I think Shark Six has given us

a huge lift

in a really important market

segment in the country

and Sea Line 7

which is now the most popular

EV in the market

is really

kicked a home run

with a lot of buyers

particularly innovative lease buyers.

So yeah, look it's

unprecedented growth in the industry

and my mission

is to keep that going.

I look at the market

and you launched with the

Atto 3 which

out of the box

was just an unbelievable car

because it was

a little bit of premium to it

but it was also

a bit quirky and unique.

It was just the right size

for the market

to see a car in growth.

Then you had the Dolphin

where in terms of just

small hatches and things

but where does the 1 and 2

fit in for the Atto?

Is the Atto 1 a

replacement for the Dolphin

in the medium term?

The Atto 2 for the 3

or are all of those

four vehicles

just talking about

the fully electric four

that I've mentioned there

the Dolphin, the Atto 3

the 1 and the 2

do they all live together

for the next year or so

or is there a bit of a

migration?

Absolutely they all live together

so we see Atto 1 as very much

and of course it's

Australia's most affordable EV

but what it really

brings to the market

is under the affordability umbrella

the world's BYD's best technology

best safety best design

in just a fun to drive city package

so we see

Atto 1 having that sort of role

and we think also

a lot of new buyers to EV's

and potentially even

people who are looking

at late model used cars

we think at the price positioning

we've come in at

it'll give those people

a real alternative

in terms of an EV

and Atto 2

accessible EV

SUV we think still

has very much a role to play

with Atto 3

so what we're really doing

is filling out the range

so particularly in SUV's

anyone who's after an SUV

at the low end

the mid end

the high end

will soon have

C1 8 coming into the market

with a 7 seat option

we really want to be the brand

that offers customers

just that array of choice

depending on their own

personal requirements

The growth of the EV market

in Australia

has very much reflected

the company growth as well

so you can really take

some responsibility for that

and some pride in that

how much is

how much though are you

sort of putting into

sort of local R&D

sort of tuning

for Australian conditions as well

I know that these cars

are sold all around the world

but how important is it

to sort of localise

a little bit for Australian drivers

Look it's really important

we know that

and we're growing that capability

but we have a lot of examples

of many of our models

particularly shark

but also

ADO-1 and ADO-2

where we've done local testing

we have local engineers

within our business

we have numerous teams

coming from China

on an engineering front

to make sure that

the setup, the suspension,

the ride is optimised

for the local market

so I think

a number of other manufacturers

have done a really good job

in that space

I think it's a tried and tested formula

and for us it's important

and it's important that we do

we do more of it

in our product development

into the future

so we'll keep investing in that

and that will make sure that we bring

the right spec

and the right ride

to all of our customers locally

How much of a work out

is the pencil, sharpener

on your desk getting

when it comes to prices

because we see

massive fluctuations

and I think that's Tesla's biggest problem

is fluctuations in their pricing

has driven people insane

but I see also

you've got a huge range

you are the OG

start up in this space for Australia

but there's so many brands now

that are doing pretty aggressive pricing

but there's others that are quite premium

in their pricing

but in terms of

out of one for example

do you look at

Kia Picanto is a $19,000 car

you've come in at 23

the Toyota Yaris

is basically a $28,000 car plus

so do you want to sit

in the middle of the

like for like

parody argument

or are you playing a game

based on what you see

the buyers wanting from price

for us it's all about

what consumers want

and you know

they want good value for money

so it depends on the model

and different models

have different objectives

but for us

at the end of the day

it's about making

our cars

great value for money

and price is

one component of that

but I think

out of one

and out of two

are other examples

where you know

we fill those cars

with tech

we fill them with safety

we haven't taken any

they are the

the best technology that

BYD has to offer

so yes

pricing is important

and you know

I think we've shown

that we

we like to price aggressively

but we like to maintain that price

we're not in the game

of going up and down

all over the place

because we need to provide

surety

and you know

we're cognizant

of you know

residual values

and maintaining the

value in the long term

so yeah

pricing is a big part

of making sure

that we bring good value

to money

to the market

and to our customers

but you know

I think it's more about that

it's about value

and value is a lot of things

to a lot of different people

Steven

no doubt

BYD is being quite successful

in the EV market

in a very competitive market

how important is it

for customer service

that first point of contact

with the dealers

how does

how important is that process

we've heard

and heard from a lot of

a lot of our listeners

who turn up at a dealership

and not just BYD

or brands

and the reception they get there

the availability of test drives

has often swayed their decision

on what car they buy

so how important

how much emphasis are you placing

on that first point of contact

at the dealerships

being at a premium level

it is hugely important

we understand that

my background for many years

in OEMs

you know understands that

it's not just that first point of contact

I would say it's every point of contact

so whether it be walking into a dealership

whether we're wanting a test drive

the delivery of the vehicle

the handover of the vehicle

whether it be that first service

the second service

whatever it may be

so we've been working really really hard

to really every touch point

to be a good experience

and a seamless experience

and we're more advanced

in some areas than others

and we know that in the back end

for example service

we really need to improve

so we're investing as an example

we've just recently invested

in a 20,000 square meter

parts warehouse here in Melbourne

we have a parts warehouse in Brisbane

we'll have other parts

warehouses around the country

to make sure that

every one of those touch points

whether it be service or test drive

is a great experience

so it's hugely important

it's still a little bit of work in progress

for us with the growth that we're experiencing

but we're putting on more and more dealers

every day

and I'm sure we'll get there

but also too

I'm no doubt you'd agree

that a lot of your customers

it's their first EV

they've purchased as well

so that again is another level of responsibility

that you have as a brand

100%

and again

it goes through the whole experience

the first touch point

the last touch point

and ultimately

we want to get that first EV

buyer that's had a great experience

over two or three or four years

to come back

and buy another one

and buy the next generation of car

or based on their lifestyle changing

buy a shark

or buy a C-Line 7

so look it's a massively important part

of the business

and we're working really really hard

to get every part of that right

I think people of our age

have seen the car market in Australia

would remember Hyundai coming into the market

and I feel like that early days

of the Hyundai Elantra

and they were selling in big numbers

they were doing good things

I feel like their escalation

to being a top brand in Australia

and a well respected brand

I feel like that's an aspirational pathway

for someone like BYD

do you see yourself in

20 years from now being

a top 3

do you have aspirations to be the number 1

car seller in Australia?

