BYD Encounters Rise in Consumer Complaints Regarding Smart EV Feature Deployment
A Chinese consumer platform has logged thousands of complaints as customers voice their dissatisfaction with complimentary smart driving features and swift model updates in a highly competitive market.
BEIJING, February 18, 2025 – More than 4,700 complaints have been submitted against BYD on the Chinese auto consumer complaints platform 12365auto.com between February 11 and February 17. This marks a dramatic increase from roughly 150 the previous week and around 500 in January, with the complaints primarily centered on the company’s approach to providing free smart driving features across much of its vehicle range.
The issues were raised by customers of various BYD models, including those from the popular Ocean and Dynasty series, which rank among the top ten models with the highest number of complaints on the platform.
One complaint from a customer who owns a Seal 06 DM-i plug-in hybrid sedan described how the buyer had asked about the launch of a newer model before making the purchase, only to see a version with significant upgrades introduced within two weeks at the same price.
The customer sought free upgrades and compensation, an issue that BYD acknowledged had been escalated to the relevant internal teams.
BYD has not provided any additional comments on the situation.
This rise in complaints coincides with a time of fierce competition in the Chinese automotive market, marked by an extended price war, aggressive pricing tactics, and the rapid rollout of new models.
A similar situation was noted two years ago when U.S. automaker Tesla encountered a related scenario in China after a price reduction led to a surge in customer demands for rebates and credits.
The issues were raised by customers of various BYD models, including those from the popular Ocean and Dynasty series, which rank among the top ten models with the highest number of complaints on the platform.
One complaint from a customer who owns a Seal 06 DM-i plug-in hybrid sedan described how the buyer had asked about the launch of a newer model before making the purchase, only to see a version with significant upgrades introduced within two weeks at the same price.
The customer sought free upgrades and compensation, an issue that BYD acknowledged had been escalated to the relevant internal teams.
BYD has not provided any additional comments on the situation.
This rise in complaints coincides with a time of fierce competition in the Chinese automotive market, marked by an extended price war, aggressive pricing tactics, and the rapid rollout of new models.
A similar situation was noted two years ago when U.S. automaker Tesla encountered a related scenario in China after a price reduction led to a surge in customer demands for rebates and credits.
