In 2025, BYD Yuan family cumulative sales exceeded 430,000 units, accounting for about 9.3% of BYD's total annual sales, contributing greatly to BYD reaching the top five globally.
After entering 2026, BYD needed to find a carrier for the second-generation Blade Battery and new-generation Flash Charge technology within the Yuan family, so the Third-Generation Yuan PLUS was born.
This product with the largest iteration range in the history of the BYD Yuan family has maintained high discussion levels since its debut at the Beijing Auto Show.
At the same time of the new car launch, the 2025 model Yuan PLUS dropped prices wildly. Now, the naked car price has lowered to over 70,000 yuan. Comparing vertically with the previous generation Yuan PLUS and horizontally with competitors from other car companies, is the Third-Generation Yuan PLUS truly more worth buying?
Size explosion, DiSus-C downshifted, BYD squeezes toothpaste dryWhen I arrived at the BYD store to experience the Third-Generation Yuan PLUS, coincidentally, a previous generation Yuan PLUS owner also came to see the car. Their car was parked next to the new model. In front of the massive body of the Third-Generation Yuan PLUS, the previous generation Yuan PLUS looked like an "elderly leisure vehicle".
(Image Source: EV Tong Photography)
The Third-Generation Yuan PLUS, with a 210mm increase in length and a 50mm increase in wheelbase, has a more majestic appearance, with an aura comparable to a mid-size SUV. The interior space has also increased significantly, with ample legroom in the rear and acceptable trunk capacity. It is worth noting that the Third-Generation Yuan PLUS supports an electric sunshade, protecting us from sunlight intrusion during hot summers.
"Large" is the most intuitive feeling the Third-Generation Yuan PLUS gives EV Tong (ID: dianchetong233), but as a product with huge upgrades, its highlights go far beyond this.
Although the experience time was not long, the details of the Third-Generation Yuan PLUS still made EV Tong very satisfied. For example, the front memory seats can adjust automatically, facilitating users getting on and off. The passenger leg rest, 12-inch HUD, hot and cold refrigerator, and other configurations show BYD's sincerity everywhere.
Regarding range, chassis suspension, power, etc., the Third-Generation Yuan PLUS has also been comprehensively upgraded. The downshift of DiSus-C, range up to 630 kilometers, and optional DiPilot 300 (except for the lowest trim) make its experience compared to the previous generation undergo a qualitative leap.
(Image Source: EV Tong Photography)
As the BYD Yuan family, and even the entire Dynasty series, the product with the largest upgrade range, Yuan PLUS performs better than the previous generation in all aspects. Especially after experiencing the comfort brought by large space, even though the previous generation product price dropped by tens of thousands of yuan directly, EV Tong still more recommends consumers buy the new generation product.
Moreover, the Third-Generation Yuan PLUS has no real cars in the showroom of this store, the only display car is the test drive car. Combining this car's orders breaking through 10,000 units in the first week of launch and orders breaking through 50,000 units in less than a month, EV Tong has reason to believe that BYD is too late to lay out more display cars in the store to deliver to consumers as soon as possible.
Both the experience of EV Tong (ID: dianchetong233) and the hot orders can prove the strength and market performance of the Third-Generation Yuan PLUS.
The Third-Generation Yuan PLUS perfectly carries the new generation of BYD's three-electric technology and flash charge technology, making up for the Yuan family's long-standing product shortcomings, enabling this popular home SUV to complete the transformation from "Qualified Commuter EV" to "All-around Home Pure Electric SUV". This car is expected to carry the sales banner of the Yuan family, continuously consolidating BYD's dominant position in the 100,000-150,000 RMB mainstream home pure electric SUV market.
Perhaps some people are curious, even if only upgrading size, battery, fast charging, Yuan PLUS is still highly competitive in the 100,000-150,000 price segment, why does BYD want to comprehensively upgrade this car from start to finish, even to the extent of downshifting DiSus-C, advanced intelligent driving, HUD, and other configurations. In the view of EV Tong, BYD might also want to make money lying down, but market changes are forcing BYD to change.
Facing double-sided clamping, BYD responds with "Change"BYD's Seagull, Dolphin, Yuan UP, Yuan PLUS and other models once had a dominant position in the A00 to A-class new energy vehicle market. However, the situation changed this year. Geely Galaxy Star Wish, Leapmotor A10, Changan Qiyuan Q05 and other products, relying on the characteristics of good quality and cheap price, conquered the mid-to-low-end market.
Not only that, joint venture brands also showed their fangs. Some joint venture models, using Chinese suppliers such as Momenta and Huawei, improved product hardness, and Volkswagen ID.3, Bozhi 3X and other products became increasingly competitive.
BYD is facing a double-sided clamp from independent brands and joint venture brands, needing stronger products to consolidate its dominant position in the 100,000-150,000 RMB SUV market. Although the previous generation Yuan PLUS had no inferior competitiveness, it showed weakness facing larger and smarter competitors.
