Chinese giant could unleash new wave of brands in Oz

BYD is building its dreams in Australia, with its core brand climbing the sales charts. But it might not stop there.

Last month, BYD became the first Chinese carmaker to take a top-five spot in Australia’s monthly sales charts, while its Shark 6 plug-in hybrid ute also managed a top-five finish.

The brand has experienced unprecedented growth locally, from delivering 12,438 vehicles in 2023 (its first calendar year in showrooms), to 20,458 vehicles in 2024 and 23,355 in the first six months of 2025 alone, enough to place it eighth year-to-date.

While BYD is becoming increasingly common in Australia, it hasn’t gone down the path of its Chinese rivals by launching multiple subsidiary brands to try and capitalise on different markets – at least, not yet.

That may soon change though, with BYD set to run its first ‘Tech Hub’ at Sydney Motorsport Park this week, running from Wednesday July 9 to Friday July 11.

The experience will not only allow the public to see BYD’s current Australian model range on static display, but also in action on off-road tracks, on the circuit itself and on a ‘dynamic experience area’.

BYD isn’t just bringing its lineup of current models, with vehicles from its Denza (D9 and Z9 GT), FangChengBao (B5 and B8) and Yangwang (with the U9 SUV) brands to also feature.

The Yangwang U9 has already done the rounds at multiple BYD dealerships across Australia and has even been tested locally, but the 880kW and 1280Nm range-extender electric vehicle isn’t yet being made in right-hand drive.

Both the FangChengBao B5 and B8 could be mistaken for Land Rover Defender clones, however the pair of plug-in hybrid SUVs would likely be in a position to take away sales from the Toyota LandCruiser Prado and Ford Everest.

Meanwhile the Denza D9 is one of the many high-end Chinese people-movers offered in its home nation, while the Z9 GT is the brand’s Porsche Taycan fighter, and can be had as an EV or PHEV.

Though BYD’s now-former distributor EVDirect said it would launch Denza in Australia this year, BYD has now wholly taken over the local operations.

For more information about the Sydney BYD Tech Hub, you can visit the brand’s website here. It will later visit Brisbane and Melbourne, as well as New Zealand.