Chinese carmaker Geely Automobile Group on Tuesday unveiled its first compact electric vehicle (EV), which will compete head-on with BYD’s Seagull to attract young, first-time car buyers.
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The new model, named Xingyuan – which means “wish made on a star” in Chinese – has a spacious design for its size, according to the company. Emphasising “beauty, approachability, and intelligence” as its core design principles, the car seeks to create “emotional value” for its drivers, BYD said.
The Xingyuan will compete with BYD’s Seagull, which was launched last April by the Berkshire Hathaway-backed company as its smallest and most affordable model. The Seagull is priced at less than 70,000 yuan (US$9,846).
Geely said pricing for the Xingyuan will be released later.
EV producers have been fighting a brutal price war to defend their respective market shares as China’s market becomes more crowded. Cutthroat competition is squeezing profit margins for both electric and petrol-driven vehicles.