This year at the Detroit auto show, BYD showed an electric SUV that is totally an original design and not a carbon copy of anything we've seen before. Moving on...
The City of Los Angeles and BYD announced jointly today that the Chinese automaker will set up its U.S. headquarters in downtown LA. BYD North America will serve as the base for the company's efforts to import and sell electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids in the United States.
The first of these will be apparently be this e6 crossover, which BYD has said will sell for about $40,000. Green Car Advisor reported in March that BYD might establish a production plant for the e6 in California. That was not part of today's announcement, but the BYD North American HQ will include a research and development facility specifically for the U.S. market.
Today's press release from the city notes that BYD expects to create 150 jobs in 2010 and 2011 as it prepares to sell its vehicles in the U.S.
BYD started out as a lithium-ion battery manufacturer in 1995 and became a carmaker in 2003. It's probably best known in the U.S. for its connection to billionaire Warren Buffet, whose company, Berkshire Hathaway, took a nearly 10 percent stake in BYD in 2008. BYD recently formed a partnership with Daimler to develop a pilot program for the electric Smart car in China.