(Image Source: EV Tong Photography)
Taking Bozhi 3X as an example, this car is equipped with Momenta intelligent driving technology, and the car length is as high as 4600mm, slightly higher competitiveness compared to the previous generation Yuan PLUS. The Third-Generation Yuan PLUS not only surpassed in size and led in range, but the price was also relatively affordable, capable of suppressing most peer products.
BYD's overseas strategy also needs the Third-Generation Yuan PLUS as a mainstay. Yuan PLUS is named ATTO 3 overseas, with excellent performance in many countries and regions such as South Korea, Thailand, Brazil, UK, New Zealand, etc., and is BYD's main export model.
After entering 2026, the domestic car market size declined year-on-year. Many car companies chose to break the game overseas. Changan, Geely, Great Wall, Li Auto, Leapmotor, Xiaomi and other car companies are all accelerating their layout of the overseas market. Multiple foreign-funded and joint venture brands will also use China as a production base, using China's complete industrial chain advantage to build cars and then transport them to the overseas market for sale.
In the past, BYD could use China's industrial chain advantage to form dimensional striking attacks in the overseas market. But with domestic car companies collectively accelerating the overseas layout pace, BYD will also face competition from independent brands in the overseas market.
For this reason, whether domestically or overseas, BYD needs products with stronger competitiveness to cope with models from global car companies. EV Tong (ID: dianchetong233) believes that the Third-Generation Yuan Plus is just the beginning. When BYD's other products are updated and iterated in the future, the upgrade range will also increase.
(Image Source: EV Tong Photography)
In the mid-to-high end and high-end markets, BYD is already laying out through the launch of new cars rather than upgrading original products, such as the Ocean Series's Seal 08, Sea Lion 08, Dynasty Network's Tang, Han models. In the mid-range market, Han, Tang, Song and other family mid-range models are expected to have comprehensive upgrades in configurations during the next update iteration.
What might make BYD feel the most tricky is the low-end market. The 100,000 yuan and below market, product profit space is small, but competition intensity is very high. BYD's Seagull, Dolphin, Yuan UP domestic market competitiveness continues to decline. Geely Galaxy Star Wish, Leapmotor A10 and other models have such high cost-performance ratio that BYD is helpless.
The reason why the Third-Generation Yuan PLUS upgrade range is unprecedented is mainly that BYD needs to respond to market changes through product configuration changes. The current 100,000 yuan to 150,000 yuan pure electric SUV track competition is white-hot, independent new cars continue to press down, joint venture models make up for intelligent shortcomings. The shortcomings of the old Yuan PLUS size, chassis, energy replenishment, intelligent driving are gradually exposed. The terminal can only rely on large price reductions to exchange for sales. The Third-Generation Yuan PLUS faces overseas and domestic dual competition through comprehensive upgrades with stronger product power.
Third-Generation Yuan PLUS, A High-Score Answer SheetBYD Dynasty Network Sales Division General Manager Lu Tian stated on Weibo that in May this year, the Yuan family cumulative delivery was 56,691 vehicles, among which Yuan PLUS delivered 15,277 vehicles, Yuan UP delivered 41,414 vehicles. Compared with the peak monthly delivery of over 40,000 units, even with overseas market assistance, Yuan PLUS sales still declined significantly.
The comprehensively upgraded Third-Generation Yuan PLUS is expected to achieve BYD's expected goals, defeating many competitors at home and abroad, but it is difficult to help Yuan PLUS return to the state of monthly delivery over 40,000 units.
On the one hand, new cars from other car companies are launched continuously, constantly competing with Yuan PLUS for the market. On the other hand, there is relatively obvious competition within BYD. Above is Song PLUS, Song Pro, below is Yuan UP. Many of Yuan PLUS's crises come from its own products.
(Image Source: EV Tong Photography)
It can also be seen from the sales released by Lu Tian that the Yuan family cumulative delivery is still very high, but among them, most delivery models are cheaper Yuan UP. In addition to improving product competitiveness, BYD may also need to re-organize the product line, reduce internal competition, and avoid internal friction.
Now the new energy market is no longer the era of BYD's exclusive dominance. Externally, competitors continue to engage in close-quarters combat, internally, its own models flow up and down. Even if product power fully crosses levels, Yuan PLUS is unlikely to replicate the brilliant sales of monthly breakthrough 40,000. After all, consumers are increasingly rational in buying cars now. Low-price commuter needs will directly choose the lower threshold Yuan UP. Pursuing larger space and higher specifications will directly choose the Song series step by step. Yuan PLUS exactly stays in the awkward interval in the middle.
The greater value of this car lies in undertaking two major tasks of technology popularization and overseas offensive: Internally, put the second-generation Blade Battery, 800V Flash Charge, DiSus-C and other high-end technologies down to mainstream home models, letting ordinary people also experience BYD's top-tier car building technology; Externally, iterate the overseas version ATTO 3, relying on stronger comprehensive product power, hold on to core overseas markets such as Southeast Asia, Europe, Japan & Korea, etc. In the wave of collective overseas rolling of independent brands, stabilize its own overseas basic disk.
