BYD releases the Song L electric SUV at a discounted cost

The Song L battery-electric SUV from Chinese automaker BYD (SZ:002594) has officially gone on sale. The vehicle's launch price was significantly lower than its pre-sale price, underscoring the growing competition in China's new energy vehicle (NEV) market.

The pre-sale starting price of RMB 30,200 ($4,250) is higher than the official price of the Song L, which was revealed on Friday.

There are five versions of the Song L available, all of which are battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and cost RMB 189,800 ($26,700), RMB 199,800, RMB 209,800, RMB 229,800, and RMB 249,800, in that order.

In April, BYD debuted the Song L concept at the Shanghai auto show, and in August, it unveiled the production version. This model belongs to BYD's Dynasty series, which is a subset of its larger model lineup that also includes the Ocean and Dynasty series.

Pre-sale for Song L started on October 31. The song is available in five versions, with prices ranging from RMB 220,000 to RMB 280,000.

The Song L was originally going to start at RMB 30,200 ($4,250), but that was before its official price was revealed today.

Analysts estimate that the Song L has amassed over 28,000 pre-orders since the start of pre-sales.

According to the numbers released earlier this month, BYD sold 301,903 New Energy Vehicles (NEVs) in total in November. This amount was made up of 525 commercial NEVs and 301,378 passenger NEVs.

With 61,694 units sold in November, or 20% of the total, the Song family models were the best-selling BYD model among the sales.