Back in March 2024, China's Build Your Dreams (BYD) shocked the industry with the launch of the Seagull, an ultra-cheap EV starting at $9700 (69,800 yuan), with the declared goal of starting a "new era" of cheaper-than-gas electric vehicles. With 35.000 units sold in May, the Seagull has proven a runaway success.
Wuling, a joint venture between General Motors and SAIC, now wants in on the low-cost EV craze and has already undercut BYD with the launch of the new 2024 Bingo, a new compact EV with a starting price of about $8000 (56,800 yuan).
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The car design is not new, and the model is an upgrade to the 2023 Bingo. Based on the battery setup, the EV is available in four models, with a range of 203, 333, or 410km. Despite the price cut from last year's models, all versions now come with ultra-fast DC charging.
With 280.000 units sold since its March 2023 launch, the previous Bingo edition was the second best-selling car in China in May. The competition is heating up in the low-cost segment, and the new Bingo reflects the current positive momentum of the Chinese EV Market.
In the meantime, in Europe, we still haven't seen a real push towards low cost in the EV sector, with companies still struggling to structure their offering around the idea of smaller-range city cars.
Instead, European authorities imposed new tariffs on imports of Chinese EVs in an economically risky attempt at limiting the influx of cheaper electric cars into a late-to-the-game and beleaguered European EV market.