BYD is going after the Land Rover Defender in the UK with the new B5 – a premium range-extender 4×4 with competitive off-road stats and supercar levels of power.
Launched in China last year as the Bao 5, the Defender 110 rival is one of three models from BYD’s new SUV sub-brand Fangchengbao, but is likely to be badged Denza in the UK and positioned as a sibling to that premium brand’s Z9 GT shooting brake – also headed to the UK.
Denza was founded in 2010 as a joint venture between BYD and Mercedes-Benz, but is wholly owned by the Chinese firm.
Both cars will make their debut at the Goodwood Festival of Speed next week, ahead of sales beginning in 2026.
The move to import the B5 confirms Autocar’s previous report that BYD would launch its Fangchengbao cars here in a bid to diversify its powertrain offering and tap into new market segments.
The company’s president Stella Li told Autocar at last year’s Festival of Speed that she predicted the SUVs “will be very popular in the UK”.
“In the UK, the roads are narrow but we love these big SUV off-road cars, so Fangchengbao will be here,” she said, referencing the popularity of large premium SUVs in this market, from which BYD has until now been absent.”
The company has not confirmed any specification details for the B5, but it is expected to be largely unchanged from the car in China, which uses a ‘DMO Super-Hybrid Off-Road’ ladder-frame platform and takes its power from a range-extender system that pairs a 1.5-litre turbo engine with an electric motor on each axle.
The system pumps out up to 677bhp and 561lb ft – more than any Defender, including the new V8 Octa.
Meanwhile, a sizeable 31.8kWh battery (which serves as a structural element) supplies enough power for a claimed EV range of up to 78 miles on China’s CLTC cycle – though that’s likely to be nearer 50 miles in practice.
The B5 forms part of BYD’s push to dramatically increase its hybrid car offering in the face of wavering EV uptake in Europe – with the core BYD line-up set to be boosted next year with the arrival of the Seal 06, a plug-in hybrid saloon/estate in the mould of the BMW 3 Series.
The Denza Z9 GT will also be available as a PHEV with a “colossal” combined range, or with pure-electric power.
Also starring on BYD’s stand will be Denza’s new D9 MPV, a “business-class” people carrier in the mould of the Lexus LM.
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