this post was submitted on 25 Apr 2026
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The recent surge in fuel prices due to the war in Iran has spurred demand for electric vehicles around the world, and Chinese car makers are making the most of the opportunity.

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[–] nyan@lemmy.cafe 16 points 7 hours ago (1 children)

Pretty sure they've been doing fine without the US market for years.

(It's going to be interesting to see what happens when BYD sets up dealerships just north of the border, since Canada has given them the okay to import a certain number of vehicles per year.)

[–] SaveTheTuaHawk@lemmy.ca 1 points 4 hours ago* (last edited 4 hours ago) (1 children)

(It’s going to be interesting to see what happens when BYD sets up dealerships just north of the border, since Canada has given them the okay to import a certain number of vehicles per year.)

Better to look at Australia. Low tariffs only apply to 50,000 cars made in China, which include Volvo and Teslerrr. This means the cars they import will be expensive.

But Canada tried an experiment with BYD buses, they set up an assembly plant near Toronto in 2019 and the buses were so bad, no one ordered them because they broke in testing. Toronto ordered 25 and sued to get their money back, and by 2023, BYD Bus Canada was shut down after building a whopping 10 buses.

Buying a new model from established car makers is a bad idea. The reality is there is no long term data on these Chinese EVs.

London (UK) has been successfully running BYD EV buses for years with no major issues. They're cheaper than the diesels to run and quieter. Not sure why Canada had so much trouble.

[–] Allero@lemmy.today 14 points 9 hours ago (3 children)

A huge domestic market is a strong advantage for Chinese manufacturers.

Even if every single country stops buying Chinese cars, they'll still have a base of 1.5 billion potential customers.

With more countries actively partnering with China, this number goes up considerably.

[–] SaveTheTuaHawk@lemmy.ca 1 points 4 hours ago

They sell a lot of EVs because of laws. China did not make EVs voluntary in large cities.

[–] BeMoreCareful@lemmy.world 1 points 5 hours ago

This is the reality of the situation. They are an absolute juggernaut with a tremendous amount of inertia. It seems like it would be a good long term strategy to partner with them, or emulate them at least.

[–] Gonzako@lemmy.world 2 points 7 hours ago (2 children)

Tho, maybe it's because the Chinese don't deal with these huge margins they have on cars now. A new car now costs tenfold what a new car would cost a few decades ago

[–] SaveTheTuaHawk@lemmy.ca 1 points 4 hours ago

A new car now costs tenfold what a new car would cost a few decades ago

Average car price 20 years ago in Canada, $32,700. That $52,000 corrected to inflation.

Average price of new car in Canada 2026 is $63000, but average is a stupid measure, the median is much lower.

I can't find the actual median price but it is estimated by one site at $45K.

The big difference between today and a few decades ago is people leasing cars they cannot afford, which drives up prices.

[–] JordanZ@lemmy.world 1 points 5 hours ago

Not entirely disagreeing with you. The way you worded it was always going to be the case if all you do is compare window sticker prices from across the decades though. Inflation cuts your money in half roughly every 20 years. A 20K car in 2006 is a ~40k car today even if everything else stayed equal. The average price for cars after inflation is going up though. The US’s trend towards SUVs and trucks is certainly pulling prices up but other things do as well like the government mandated features(small relatively but not nothing).

Some examples(these are when they became mandatory, not available)

  • front airbags - 1998
  • tire pressure monitoring (tpms) - 2007
  • ABS - 2011
  • stability control - 2012
  • backup cameras - 2018
[–] lechekaflan@lemmy.world 3 points 6 hours ago

Once again, this news makes the man happy.

[–] P1nkman@lemmy.world 1 points 4 hours ago

It's so pink. I want it!

[–] Aceticon@lemmy.dbzer0.com 12 points 9 hours ago

By doubling down on ICE and ultra expensive penis replacement "trucks" the Auto Industry and it's paid up politicians there are basically committing suicide, so sooner or later there will be plenty of room in that market for auto makers with friendly priced electric cars.

[–] GirthBrooksPLO@lemmy.world -2 points 3 hours ago

Electric cars are a not the future. Public transit is.

Electric cars exist to bail out the automotive industry. They will become the albatross around Chinas neck as their population ages out of consumption.

[–] stumu415@lemmy.zip 13 points 11 hours ago (6 children)

Most Americans would not buy a Chinese car anyway.

I love that Americans pretend to be the most important and competitive market. The combined population of Europe is twice that of the US. South East Asia is 700 million. And the choices in EV's is triple that off the US.

These are the markets Chinese manufacturers are after. These markets accept Chinese cars based on the price, quality and innovation.

I wouldn't be so sure about that. If BYD were allowed to import their entire fleet to the US they would be at the top of my interest list on price alone even if the US prices were double what Ive seen in new articles.

I'm personally in need of a new vehicle and everything, both the pickups I need and the passenger cars, are too expensive and has too much shit I don't need installed by default. I'm literally holding my car together with ducktape and bailing wire waiting for the Slate Truck to come out.

I think that if Slate Auto actually pulls off a inexpensive light duty EV pickup, and it proves reliable, it may completely change the landscape of the American auto market. I'm pretty sure that Ford and maybe Jeep will survive, but I'm not sure the others will unless they can start kicking out lower priced vehicles quickly.

[–] architect@thelemmy.club 8 points 6 hours ago

No one cares about population. It’s about gdp.

American media pretends. Americans are just stupid.

Id buy a Chinese car before an American one (as an American).

[–] Sharkticon@lemmy.zip 4 points 5 hours ago (1 children)

They used to say that about Japanese cars in America too.

