A long-running dispute over emissions compliance among China’s major electric vehicle (EV) manufacturers has reignited, as Geely backed Great Wall Motor’s claims against BYD, further inflaming tensions in a market already strained by aggressive price competition.
The feud began in 2023 when Great Wall Motor reported BYD to regulators, alleging that its Qin Plus and Song Plus plug-in hybrids did not meet China’s emissions standards. The issue resurfaced last month after Great Wall’s chairman, Wei Jianjun, said the regulatory probe was still ongoing and warned against the damaging effects of the ongoing price war.
BYD responded by calling Wei’s remarks “alarmist” but did not address the emissions concerns directly. The automaker has previously denied the allegations, asserting its vehicles comply with national standards.
On Saturday, Geely vice president Victor Yang joined the fray during an industry event in Chongqing, supporting Great Wall’s position and confirming Geely had conducted its own tests. “Wei Jianjun is a genuine, honest person and is our industry’s whistleblower,” Yang said, according to videos posted by local media outlet The Paper.
At the heart of the controversy is BYD’s former use of non-pressurised fuel tanks in certain hybrid models, which critics claim allow for increased fuel evaporation. Li Yunfei, general manager of branding and public relations at BYD, responded on social media, stating that the tanks were compliant with regulations between 2021 and 2023, but had since been replaced due to customer feedback. His statement was later removed from Weibo, with no explanation.
Neither Great Wall Motor nor BYD immediately responded to Reuters’ requests for comment on Monday. Geely referred inquiries to the publicly posted videos and declined to elaborate. China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), which is among the regulators involved in the probe, did not comment.
The dispute comes as competition in China’s EV sector intensifies, with BYD slashing the price of its lowest-cost model to 55,800 yuan ($7,771), triggering a market-wide decline in auto stocks. In response, MIIT recently convened automakers to discourage further price wars, according to sources familiar with the matter.
Source: Reuters