BYD inside Toyota: reputations at stake as bZ3 nears market launch
The bZ3 is the second Toyota-badged bZ series BEV produced in China after the bZ4X and first with “BYD inside,” though it comes after the fallout of the bZ4X flop, and faces stiff competition from BYD and other China EV Inc.
A little over three years ago on July 19, 2019, BYD and Toyota signed an agreement to jointly develop battery electric vehicles. The agreement called for the two parties to jointly develop sedans and low-floor SUVs as well as onboard batteries for these vehicles and other with the aim to launch them in the Chinese market under the Toyota brand in the first half of the 2020s.
It was a match made in heaven and a huge stamp of approval for BYD from one of the largest automakers and leading automotive brands in the world.
That agreement ultimately led to the formation of BYD Toyota EV Technology Co., Ltd. (BTET), the 50:50 joint venture headquartered in Shenzhen dedicated to the design, research, and development of BEVs and their platforms and related parts. The registration of the JV was officially completed in April 2020 and commenced operations a month later.
Fast forward two years and in change, we now have the first glimpse of the first BEV model developed by the JV: the Toyota bZ3.
The midsize sedan was listed in the most recent Circular of Road Motor Vehicles and Their Products published by the Ministry of Industry & Information Technology (MIIT), which oversees new vehicle model entry and approval in China. That usually means market launch is imminent.
Based on the information revealed in the Circular, the bZ3 will be produced by FAW-Toyota (most likely the Tianjin-FAW-Toyota vehicle JV in Tianjin). The exterior dimensions of 4,725x1,835x1,475 mm (LxWxH) and wheelbase of 2,880 mm puts the bZ3 squarely against the likes of the Tesla Model 3, NIO ET5 and BYD’s own Seal. Both the electric motors and LFP batteries powering the bZ3 will be supplied by BYD subsidiary Fin Dreams based in Changhsa, Hunan Province and Wuwei, Anhui Province, respectively. The rear wheel drive bZ3 is expected to be available with a low-power version with a 135-kW motor and a high-power version with a 180-kW motor, and a 71.4-kWh battery pack is expected to provide the model with a range of at least 500 km.
Design wise, the bZ3 is based on the bZ SDN concept unveiled late last year when Toyota announced its BEV strategy of launching 30 models and selling 3.5 million BEVs by 2030. It retains much of the design and styling of the bZ SDN including the front fascia, side profile, wrap around headlights/taillights, flush door handles and dual exterior color tones.
There is no indication of when the bZ3 will be launched to market, but a safe bet is sometime in Q4, perhaps toward the end of this year, as models are usually launched within weeks and months after appearing in the Circular.
The bZ3 becomes the second locally produced Toyota-badged bZ-series BEV in China following the bZ4X, which has delayed its launch due to the recent global recall involving a defect that may cause the wheels to fall off and issues with difficulty charging in low-temperature conditions.
With the bZ4X essentially flopping, the arrival of the bZ3 comes at a crucial time: the reputations of both BYD and Toyota are on the line, so the bZ3 needs to get everything right, from quality to pricing to features. But reputations aside, it also faces stiff competition from BYD itself and some of the China EV Inc. including NIO and Xpeng. Though by utilizing BYD’s LFP batteries and motors, Toyota takes care of headaches such as battery safety, range and cost, existing popular smart EV models are going to give the bZ3 a run for its money, as all foreign legacy mass and premium brands face in China.
The bZ4X stumbled out of the gate. The bZ3 cannot afford to repeat the same thing. With the locally produced Mustang Mach-E facing ramp up difficulties due in part to NCM battery supply issues from BYD, nothing is guaranteed that everything would go smooth with “BYD inside Toyota” given that BYD is facing its own production crunch due to high vehicle demand.
The bZ3 will probably be a fine model on paper, but it’s going to face an awful lot of headwinds.
