BYD Shark hybrid pickup launched in Mexico as US hikes EV tariffs

Chinese EV maker BYD has unveiled the Shark mid-size hybrid-electric pickup truck in Mexico, marking the first time that the company has launched a new product outside its home country. The firm's Chief of Americas, Stella Li said that Mexico was chosen because of the rapid growth in demand for pickup trucks in the country. The pickup truck strengthens the EV maker's foothold in the North American market posing a rivalry to the likes of Ford, General Motors and Toyota.

Exterior and Interior highlights:

BYD Shark features a full-width LED light bar in the front with a large BYD logo mounted on the radiator grille. Thanks to the Black cladding around, the pickup truck gives off-roading vibes. On the inside, there is a 12.8-inch rotating infotainment screen which is complemented by a 10.25-inch digital gauge cluster. Features like 12-inch heads-up display, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity and bidirectional charging are offered on the vehicle.

Platform highlights:

In terms of dimensions, BYD Shark measures 214 inches long, 77.5 inches wide and 75.5 inches tall with a wheelbase of 128.3 inches. The pickup truck's maximum towing and payload capacities are 5,511 pounds and 1,840 pounds, respectively. BYD Shark rides on a body-on-frame platform, which the company calls DMO. DM stands for Dual Mode (hybrid) and O stands for off-road.

Engine highlights:

Shark's plug-in hybrid system houses the 1.5-liter turbo engine with two electric motors, one on each axle, delivering a combines power of 430 hp. The pickup truck can do 0-62 miles per hour in 5.7 seconds. The vehicle makes use of BYD's renowned in-house blade battery technology.

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US hikes EV tariffs:

The Shark unveil comes hours after US President Joe Biden announced increase in tariffs on Chinese imports over unfair competitive practices, leading to import duties on Chinese products quadrupling to over 100%. However, BYD's regional chief dismissed that these tariffs affect the company by saying that it is not eyeing the US market.

Li, in an interview to Reuters, stated that BYD plans to build a manufacturing plant in Mexico. "We don't have plans to go to the U.S. market, so this announcement does not impact us at all. When we build a Mexican plant, we only consider the Mexican market and other countries' markets, we have not considered the US," she added.

BYD eyeing EV plant in Mexico:

Li informed that the company has already shortlisted potential sites for building BYD's plant in Mexico and that the facility will be centrally-located in the Latin American country. She added that a "deeper dialogue" was needed to make the final decision and that could happen by the end of the year. BYD's Mexican plant is expected to have a capacity of 150,000 vehicles per year and could take up to two to three years to be operational.

Chinese automakers have been growing their presence in Mexico since 2017 as one of 10 cars sold in Mexico last year was from a Chinese automaker. MG Motors, a unit of SAIC dominated nearly half the Mexican market in the mentioned time period.

However, US Trade Representative Katherine Tai later said that the country is also weighing tariffs on imports from Mexico. Last month, Mexico's federal government too came under pressure from the US to keep Chinese automakers away by refusing to offer incentives such as low-cost public land or tax cuts for investment in EV production.