2025 BYD Shark ute will be 'fit for purpose' for Australia – executive
26/04/2024 19:00
BYD is eyeing strong sales for its first ute, called Shark, which will come to market with a heavy Australian influence.
BYD has big ambitions for its first ute in Australia, confirmed to be named Shark, as it aims to carve out a slice of the light-commercial pie dominated by the Ford Ranger and Toyota HiLux.
Though he would not be drawn on specific sales targets, David Smitherman, chief executive officer of BYD’s Australian distributor EVDirect told Drive the company is aware of what adding a ute could do to its sales figures.
"It's a big segment and we're after our fair share of it," he said. "We're working hard to make sure we can maximise the opportunity."
Last year, 239,399 customers bought a ute in Australia, accounting for 19.7 per cent of the market and making it the second most-popular new-vehicle segment in Australia behind mid-size SUVs.
The top three selling models last year were utes, with the Ford Ranger (63,356 sales), Toyota HiLux (61,111), and Isuzu D-Max (31,202) making up the podium.
And to try and differentiate itself from other Chinese ute rivals such as the GWM Ute, LDV T60 Max, and incoming JAC T9, BYD has invested in development and refinement on Australian roads.
"It's certainly been testing in Australia, there's vehicles here," Mr Smitherman said.
"You've obviously seen the spy shots, so we're certainly making sure it's going to work for Australian conditions, and of course this means meeting Australian [regulations] of course.
"Absolutely, it's being tested and validated in [this] country."
The BYD ute is expected to launch with plug-in hybrid power, likely teaming a 1.5-litre petrol engine with twin electric motors, with outputs rumoured to be about 365kW.
If true, this would make the Chinese workhorse more potent than even a 292kW twin-turbo petrol V6-powered Ford Ranger Raptor.
Earlier this week, the Chinese car giant announced that the upcoming plug-in hybrid BYD ute will be known as the Shark, confirming trademark filings discovered by Australian media in recent weeks – and fitting in with BYD’s preference for nautical names such as Dolphin, Seal, Sea Lion and Seagull.
"A lot of brands are quite boring if you look at their naming conventions, but what I love about BYD is it's pretty unique, people remember the name," Mr Smitherman added.
However, aside from powertrain and styling, a competitive ute needs to offer a level of capability expected from the category – meaning a one-tonne payload, 3500kg braked towing capacity, and off-road ability to match the likes of the Ranger, HiLux, and D-Max.
Mr Smitherman would not confirm any specifications ahead of the ute's reveal, but agreed that the model needs to be "fit for purpose".
"We're still working through the vehicle specification, packaging, but I can tell you – you may have seen the spy shots – I know the vehicle looks terrific, I can assure you of that," he said.
"I think a ute is really interesting in a country like Australia, it's not the traditional vehicle used for work, it's used as a family car," he said.
"I guess we've seen the evolution from station wagons to utes now, so I think it's got to be fit for purpose. We want to have a product that meets Australians’ needs, and I think we will achieve that."
The 2025 BYD Shark is expected to be revealed soon, with examples due in Australian showrooms by the end of the year.
If the BYD Shark does launch with a plug-in hybrid powertrain, it would be the first ute to offer the technology, beating the Ford Ranger PHEV scheduled to arrive in 2025.
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