Having opened up its enormous automotive market to the Germans way back when, China is now looking to take the fight for dominance to their backyard. Making its European premiere at Milan Design Week, Denza has traditional premium brands BMW and Mercedes-Benz right in its sights, Reuters reported.
That last one is particularly ironic given that the brand was originally a 50:50 joint venture between Stutgart and BYD, with the latter buying it out starting in 2022 (the transaction was completed last year).
Denza is ripe for export growth – its sales made up just over three per cent of the more than 4.2 million vehicles BYD sold last year, of which over 90% was in its home market. Last year, BYD registered a market share of 2.8% of the European electric vehicle market, having introduced a plug-in hybrid vehicle, the Seal U DM-i (known elsewhere as the Sealion 6 DM-i), to broaden its market appeal.
Group special adviser for Europe Alfredo Altavilla said Denza will be the technological spearhead for BYD. “It will anticipate tech features that will later appear on BYD brand cars,” he said during the launch event in Milan, also attended by executive vice president Stella Li.
Denza plans to enter the region at the end of the year with the Z9 GT, a large five-door electric shooting brake that makes a whopping 963 PS (708 kW) and 710 Nm of torque, with a range of 630 km on China’s ultra-optimistic CLTC cycle. The PHEV version, which has a 2.0 litre turbo range extender, makes 870 PS (640 kW) and has a pure electric range of 201 km, will follow suit in early 2026.
The electric Z9 GT will be joined by the D9 MPV, which is already sold in Malaysia. Two more 4x4s – likely the Fangchengbao Bao 5 and Bao 8, consolidated under the Denza marque and badged the B5 and B8, as previewed at the recent Bangkok Motor Show – are also under consideration, said Altavilla.
“The aim is to make Denza a full-liner premium brand,” he remarked, adding that the marque targets both traditional premium buyers and younger customers, the latter having a particular interest in technology.
No other details on European product plans, pricing or commercial strategy have been released just yet, but it is believed that the first model will be pricier than even the most expensive BYD in Europe, currently €76,300 (RM379,700) for the Tang SUV. In Malaysia, the D9 is priced starting from RM259,000, although we will point out that BYD does have to contend with a 17% tariff in Europe (on top of the standard 10% tax on all imports) as part of wider measures against Chinese brands.
It’s worth noting that Denza vehicles will continue to be imported from China despite these tariffs, even as BYD plans to start European production at a new plant in Hungary in October. A second site in Turkey is expected to be opened next March, and when fully operational, the factories will have a total capacity of 500,000 vehicles per year.
GALLERY: Denza Z9 GT previewed in China
GALLERY: Denza D9 Premium AWD in Malaysia
The post Denza debuts in Europe, targets BMW and Mercedes – Z9 GT, D9 as first models, prices to exceed BYD’s appeared first on Paul Tan’s Automotive News.
