2024 BYD Dolphin electric-car arrives in Australia

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【Summary】BYD Dolphin, the cheapest electric car in Australia, is set to begin customer deliveries next week. Priced at $38,890, it is $100 cheaper than the MG 4 Excite 51, making it the most affordable electric vehicle in the country. The Dolphin comes in three models, with the Sport edition offering additional power and unique features. Pre-orders for the Dolphin have exceeded 1000, and a limited allocation of the Sport edition is still available for order.

FutureCar Staff Oct 16, 2023 11:18 PM PT

2024 BYD Dolphin electric-car arrives in Australia

The BYD Dolphin, which is considered the most affordable electric car in Australia, has recently arrived in the country ahead of its first customer deliveries scheduled for next week.

According to Luke Todd, the managing director of BYD's Australian distributor EVDirect, the first Dolphin hatchbacks have been brought to the country for test drives and will be available for customer deliveries starting next week.

The Dolphin is a compact hatchback, similar in size to the Toyota Corolla, and it is the smallest model offered by the Chinese electric-car specialist in Australia.

Priced at $38,890 plus on-road costs for the base Dolphin Dynamic model, it is the most affordable new electric vehicle in Australia, even $100 cheaper than the MG 4 Excite 51, another small Chinese hatchback priced at $38,990 plus on-road costs.

When considering on-road costs, the BYD Dolphin is between $610 and $808 cheaper than its competitor, taking into account differences in dealer delivery and other mandatory charges in different regions.

The BYD Dolphin lineup consists of three models: the Dynamic, the Premium with extended range, and the Sport with higher performance. The Dynamic and Premium models will be available soon, while the Sport model is expected to arrive in early 2024.

Mr. Todd mentioned that among the pre-orders for this year, the Premium model has been the best-selling, but he expects demand to even out between the Dynamic and Premium versions as many customers are waiting to test drive and compare the two.

As of July 2023, the company had received over 1000 pre-orders for the Dolphin, and Mr. Todd stated that this number has continued to grow.

A limited number of BYD Dolphin Sport editions, priced from $49,990 plus on-road costs, are still available for order out of the planned 1000 vehicles to be produced. The Sport model offers additional power, unique 17-inch wheels, a sports body kit, revised suspension, and performance tires.

Alex Misoyannis, a car enthusiast and journalist, has been writing about cars since 2017. He started his own website, Redline, and has contributed to various automotive publications, including Drive and CarAdvice.