BYD's new engine shock! New Subaru-style turbo boxer engine headlines unique performance hybrid YangWang U7 sedan as the Chinese brand takes aim at the Porsche Panamera, BMW i7, and Audi e-tron GT

BYD’s ultra-luxury YangWang marque is about to launch its third product - a high-performance sedan, with a surprising flat-engine twist.

Serving as the brand’s most accessible car yet, the U7 sedan will be available both as a battery electric car, and as a plug-in hybrid.

While the battery electric version is impressive with a quad motor set-up allowing a 0-100km/h sprint time of 2.9 seconds and a 135kWh battery pack granting it a 720km driving range (on the more lenient CLTC standard), it's the plug-in hybrid version that's full of surprises.

BYD is launching an in-house 2.0-litre turbocharged horizontally opposed ‘boxer’ engine to serve as the PHEV’s combustion power source. The brand lays claim to the U7 being the first-ever quad-motor boxer plug-in hybrid.

The flat-four engine produces 200kW on its own with the total quad-motor system power rated in excess of 1000kW.

BYD has chosen this style of engine layout rather than its usual 1.5-litre or 2.0-litre in-line engine in order for the engine to sit flat on top of the drive motor assemblies over the front axle while maintaining the relatively sleek and low bonnet of the U7 (which grants it a drag coefficient of 0.195).

For the same reason this engine is offered in Subaru products, BYD says the boxer also provides a low centre of gravity compared to equivalent inline engines. BYD also said the boxer was chosen because it is “ultra-quiet” with “small vibration, low noise, and more comfort".

Despite maintaining its quad-motor layout, the 2.0-litre turbo PHEV version of the U7 is slightly slower to 100km/h than the battery electric version, with the brand claiming 4.1 seconds.

It's also equipped with an enormous 52.4kWh battery pack granting it a 200km electric-only driving range (CLTC) with a combined driving range of 1000km, according to the brand.

Luxury and performance features include four-wheel steering, independent four-wheel motor control, and motor-controlled variable shock absorbers (replacing more traditional hydraulic systems), which the brand says allows the U7 to respond faster to changes in road conditions.

The U7 is the third model from BYD’s ultra-luxury YangWang range, which also includes the U9 supercar and U8 super-SUV.

The brand’s local importer has already expressed strong interest in the U8, claiming back in 2023 that the SUV could be on sale in Australia by the end of 2025.

The U8 uses a more traditional 2.0-litre in-line engine plug-in hybrid layout, although it's also equipped with quad motors for a total system output of 880kW/1280Nm.

The massive SUV would be BYD’s halo product in Australia given it is priced at more than $235,000 converted to Australian dollars.

Meanwhile, the Porsche-Panamera-Rivalling U7 is more accessible, starting from around A$140,000 in its Chinese home market.

BYD’s new-model blitz in Australia will also include its Denza sub-brand, which, to compare to the giant VW Group, is more like Audi in the brand’s umbrella whereas BYD would be a VW equivalent, and YangWang is more like Lamborghini.

It may not be the only Chinese SUV seeking to join the ultra-luxury game in the next few years in Australia.

GWM, for example, has expressed interest in its range-topping Tank 700 which uses a 3.0-litre twin-turbo V6 plug-in hybrid layout, priced in excess of A$100,000 in Australia.

Zeekr has just teased its halo product, the X9, which will also use a plug-in hybrid system, with Chinese media estimating a price in excess of the equivalent of A$200,000.