If BYD’s “Disruptive Technology” event on March 5 was intended to shake up the electric vehicle industry, then it probably worked.
The Chinese automaker introduced the Blade Battery 2.0 – a second-generation lithium iron phosphate pack that directly targets two of the biggest frustrations with electric vehicles: how far they go and how long it takes to charge.
BYD’s battery leap: More range, less time on the plug
Over 1,000 km on the Chinese CLTC test cycle sounds like marketing until you translate it – that’s about 725 km on the US EPA scale and about 900 km on the WLTP scale. In other words, the old Blade battery did 600km CLTC and that was considered good.
The Model S Long Range, Tesla’s range king, only manages 660 km in the EPA test. BYD simply skipped it in one fell swoop.
BYD’s new “flash charging” system can charge from 10% to 70% in five minutes and from 10% to 97% in nine minutes. To put that in perspective, Tesla’s V4 Supercharger – currently the fastest widespread charging network – reaches peak power of around 325 kW on some vehicles (though most are limited to around 250 kW) and takes around 15 to 20 minutes to cover the same distance.
Even Porsche’s 800-volt Taycan, one of the fastest-charging electric vehicles in the Western market, takes about 18 minutes to charge from 10 to 80%.
| brand | Best Range (WLTP/EPA) | Peak charging speed | 10-80% loading time |
|---|---|---|---|
| BYD (Blade battery 2.0) | ~900km WLTP | 1,500kW | ~5 mins (10-70%) |
| Tesla (Model S Long Range) | ~560 km EPA | 325 kW (V4 compressor) | ~15-20 mins |
| Porsche (Taycan Turbo S) | ~530km WLTP | 320kW | ~18-21 mins |
| Hyundai (Ioniq 6 Long Range) | ~614 km WLTP | 350kW | ~18 mins |
| Clear (Air Grand Touring) | ~837 km EPA | 420 kW (peak) | ~22 mins |
1.5MW charging and a battery that works at −30°C
Cold weather performance is also significantly improved. At -30°C, the Blade Battery 2.0 can charge from 20% to 97% in 12 minutes – a specification that is hugely important in Northern Europe and Canada, where winter battery performance has historically been a real pain point for electric vehicle adoption.
To support all of this, BYD has also introduced a 1,500 kW flash charger, a figure that surpasses anything currently available from Tesla or the wider public charging network.
The first vehicle to use the new battery will be the Yangwang U7, BYD’s luxury flagship, which combines the 150 kWh Blade Battery 2.0 with a quad-motor setup and a CLTC range of 1,006 km.
A mass-market electric vehicle already has charging technology
What makes this more than just a luxury showcase is the Seal 07 EV – a midsize sedan from BYD’s mainstream Ocean range, about the size of a Toyota Camry, available at the equivalent price of around $24,600.
It has the same Blade 2.0 battery and flash charging capability, and a real-world test has already confirmed a 10% to 70% charge in 4 minutes and 51 seconds – just shy of the advertised five.
Range anxiety and slow charging were the last two credible arguments against the spread of electric vehicles. BYD has just dismantled both – and at a price where the competition has little say (at least for now).