[–] SaveTheTuaHawk@lemmy.ca 1 points 4 hours ago

And the first Toyotas and Hyundais were awful, they rusted out in minutes.

[–] Bakkoda@lemmy.world 8 points 7 hours ago (1 children)

Most Americans would jump at the opportunity of the price is right. They might tell you to your face they won't but they will.

[–] PalmTreeIsBestTree@lemmy.world 3 points 6 hours ago

Most of our bs is made in China anyway

[–] BussyCat@lemmy.world 5 points 7 hours ago (1 children)

There are around 290m cars in the us for the 330m people

There are around 420m cars in Europe for the 730m people

So while the actual amount of cars in all of Europe is more than the US the percent car ownership in a single country is insane

[–] stumu415@lemmy.zip 1 points 6 hours ago (2 children)

Than why don't they buy foreign EV's? There were options but now both Hyundai and Kia have stopped selling EV models last year solely in the US. In my opinion that makes the choice for BYD logical as these US established brands can't even sell their EV's.

[–] aeiou_ckr@lemmy.world 1 points 3 hours ago

Hyundai has pulled the ioniq 6 but the ioniq 5 and soon to be ioniq3 are sold in the USA still. Unless there was some news I missed. For Kia, Im not sure what their status is.

My own opinion, they were too expensive and the EV charging network wasn't built up enough to prevent people from feeling like the available range options weren't large enough.

[–] Soulg@ani.social 1 points 5 hours ago

I want nothing more than to be able to buy such a cheap electric car that BYD could sell me.

[–] cybercafe@lemmy.world 9 points 11 hours ago

But I truly want them here. I work in the automotive industry and yeah, they’re scared shitless. However, from my point of view it seems like a greed thing. It would drive competition hard and that would mean short to medium term r&d cost increases.

We are so fucking far behind it’s not even funny. Shutting out the competition is just putting our head in the sand. It is time to get into gear.

[–] Ensign_Crab@lemmy.world 7 points 12 hours ago

So glad that Biden decided that protecting Elon Musk's financial interests was more important than Americans having affordable electric cars.

Every centrist who rails against tariffs but makes excuses for Biden's protectionism is a massive hypocrite.

[–] late_list@piefed.zip 54 points 23 hours ago

BREAKING NEWS: Thing that is happening can in fact happen!

[–] Steve@startrek.website 77 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Its amazing what a boon the trump cartel is for China and green energy

[–] echodot@feddit.uk 6 points 12 hours ago

He should be awarded the Nobel prize for advancing environmental causes.

[–] sbbq@lemmy.zip 83 points 1 day ago (2 children)

Sure wish rich dicks weren't holding back innovation in my country!

[–] Tollana1234567@lemmy.today 4 points 13 hours ago

they want you to buy thier overpriced evs in the us.

"free market".. oops, cept for those things.

[–] Zwuzelmaus@feddit.org 4 points 16 hours ago

LOL but why in the world would BYD say such a thing?

I think the question is not whether a company can thrive without Usa, but rather whether Us americans can stand such a statement.

[–] PushButton@lemmy.world 17 points 23 hours ago (4 children)

Isn't there another post where it shows the cars in the USA are spying on you, triggering an alarm when it detects that you are tired and what not "technological advancements" they put in them?

Hey China, you are welcome to sell me your clean cheap car!

[–] thanksforallthefish@literature.cafe 4 points 12 hours ago (2 children)

BYD doesnt sell cars in the US according to the article so no, I don't think BYD is spying on you.

However that other post you're thinking of was possibly the one about the US manufacturers being forced to build in the spyware by the US govt...

Kinda the opposite to your direction of travel in tge post it seems to me ?

[–] PalmTreeIsBestTree@lemmy.world 3 points 6 hours ago

They don’t sell cars but they do sell their electric buses here. So at least are getting quieter buses.

[–] melsaskca@lemmy.ca 3 points 7 hours ago (1 children)

They'll be selling BYD's in Canada very soon. I wonder how that will work if there is still a Canadian that needs to cross the border into the usa and ends up in donald trump's america? Will they let them pass? Will they confiscate the car?

I suspect that will depend on how brown the driver is...

[–] 0_o7@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 points 17 hours ago (1 children)

Hey China, you are welcome to sell me your clean cheap car!

Sure, but they'll be spying on you too.

[–] dovahking@lemmy.world 10 points 16 hours ago (2 children)

What's better? To be spied by your government that can use your data against you or the foreign government who can't.

In an ideal world there'd be no spying, but we don't live in one.

[–] NekoKoneko@lemmy.world 4 points 16 hours ago (2 children)

I mean, I agree we don't want spying, but: a foreign government absolutely can use your data against you. Whether its creating a profile on you that could later be used against you when you enter that country, using it for statistical or targeted data for influence campaigns...there are a lot of ways.

China in particular has repeatedly deployed extra-territorial "police service stations" in at least the UK, Canada and the US to punish or harass those it's identified as "Chinese" dissidents or sympathizers in other countries.

[–] lechekaflan@lemmy.world 3 points 6 hours ago* (last edited 6 hours ago)

a foreign government absolutely can use your data against you

They would like to know which individual have specific skill sets they want. Things such as being able to fly a fighter plane, operate a nuclear plant, or design hypersonic missiles. And they don't even have to touch that individual, just listen and watch, and get the information they need.

[–] Trail@lemmy.world 5 points 12 hours ago (1 children)

On the other hand, it is very unlikely that I would willingly enter either China or US, so there is that.

[–] timwa@lemmy.snowgoons.ro 3 points 10 hours ago

Honestly, China is amazing, and well worth visiting (not just Shanghai though, which is far too westernized.) Fantastic people, too.

You wouldn't get me in the US again at gunpoint, though.

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