I'm old enough to have experienced

the Hyundai growth

and the growth of the Korean brand

so very much aware of that

for us

it's about being a trusted

it's about being a brand

that takes a leadership position

so right now

I think this year

we'll finish on the sales ladder

7 or 8 there abouts

but certainly in the top 10

so for us it's about continuing to improve

bringing new more models

to the marketplace to fulfill

customer needs

and ultimately

we want to be a leader

leader doesn't always mean being number 1

but whatever we do

we just want to keep improving

and be a really well trusted

well respected brand in Australia

so we're on that journey

we've got enormous growth happening at the moment

but that's our long term vision

so just on that

you're talking about

what the broader plans are for BYD

can you give us a bit of an insight

into what we can expect in

2026 and beyond

well for 2026

we will continue

to bring new

updated models to the market

we'll have more to say about it next year

but we'll be filling some other segments

that we're not currently in

and expanding the line up

of certain models

that are already strong

but we want to make stronger

and I think by the end of

next year

if we weren't somewhere near

the top 3

in terms of the sales ladder

then I think I'd be disappointed

because we just feel that

what we can offer

and particularly the segments

in which we can be really competitive

that's sort of where we're aiming for

so I'm not calling a number

but I feel that that's sort of where

we should be around this time next year

so we'll have a lot more to say about it

early in the year but what

people can expect is

we'll continue bringing lots of

new tech, lots of new models

into the market

and keep growing and keep improving

now before we let you go it would be remiss of me

not to bring up a conversation that we had

on this show 6 months ago

around the Addo 3

wiring, harness, compatibility

with Tesla Chargers it was

essentially very early buyers

in the first run of production of the Addo 3

they couldn't charge it

Tesla's new model superchargers

I understand from contact I've had from people

that's now there's a resolution

available to those customers

and honestly it's a paid

you have to pay as a customer to do it

but it felt like it's a pretty good price

something like 350 bucks

do you feel like that's a good rounding out of

that situation for you guys

yeah look I think so

I think we think that

with that resolve now

you know I think anyone

who has any questions on that is able

to call our customer care centre

so yeah I think it rounds

that issue out for us

look I think that you know I

love that you acknowledge the EV Direct Team

for the way they brought this brand to market

it was an unbelievable

thing for a

feels like it's just a couple of people to do

but Luke Todd and his team

to be able to bring a car to market

and a brand to market that ended up being

so early dominant

and I guess the last thing I want to know

is how do you feel about these huge

number of Chinese brands coming into the market

is it going to be a

situation in five or ten years from now

or even less where it is

only the mighty who sustain

their place in the Australian market

handle the number of brands that we have

let alone are coming

well it's a very interesting question

the Australian market when you look at it

over history and looking forward

roughly is about 1.2 million

units I think the

the OEM count or the brand count now

is probably around 75

so I think there's no question

we were and still continue to be

the most competitive market in the world

look I think what's

good about it is it's great for consumers

you know it really keeps every OEM

on their toes if you don't bring the best product

with great value and great service

to the market then

you're really going to struggle so

look whether everyone survives or not

I don't know what I'm

focusing on is making sure that BYD

is a big part of the

Australian market going forward

and

I think this level

of intense competition is

ultimately great for consumers so

I think that's a good thing

well done to the team locally

well done to the team at the design centre

because they're bloody good looking cars too

that's one of the great things about them

they look good, they drive well

they're packed with tech as you say

you've got a lot to offer them

we can't wait to go back to back in a bunch of your cars

early next year Stephen we really appreciate you

