When Chinese automotive giant BYD launched its electric luxury car, the Denza Z9GT, in Malaysia last month, the initial reaction was one of surprise, not only at its long list of features but also at its price tag.
For the Asia Pacific debut of the model, BYD set a price of MYR 358,800 (USD 87,700.4), a level analysts expect will provide “serious competition” for luxury competitors in the market.
“I would describe it as very attractive and competitively priced, given the design and the specs. Cars competing at this price range are looking at a very serious competition,” said a Kuala Lumpur-based auto analyst of an investment bank who declined to be named.
For comparison, the electric Lotus Emeya sells for around MYR 459,000 (USD 112,192), while unofficial imports of the Tesla Model S Plaid start at MYR 450,000 (USD 109,992.2).
BYD Malaysia managing director Jacob Ma, however, insists the Chinese company “never competes with anyone.”
“For us, we never compete with anyone or [a] specific brand or model. We are always competing with ourselves. Every day we are trying to elevate the quality, the technology, the service to our customers,” Ma told Nikkei Asia. “The customers are all we need.”
“It’s (Z9GT) an original concept and all the equipment embedded in this vehicle, I believe … is something brand new,” Ma said, “a second generation of transportation.”
The Denza Z9GT can go 701 kilometers on a single charge and is equipped with BYD’s second-generation blade battery, which needs nine minutes to go from a 10% charge to 97%.
Jim Kem, content editor at Malaysian automotive news portal Carlist.my, described the price as “quite unheard of,” calling the equipment list “extremely long, bordering on an overkill.”
BYD is looking to build on its presence in Malaysia, where it has sold more than 35,000 EVs since entering the market in 2022. Last year it sold 14,407 EVs, making it the country’s biggest seller in the segment.
The price of the new Denza is eyebrow-raising not only because of the car’s features but also the promised after-sales service. The model comes with a six-year or 150,000-km vehicle warranty and an eight-year or 160,000-km high-voltage battery warranty.
“We set this price … because we believe this is what Malaysians deserve,” Ma said, “a better technology at a price they can reach.”
“Margin is not always the priority,” he said when asked if the price would squeeze BYD’s profitability. “It’s always about the service quality, because we know Denza is a new brand here,” he added.
BYD’s warranties, especially for the battery, stood out for Daryl Foong, group CEO of Aquawalk Group, who attended the launch, saying it is “very expensive to service an EV battery when it eventually fails.”
“The current generation of BYD cars are really impressive. They are really putting themselves on an even pedestal with the rest of your traditional continental cars, the BMWs,” Foong said.
In terms of EV tech innovation, he said, BYD is “miles ahead of the Europeans.”
Another attendee, Akmal Nizam, said the price of the Z9GT would only fetch the midrange Mercedes-Benz E-class and BMW 5 series, which do not have the BYD car’s fast-charging capacity or its bells and whistles. “My EV BMW iX doesn’t have a fridge … unlike the Z9GT,” Akmal said. The BMX iX retails at over MYR 500,000 (USD 122,213.5).
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A major question for BYD is whether it can parlay innovation into brand recognition.
“The luxury [segment] is widely considered to be one of the hardest challenges in the auto business,” the auto analyst said. “Obstacles include insufficient brand prestige, the cheap product stereotype associated with China, plus political risks, delocalization pressures, tariffs and regulations.”
Kem of Carlist.my believes BYD will have a hard time matching the mystique, prestige, and brand perception of more established luxury nameplates. “These kinds of buyers are more attracted to the more intangible aspects of a luxury car—the romanticism and aspirational qualities of a marque’s story … over flashy gadgetry.”
Still, BYD is expected to do well in Malaysia and elsewhere in Asia, “particularly with the Chinese diaspora, which has shared language, shared cultural heritage and decades of close bilateral trade ties [with China],” the analyst said.
BYD is also expected to get a boost from China being viewed more favorably than the US in many countries, even if the automaker is not competing directly with American brands.
In a Pew Research survey released on July 15, respondents in 25 of 36 countries viewed China more positively than the US, the first time China gained the majority. Pew polled more than 42,000 people in 36 countries.
In Malaysia, 75% of respondents viewing China positively against 19% viewing the US favorably. Only Pakistan, at 90%, had a more positive view of China.
“This will definitely help BYD,” the analyst said. “A country’s image acts as an ‘umbrella brand’ that deeply influences consumer perception and brand power.”
This article first appeared on Nikkei Asia. It has been republished here as part of 36Kr’s ongoing partnership with Nikkei.
Note: MYR figures are converted to USD at rates of MYR 4.09 = USD 1 based on estimates as of July 27, 2026, unless otherwise stated. USD conversions are presented for ease of reference and may not fully match prevailing exchange rates.