Gasgoo.com (Shanghai March 24) - China's most important automobile show this year, Beijing's Auto China 2012, opened its doors to the press this week. Domestic manufacturers, of course, are looking to make a big splash, with BYD not being any exception. Hoping to follow the successes of its displays last year, which included the debut of its first SUV, the S6, BYD will be introducing new versions of its F3 and F6 this year, as well as a few new technologies. Let's take a closer look at BYD's offerings for Auto China 2012:
New BYD F3
The new BYD F3 will be making its first showing at this year's show, and is scheduled to go on sale at the time of next year's Auto China in Beijing. The current generation F3 and F3R will continue to be sold alongside the new model, allowing BYD to target a greater variety of buyers. The sporty look of the new F3's exterior design seems to come from the L3 and G6. The new F3's wheelbase is 60mm longer than the old one, and the car overall is slightly larger, with total length measuring 4.68 m. It will be powered by a 1.5 L turbocharged engine.
New BYD F6
The new F6 seems like it will be very similar to its predecessor. Spy shots (pictured) show it sporting a more aggressive front grille design with noticeably large headlights. The car measures 4.85 m long, and it has a wheelbase of 2.74 m. It will reportedly be powered by a 1.5 L turbocharged engine mated to an automatic transmission. The new F6 may make its market debut within the year.
'Qin' Dual Mode EV
BYD debuted then pioneering Dual Mode electric vehicle technology with its F3DM in 2008. Despite the technology being state-of the-art, the car failed to become a market success due to lackluster design. The manufacturer seems to have learned from its mistakes, with its upcoming plug-in hybrid to be a brand new model, rather than a facelift of another car. The model is codenamed 'Qin' in Chinese, with other details so far being scarce.
Remote control driverless technology
BYD will also be using Auto China 2012 to debut remote control driverless technology. While sounding like something out of a 007 film, such technology has already been used, with Google conducting tests of over 220,000 km with its driverless cars. It remains to be seen what will be unique about BYD's showing.
Source:gasgoo