BYD Refutes Report of DM-i/DM-p Hybrid Systems on Some China-Made Audis

Certain vehicle models of FAW-Volkswagen’s China-based Audi production unit that are due for manufacturing in 2023 will adopt BYD’s DM-i/DM-p hybrid systems, according to various reports on November 2. The first model might be the Audi A4L sedan. However, Li Yunfei, the general manager of BYD’s branding and public relations division has said that “this rumor is untrue.”

It was reported that Wang Chuanfu, Chairman of BYD, recently led a team of technical engineers from firm subsidiary FinDreams Powertrain to visit and inspect the R&D Centers of FAW Hongqi and FAW-Volkswagen Audi. During this time, they witnessed the results of blade batteries and DM-i power system adaptation. Therefore, some media commentators have suggested that it is possible for FAW-Volkswagen Audi to carry BYD’s DM-i hybrid system on its future vehicle models.

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In fact, this is not the first time that Wang Chuanfu has visited FAW. As early as February this year, Wang and his team visited the R&D Institute of FAW Group. Xu Liuping, Chairman of FAW Group, received them and introduced the development history of Hongqi marque and displayed its new hybrid sports car, the Hongqi S9. In February this year, a power battery project between FAW and BYD started in Changchun, Jilin Province, with total investment of 13.5 billion yuan ($1.85 billion). The total production capacity will reach 45GWh, which can support 1 million electric vehicles.

BYD’s powertrain DM (dual mode) plug-in hybrid is divided into two branches: i and p. The former focuses on fuel saving and will reduce the product price, while the latter focuses on performance and has a relatively higher price. DM-i refers to “DualMode-intelligent,” with an intelligent and efficient system, released in early 2021. DM-p, meanwhile, refers to “DualMode-powerful,” adopting a system with strong performance, released in June of this year.

According to the latest delivery data released by BYD, its September sales volume was 201,259 vehicles, including 200,973 passenger cars, up 154.3% year-on-year and 15.5% quarter-on-quarter. Among them, the sales volume of DM models in September was 106,032, while that of EV models was a comparable total of 94,941.

According to a third-quarter report released by BYD, from January to September 2022, the cumulative sales volume of BYD’s new energy vehicles exceeded 1.18 million units, up 249.56% year-on-year, among which the cumulative sales volume of its DM plug-in hybrid vehicles was about 593,000 vehicles, an increase of 307.21% year-on-year.

As of the end of the third quarter, BYD had achieved a total operating income of 267.688 billion yuan ($36.77 billion) so far in 2022, a year-on-year increase of 84.37%. The net profit attributable to shareholders of listed companies was 9.311 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 281.13%.