taking the time to talk to us today

and hopefully we can keep in touch throughout 2026

yeah look I'd love to do that

and yeah I appreciate your time fellas

I'm the operating officer of BYD Australia

it's a simple

life I lead it really is

great to chat with Stephen Collins

we appreciate him taking the time

and spells is Stephen correctly too, pH baby

Steven with the pH

in America you'd be Steph

yeah they'd be calling me Stefan

look at that and go your name is Stephen mate

what are you doing

look just seems like a really nice bloke

so glad we could connect

and obviously it's a new era for BYD

after the EV Direct

brought it to market

let's just reflect there for a minute

he said 2026

I feel like he said he's got a top 3 goal

that's huge

you'd think he'd have a top 1 goal

obviously he wants to be the best

top 3 I think that's

that's quite reasonable

what he's suggested that it's

absolutely possible

top 2 even

well you think about how well they did

when the shark came to market big spike in sales

so if they can have that spike for

addo 1 and addo 2 and then throughout the year

continue supply

plus if they can continue to be aggressive on pricing

plus he said they've got more models coming

that they want to plug other markets

so they've got a 7-seater that's already been announced

I think that's a hybrid

popular EV

we talked about that last week in the sales data

but where else are they going to plug a market

they've got a ute

they've got a hatch, they've got a sedan

they can bring in a wagon out

Coupe or something

bring it on

and then there's the secondary

brand which maybe he's

I don't know how the structure works here

but there's dens or something like that

which is their Lexus to Toyota

there's a BYD

so real big vehicles

which I think they'll bring to Australia

but I think again they're hybrid

but I think that's the smart thing from BYD

is you've got to plug the market

you're not going to win this game with just electric

so what they've got 2 now

the C-line 6 is still the hybrid

and the shark

and I believe the C-line 8

is the 7-seater

and I think it's a hybrid

and that's been announced already

I'm sure it has

we'll assume your right

The C-line 8 just according to Google AI

is a 7 seat plug-in hybrid

FEV so early 2026

so yeah that's

something for everyone again as we said at the top of the show

there is something for

younger person, older person

compact

and all along the line

there is and competing

early on remember

they put up models up against Tesla

so they had their seal and they had the others

and that was okay

meeting both of them in the middle

the auto was sort of against the Model Y

the seal was against the 3

but now they're competing against every other brand

and still holding their own

I would say if Tesla was here in front of them as a subject

now even though it might have better sales than someone

it's like way behind them

they're now looking at Kia, Hyundai

Ford, Mazda

they're looking at the non EV brands now

top 3 baby

they're looking at everybody

we'd love to hear your thoughts on

BYD owners

your experience with

which we brought up in the interview

a lot of people who had not the best experience with BYD

a lot of people had a great experience

and most had an excellent experience

but also we've had so many calls and emails

in the last couple of months about the Zika

7X for example

I'm wondering if there's that same excitement around the ATO1

for example so if you're someone

that is all in on the ATO1

and 2 announcements let us know

text or a whatsapp

we'll get you on the show, we'd love to just get that

understanding of what it is that draws you to these cars

how do you find out about them

what makes you make that decision

and we'll talk to you right here on 2Bike Story Electric Cars

we'll do it again next week, Steven what do you reckon?

I'll be right here waiting

why not?

what do you Richard Marks?

097 - BYD Boss talks 2026 in Australia and the new Atto 1

About this episode

BYD Addo One

parity on pricing

Mazda 2

Toyota Yaris

Kia Picanto

drive away price

on-road costs

compact car

BYD

range

battery

Toyota Corolla

charging

BYD Addo 1

BYD Addo 2

BYD C-Line 7

BYD C-Line 6

BYD Addo 3

Toyota Yaris Gr

Hyundai I20N

Hyundai i30 N

Volkswagen Golf GTI

BYD Shark 6

electric vehicles

BYD Atto 3

electric vehicle (EV)

Hyundai Elantra

wiring harness

Tesla Chargers

Lexus

Tesla Model Y

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