BYD sent shockwaves through the automotive industry when it announced that an electrical vehicle (EV) would grow to be Australia’s least expensive latest automotive for the primary time ever, but brand executives say that’ll likely change in the brand new 12 months.
The Chinese brand introduced a drive-away deal for the Atto 1 light electric hatch that brought its entry price right down to $19,990 drive-away in September 2026, undercutting the smaller, petrol-powered Kia Picanto micro-hatch to grow to be Australia’s least expensive latest automotive – a primary for an EV.
The retail incentive was introduced with an end date of December 15, 2026, and two local executives have now indicated the Atto 1’s typical price of $23,990 before on-road costs will likely be reinstated once that date passes.
Why is that necessary? As with established brands, some Chinese brands have repeatedly prolonged discount deals beyond their originally advertised end dates, making vehicles available for considerably lower than their normal list prices for long periods of time.
A notable example is the Chery Tiggo 7 Super Hybrid mid-size SUV. Its drive-away price of $34,990 was announced as an end-of-financial-year (EOFY) offer earlier this 12 months, nevertheless it stayed unchanged after its published end date of June 30. The brand now says that the value is in effect until September 30.
Perhaps co-incidentally, GWM and MG have also quietly prolonged the identical June 30 deadline to September 30 for drive-away prices of their plug-in hybrid H6 PHEV and HS Super Hybrid mid-size SUVs respectively, which proceed to be offered for a respective $39,990 and $42,990 drive-away.
In fact, BYD has also prolonged previous discounts beyond their original end dates, nevertheless it often changes its incentives and deal structures when extending a proposal, somewhat than leaving them unchanged.
“We do this to stimulate interest and to stay competitive,” BYD Australia chief product officer Sajid Hasan told CarExpert.
“There’s loads of sales and finance campaigns happening available in the market immediately, so that is just one other one among them. It is a way for us to, I assume, test the value elasticity within the segment.
“It’s only short-term, so come the primary of January, the [Atto 1’s original] price point will come back. We’ll evaluate the situation and see what other offers, retail offers, we will do and the way that evolves.”
BYD Australia chief operating officer, Stephen Collins, echoed Mr Hasan’s sentiment.
“Consistency and transparency are really necessary to us. In a market of 1.2 million vehicles with 70-odd players, I feel Australia is arguably probably the most competitive market on this planet,” he told CarExpert.
“So for us when it comes to offers, yes, we turn offers on, we turn offers off. Sometimes it’s finance, sometimes it is not. You want to stay competitive and it’s worthwhile to have a compelling reason for consumers to look online and are available into your showrooms.
“So, yeah, look, we wish to be competitive in that space, nevertheless it’s not our primary focus.”
Asked to substantiate whether the bottom Atto 1 Essential’s original starting price of $23,990 plus on-roads could be reinstated later this 12 months, Mr Collins replied “yeah, I feel so”.
In fact, new-car price cuts impact the resale values of used cars, but Mr Hasan said BYD doesn’t expect there to be much of an impact on residual values for early adopters of the Atto 1.
“I feel those who are buying these vehicles will recognise that there is going to be campaigns on the vehicles every so often,” he said.
“I do not think the residual impact of a vehicle that is within the low-$20,000s has an excessive amount of of an impact over the long term. I’m sure in the event that they decided to sell the vehicle now, they’ll probably see an impact.
“That is only for the Essential customers. Nearly all of our customers actually did step as much as the Premium.”
The Atto 1 stays available in two variants, though the present drive-away deal only applies to the entry-level Essential grade. The highest-spec Premium has an unchanged retail price of $27,990 before on-road costs.
BYD’s push into inexpensive electrified vehicles was recently bolstered by the introduction of the Atto 2 DM-i, a brand new plug-in hybrid (PHEV) version of the small electric SUV. It has been priced from $24,990 before on-road costs, making it Australia’s least expensive PHEV, and thus far there are not any incentives or drive-away discounts for the brand new model.
Last week BYD denied it was engaging in a price cutting war in Australia, following calls by the Chinese government for Chinese automakers to refrain from “creating disorder” in overseas auto markets.
This Article First Appeared At www.carexpert.com.au
