Daimler Partners BYD To Create New Electric Vehicle Brand

Daimler AG, parent company of Mercedes-Benz, has announced a tie-up with BYD (Build Your Dreams) Company Ltd, parent company of BYD Auto, to develop, build and market electric vehicles for the Chinese market.

As part of the collaboration, the two companies will create a new brand to be marketed exclusively to the Chinese car market. A technology centre will also be set up in China. However, no due dates for either of the plans have been announced.

Founded in 1995, BYD began life manufacturing rechargeable batteries, before venturing into the automotive market with the formation of BYD Auto in 2003. With expertise in the area of batteries, BYD Auto went into the electric vehicle segment, mass producing and selling plug-in hybrids such as the F3DM and the e6.

“Daimler's know-how in electric vehicle architecture and BYD's excellence in battery technology and e-drive systems are a perfect match”, according to Dr. Dieter Zetsche, Chairman of Daimler AG.

What he failed to mention is the sheer size of the Chinese market, which has already taken over the U.S. market as the largest in the world; Imagine the number of car buyers when the 500 million Chinese currently staying in cities decide that pollution is getting out of hand and turn to electric vehicles instead...

AboutSeow Yaohan

Seow Yao Han strives to bring you the latest and the most comprehensive information on cars available in Malaysia. But it's never easy for him to talk and write cars in this part of the world because what you lust after is often not what you drive home. When the euphoria of test-driving that branded, super-expensive sports car dies down, he just goes home in his less-than-glamorous ride.