The BYD Racco finally launches and is ready to take on the Japanese market
At last year’s Japan Mobility Show, BYD debuted something genuinely surprising: a kei car of its own called the Racco that would go up against the very same manufacturers that invented the category in their own home turf.
Now officially launched about half a year later, the Racco is a very cute, boxy kei van that is, of course, fully electric and has all the features to make it competitive against others.
It measures 3,395mm long, 1,475mm wide, and 1,800mm tall, with a wheelbase of 2,520mm, and is perfect for the tight city streets of Tokyo or Osaka. It starts at 2,145,000 JPY, or roughly Php 807,000.
The exterior adopts the Humanistic Warmth design language, featuring full D-shaped LED lighting front and back, which wrap around the front and back like a raccoon (its namesake), and features two hands-free power sliding doors on either side, and it rides on 15-inch wheels.
The interior seats four people, or you can forego the rear seats to expand the 280L of luggage up to 1,372L. It comes with multiple storage portions, smartphone pockets, and rear tray tables.
There is a 10.1-inch infotainment screen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto support, up to six speakers, and the full BYD DiPilot suite of advanced driver assistance systems across all variants.
Instead of reusing the underpinnings from something like a Seagull, it has a miniaturized X-PACK drive control system, a specific MacPherson strut front and torsion beam rear suspension, and a Japan-specific electric motor that can handle a fully loaded car on the steep slopes of residential areas.
It has a power output of 64 horsepower and 160Nm, and is available in two battery sizes: a 22.40kWh LFP battery with up to 210km (WLTC) of range, or a 35.84kWh LFP battery with up to 320km (WLTC) of range from a single charge.
Because it’s a Japan-specific car, it supports AC charging (Type 1) up to 6kW, CHAdeMO DC charging up to 49.7kW, and Vehicle-to-Load and Vehicle-to-Home capabilities.
With the BYD Racco destined for the Japanese market, it’s highly unlikely we’ll see something like this make its way to other markets. But of course, this is more than just a way for BYD to expand its market share; it was a statement that the automaker was ready to fight dominant manufacturers by going into segments that others wouldn’t dare touch.
Photos by Sam Surla, BYD Japan
