More variants of the BYD Shark 6 ute are on the way, but those holding out hope for an SUV version will have to turn to sister brand Denza.
At the launch of the Shark 6 Dynamic cab/chassis and the Shark 6 Performance – which effectively tripled the lineup overnight – an executive for BYD Australia said the company was looking at expanding the range for the plug-in hybrid (PHEV) ute.
“We’re always looking at opportunities to grow,” BYD Australia chief operating officer Stephen Collins told CarExpert.
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“And it’s pretty well documented that competitors – particularly Ranger and HiLux – have top-performance models, more off-road models, and really [have variants] cascading right down to fleet and even mining-spec cars,” he explained.
“We’re constantly looking at all of those opportunities. We don’t have anything we can confirm today, but I think it’s always on our radar to look where we can feed into R&D opportunities to grow the lineup and take more share off some of the other brands and get more customers in Shark.”
However, BYD Australia chief product officer Sajid Hasan says an SUV based on the Shark 6 – as the Ford Everest is to the Ranger – isn’t on the cards.
“It’s not going to happen,” Mr Hasan said in an interview with CarExpert.
“You can rule it out. We have the Denza B5, which is essentially a very closely related vehicle to the Shark, and is a wagon. And the offering of that product – in terms of its spec features, designs, value-for-money proposition – is already really strong.
“If you look at the competitors in that segment, we’re already competing there with that product.”
While the Shark 6 Dynamic is similar to the Premium – but with a cab/chassis body – the Shark 6 Performance gets a larger 2.0-litre engine, more powerful front electric motor, re-valved shock absorbers, larger front brakes, and Continental tyres, as well as a revised interior.
The result is braked towing has increased from 2500kg to 3500kg, while combined outputs have gone from 321kW and 650Nm to 350kW and 700Nm.