Welcome back to EV News, China. Today, Ford's chasing the Chinese, BYD's C-Lyion O5, is launched,

and Volkswagen, I's oil shock, China sales. Plus, stay tuned. Later in the show, I'll tell you why

Beijing's auto show marks China's premium EV turn. Welcome to EV News, China, the podcast dedicated

to the world's largest electric vehicle market.

Each day, I bring you the latest headlines, insight and analysis from the heart of China's

booming EV industry and decode how fast-moving developments in the east shape the global

landscape.

Let's get into it.

Ford's chief executive, Jim Farley, went on a podcast last Friday and named BYD, not Tesla, as Ford's

benchmark rival. He called BYD the best in the business on cost, supply chain, manufacturing,

and intellectual property. Farley says Ford needs to adopt BYD's cost discipline and pair it with

American innovation. He also said Ford should aim at US buyers who want more body style choice

at $30,000 rather than $50,000. In practice, Ford's EV plan is now more about fixing its cost structure than chasing Tesla's model for model.

Well, BYD has expanded strongly outside of the United States.

The European Union imposed tariffs of up to 38.1% on Chinese vehicles.

Yet BYD's European registrations rose to 18,242 in January this year,

up from just under 7,000 same month last year. That's a tripling of their business. Others have

reached the same conclusion. Elon Musk said back in 2024,

the Chinese car makers are the most competitive car companies in the world.

BYD has launched the C-Lion 05 compact crossover with two new power train choices in China,

fifth generation DMI plug-in hybrid and pure electric. Both have the same exterior

design, both versions measure 4.6 metres long, 1.86 meters wide, 1.63 meters tall. That makes

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