BYD’s sleek new flagship EV has a range of 1,008 km: Here’s our first look at it [Video]

This is a car story, not a home energy upgrade story, so it won't affect your house directly. But if you're weighing an electric vehicle alongside home upgrades like solar or a heat pump, here's what's happening: BYD, the Chinese automaker, is about to launch a new flagship electric sedan called the Great Han, debuting at the Chengdu Motor Show between August 21 and 30, 2026. The car is rated for 1,008 km of range (about 626 miles) on a single charge, using China's CLTC testing standard, which tends to report higher numbers than the US EPA rating.

The bigger news for anyone thinking about EV charging speed is the battery technology: BYD says the car's "Blade Battery 2.0" and Flash Charging system can take it from 10% to 70% charged in 5 minutes, and to 97% in 9 minutes, using 1,500 kW charging hardware. That kind of speed isn't something you'll find at a typical home charger, but it points to where fast-charging technology is headed.

The sedan is large, sized closer to a Mercedes S-Class than a Tesla Model S, and will come in single-motor or dual-motor versions with up to 764 horsepower. Pricing hasn't been set, but BYD's related SUV model starts around 250,000 yuan ($37,000), so the sedan may land near that. None of this is available in the US yet, and there's no word on American pricing or release.