BYD reveals 1000km electric SUV (sort of)
Words: Richard Edwards
BYD says its new Denza N8 will travel more than 1000km on a charge, though the claim comes with an asterisk the size of its 130kWh battery.
The five-seat large SUV is rated at 1003km on China’s CLTC test cycle, which is considerably more generous than the WLTP standard used in New Zealand. CLTC figures typically overstate WLTP results by 15 to 25 per cent, suggesting a real-world equivalent in the low 800km range.
Even so, that would make the N8 one of the longest-legged electric vehicles yet revealed, edging out the new BMW iX3 50 xDrive and its 805km WLTP rating, currently the benchmark among production EVs.
The N8 draws its range from a 130.15kWh Blade Battery 2.0 pack, BYD’s latest lithium iron phosphate unit. It also carries the company’s Flash Charging technology, capable of taking the battery from 10 to 70 per cent in five minutes, or from 10 to 97 per cent in nine, where suitable ultra-fast chargers are available.
Details of the new model emerged through a filing with China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, a required step before a vehicle goes on sale there.
At 5150mm long, 1999mm wide and 1820mm tall, on a 3075mm wheelbase, the N8 is a large SUV by any measure, longer than a BMW X5. It sits on BYD’s e3 platform and will be offered with a choice of a single rear motor producing either 320kW or 370kW, or a tri-motor all-wheel drive flagship pairing a 270kW front motor with two 310kW rear motors for a combined 890kW.
The N8 name first appeared in China in 2023 on a plug-in hybrid six and seven-seater, which was discontinued within a year after slow sales. The new model is a ground-up battery electric replacement, and interestingly matches the old PHEV’s combined petrol and electric range figure of 1003km on electricity alone.
