BYD's bizarre toughness test

This Chinese brand has just put its car through another curious test.

BYD has dropped a palm tree on its Yangwang U8 luxury hybrid SUV to test its structural rigidity, according to CarScoops.

In a video, BYD’s Yangwang U8 hybrid SUV can be seen parked under a palm tree, which is being held up by a metal structure.

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The palm tree, claimed to weight two tonnes is then dropped on the left A-pillar of the car three separate times.

While the A-pillar was dented, there was no damage to the internal structure of the car.

According to Yangwang, the maximum impact energy hit 50.4kJ, equating to 54,000Nm.

This is not the first stunt that the Yangwang U8 has undergone, having been shown swimming through water and showing off a crab walk.

The car is pitched as a large luxury SUV, capable of serious off-roading and its hybrid set-up produces 883kW.

BYD’s Yangwang U8 is targeted as a rival to the Range Rover in China.

Promotional testing such as the palm tree stunt is designed to showcase it being capable of tackling the same robust challenges as the European luxury off-roader.

BYD is not the only Chinese to take on Range Rover with these stunts. The palm tree challenge comes after Chery’s attempt to copy a viral 4WD stunt first used by Range Rover went wrong last month.

Chery tried to re-create a 2018 video where a Range Rover Sport plug-in hybrid successfully completed the ‘Dragon Challenge’, climbing the ‘Stairway to Heaven’ on the Chinese Tianmen Mountain. 

Part way up the stairs, Chery’s Fengyun X3L skidded back down and took out part of the fence on the 1700-year-old landmark. 

Chery was forced to apologise after the incident.

These stunts may be working, though. Chinese brands are eating away at European alternatives in China, but also in Australia. 

It was revealed last month that one-in-five new cars sold in Australia are electric.

BYD has greater ambitions down under, with Chief Operating Officer of its Australian branch Stephen Collins saying the brand is targeting a place “around top three” in Australia by the end of 2026.