Chinese brand takeover! XPeng to take control of Australian import and distribution channels as soon as the end of this year, mirroring key rival BYD

A number of new Chinese brands have set up shop in Australia over the last few years, but now a few are breaking through and finding success.

BYD is one of the most obvious examples, as the Chinese parent company recently took direct control of the import and distribution of its cars in Australia in an effort to cut wait times and improve stock availability.

BYD's distribution was previously handled by third-party operator EVDirect, which moved around 50,000 electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) for the Chinese brand in Australia since it arrived locally in 2022.

Other brands are now taking note and the next to potentially follow in the same tracks is XPeng, which arrived locally in 2024 with importing, distribution and the retail network handled by Sydney-based TrueEV.

Speaking with CarsGuide at the 2025 Melbourne International EV Show, TrueEV CEO Jason Clarke said XPeng could begin taking more direct control over the operation as soon as late 2025.

“The modus operandi of an OEM is give me more, give me more,” said Mr Clarke.

“Everything that you’ve seen from XPeng to date has been TrueEV. So we’ve got it to this point

“You would expect [XPeng] to do more.

“We’ve seen with BYD [and] GWM … these guys look around [and] you can see what the model is.

“So the pressure is always nearly on the OEM to do more faster.

“Certainly trying to break EVs into any market and the blocks you’re going to deal with [is] tariffs.

“If your big market was in the Middle East, it’s going to suffer in the short term.

“US is tough. New markets, it’s tough.

“You look at Australia and go, ‘Well, we’re going to be one of 80 brands for 20 million people. Let’s go!’

“I think [XPeng has been] doing more and more, but it’s always been the case.

“They’ve been involved closely [but] not from the product of the brand promotion. That’s been us.

“I’d say, [by the] end of this year, next year, you’ll start to see them more and more, doing more and more.”

While XPeng is a major client of TrueEV, it also has a range of other companies that focus on EV ownership. These include a retail platform, charging accessories, emergency charging, warranty, finance and insurance businesses.

As noted above, XPeng only arrived in Australia during 2024. It currently only offers one model, the G6 electric mid-size SUV.

It’s set to locally launch the X9 electric people mover either late 2025 or early 2026, and the G9 large electric SUV around mid-2026. An updated version of the G6 is due before the end of this year.