Driving Sports

One of China's new wave of automobile manufacturers, BYD Auto, will host a press conference at 10:50 a.m., Monday, January 12, at the Detroit Auto Show.

Among the company's cars is the F3, which uses the Mitsubishi 4G18 engine, making 98 horsepower and 98 foot-pounds of torque. The car weighs 2640 pounds. The F6 and F8 are larger sedan and convertible models, respectively.

Along with its gas-powered lineup, BYD will introduce several new "Green" models, including the e6 electric crossover SUV and the F3DM sedan, which the company claims is the first production plug-in hybrid vehicle.

BYD executives will provide details about the company's advanced Fe lithium-iron battery and its new Dual Mode (DM) plug-in hybrid system at the conference. BYD Auto President Wang Chuanfu will be joined at the press conference by David Sokol, chairman of MidAmerican Energy Holdings. MidAmerican is a subsidiary of Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway, which owns a 10% stake in BYD.

BYD is based in Shenzhen, China and is working to develop pure electric and plug-in hybrid gasoline-electric vehicles, as well as advanced battery technology. BYD Auto's parent company, BYD Company Ltd., is the world's second-largest producer of rechargeable batteries and a supplier of IT components to Nokia, Motorola, Samsung and others.

BYD is just the latest of the Chinese automakers, including Brilliance, Chery and others making inroads into the U.S. market. Offering lower priced cars and leveraging existing joint ventures with established America, European, and Asian brands, the Chinese manufacturers are likely to see some success here during the current economic downturn.