The BYD G3R hatchback will be listed in mid-April, around the same time as the Shanghai Auto Show starts. The G3R debuted at the Guangzhou Auto Show in December 2010, by that time the price was expected to start around 70.000 yuan. BYD however is busy lowering prices of all its cars to push up sales, the G3R will now be offered from 60.000 yuan. Not much money for a 4.3 meter long car with a 1.5 litre engine. 1.8 will also be available. Some more pics below:

Gearbox: manual or CVT.

BYD launched the G3R, a hatch based on the G3 sedan. The G3R gets 1.5 and 1.8 litre engines mated to a manual or cvt. Price starts at 67.900 and ends at 86.900. The G3R will hit showrooms in the first half of 2011.

Another Guangzhou debut for BYD. The G3R is a hatchback based on the G3 sedan. Hatchbacks are slowly becoming more popular in the sedan-focused Chinese market so all brands are adding hatches as fast as they can. The G3R gets 1.5 and 1.8 litre engines mated to a manual or cvt. Price will start around 70.000 yuan.

BYD will start to invade the countryside with this new G3 ‘mianbaoche’, or breadvan. The small vans are very popular in the huge mass of land and people outside the big cities. Think of Wuling, the jv between SAIC, GM and Wuling Auto, that sells up to a million camparable vans each year. Next big player is Chang’an Auto from Chongqing and then, well, noting really.

Many smaller brands compete for third and lower places, so BYD understandable wants a piece of the pie, especially since the breadvan-market will likely to continue to grow for many many years. No word yet on possible electric drivetrains, small 3 and 4-cilinders will come first. Price will start around 50.000 yuan, in line with competition.

Hatchbacks are hot in China. Until only one year ago it was common wisdom that Chinese car buyers did not like hatchbacks and only wanted sedans. So many Western automakers just glued an ass to a hatch and indeed people bought it. But not anymore, today the young want hatchbacks because they think ‘m more cool.

The local Chinese brand got the trent first so this year saw a lot of new hatchbacks hitting la market. Most of ‘m based on existing sedans, the world turned around indeed. This BYD G3 hatchback is another one of those, the sedan has been on the market since March and is very succesful, time so to sell more and get the young to the BYD showroom.

Car loox ready and will be on sale before the end of the year, debut likely at the Guangzhou Auto Show in November. Price will start around 70.000 yuan, engines a 1.5 and a 1.8.

The G3 is a new small sized sedan from Chery’s luxury brand Riich. The G3 shared platform and engines with the Chery A5. See it as a Volkswagen-Skoda relationship but done with Chery as the cheaper alternative and introducing Riich as a new more expensive brand out of nowhere. Some guts but it seems to work, the brand sells very well in China. The G3 is the third Riich sedan besides the bigger G5 and G6.

Size: 4552x1750x1483, wheelbase is 1505 and weight 1290kg. The G3 will come with two supercharged engines (!), a 1.3S and a 1.6S. Other engines are 1.5, 1.6, 1.8, and 2.0. The 1.3S has 95kw@5500rpm. No more info on the ‘S’-engines available yet.

CVT transmission will be available for the 1.6 and 1.8 non-supercharged engines. Price from 77.900 to 109.000. All engines from the Acteco-series developed by Chery.

This is the 1.3S.

Riich is Chery’s luxury subbrand and this new G3 is based on the Chery A5 but made to look more expensive. It got a new nose, a new back and a new interior. But the best now: it will come with two supercharged engines (!), a 1.3S and a 1.6S. Other engines are 1.5, 1.6, 1.8, and 2.0. The 1.3S has 95kw@5500rpm. No more info on the ‘S’-engines available yet. CVT transmission will be available for the 1.6 and 1.8 non-supercharged engines. Price from 77.900 to 109.000.

1.3S.

Chery is rapidly expanding the line up of its luxury-middle-class-prenium brand Riich. This is number five; the Riich G3 based on the Chery A5. The biggest change is the front which loox completely new, the rest of the car seems all A5.

Engines will be taken from the A5, so that is a 1.6, a 1.8 and a 2.0. The 1.5 will stay with the A5. Size (A5): 4552x1750x1483, wheelbase: 2600. Price yet unknown but  higher than 74.800 asked for the 1.6 A5. Riich G3 will have to look and feel more luxurious and of higher quality than A5 to justify the price difference. But with some clever marketing it might work, after all, people still buy Audi’s.

Chery A5

BYD Automotive cannot stop throwing sedans at the market and why would they, the F3 and F6 are selling like hot rice. This new G3 will slot right in between those two cars, it is based on the F3 but is more luxurious in look and feel.

The G3 comes with a 1.5L Mitsubishi engine and BYD’s own 1.8L. Price from 56.800 rmb to 76.800 rmb. Not much, BYD’s come cheap, some say the factory doesn’t make much profit because it only cares about winning market share. Warren wouldn’t mind I guess, he can wait for a while and the stockprice went way up anyway.

The dash still loox cheap but the colors do their very best to make the atmosphere a bit better. The chairs try very hard with that great looking  fakeleather, it is almost Bentlyesque. It might be another hit for BYD it they can explain why the car fits in their line up. So far, they can’t: BYD forgot to mention the G3 on it’s website. Bu hao bu hao…