It took 20 years to break the Japan monopoly, how awesome is BYD’s hybrid technology?

#ChineseCar #NewEnergy #ElectricVehicles The rise of BYD and China’s new energy vehicles can actually be attributed to their competitor, Toyota. Why? Well, in March of this year, BYD sold over 200,000 units of its new energy vehicles, far surpassing other automakers. Among them, 103,419 were hybrid models, which shouldered half of BYD’s success. However, what many people don’t know is that over a decade ago, BYD was not even a prominent player in the hybrid market. Back then, when hybrid vehicles were mentioned, the first choice for everyone was Toyota from Japan. There was even a saying that circulated: “There are two types of hybrid cars, one is Toyota, and the other is everything else.“ This is because Toyota’s hybrid technology was globally leading, and they had applied for a large number of patent clusters, so as to restrict the development of other automakers. Toyota’s employees once proudly stated, “Toyota’s hybrid technology is either impossible to imitate, or even if you develop a similar technology, you still have to pay me patent fees.“ Many European and American automakers chose to bypass their patents and seek breakthroughs, but the results were not satisfactory. At that time, Toyota’s hybrid technology was like a legend. However, ten years have passed, and the legend of hybrid cars from Japanese automakers has long faded away. Chinese automakers, led by BYD, have embarked on a vigorous overtaking battle. In order to hinder the rise of Chinese hybrid cars, Japanese automakers proactively opened up their hybrid patents and chose to cooperate with Chinese automakers, but they still could not stop Chinese automakers’ determination to independently develop hybrid technology. In 2022, the sales of BYD’s hybrid models in China reached 946,000 units, making it the undisputed hybrid champion in the Chinese market. In contrast, the combined sales of Toyota and Honda in China were not even comparable to BYD alone. Chinese automakers have successfully surpassed their counterparts in hybrid vehicles, which has amazed many people. So, how strong are Toyota’s hybrid patents? Why were they able to restrict the development of European and American companies for so long? They voluntarily opened up their patents, so why did China still choose to independently develop hybrid technology? Since they have so many hybrid patents, how did BYD and others manage to achieve breakthroughs and surpass them? Today, let’s talk about the great battle of hybrid technology!