BYD Denza to unveil concept supercar at next week’s Shanghai auto show

• The concept supercar car has the ultimate pure styling and world-leading technologies, said the head of Denza.
• Previously reports said the car was originally a production version of Fang Cheng Bao’s Super 9 concept.

The head of BYD’s (OTCMKTS: BYDDY) premium brand Denza has confirmed that the brand is building a supercar, after spy shots recently circulated again.

Denza’s first concept supercar will be unveiled at the Shanghai auto show, the brand’s general manager of sales, Zhao Changjiang, said on Weibo today.

Zhao says he’s sharing this information because road test images of the camouflage-wrapped Denza sports car have been circulating online lately, and a few people have posted renderings as well.

The concept car has the ultimate pure styling and world-leading technologies, he said.

The upcoming Shanghai auto show will be held from April 23 to May 2, and Denza’s booth is at 8A01 in Hall 8.1.

In January, several local media reported that Denza was building an electric sports car to enrich its product matrix.

Chinese automotive media outlets, including Auto Home, shared several spy photos of Denza’s purported electric sports car at the time, saying the model was a two-door, four-seat sports car.

The car was originally a production version of Fang Cheng Bao’s Super 9 concept, but had later been placed under the Denza brand, according to Auto Home. Fang Cheng Bao is a personalized sub-brand of BYD.

The sports car, which will come in hardtop and convertible versions, was expected to make its official debut at the Shanghai auto show in April, the report said.

It would be priced at more than RMB 300,000 yuan ($41,090), with performance benchmarked against the Porsche 911, according to the report by Auto Home in January.

On April 10, auto blogger @敢越星河 shared a video on Weibo showing a camouflage-wrapped sports car driving down the road. The blogger claimed that the model was a Denza sports car.

Denza’s current models on sale include the N7 SUV (sport utility vehicle), N9 SUV, Z9 sedan, Z9GT hatchback, and D9 MPV (multi-purpose vehicle).

The N9, which only went on sale on March 21 with a starting price of RMB 389,800, is Denza’s flagship SUV.

Denza sold 12,620 vehicles in March, up 22.77 percent year-on-year and up 48.24 percent from February, according to data compiled by CnEVPost.

In the first quarter, Denza sold 32,853 vehicles, up 37.20 percent from a year earlier.

($1 = RMB 7.3019)