Is this BYD's coolest car yet? Chinese electric kei car in the works to sit beneath the 2025 BYD Dolphin and BYD Seagull and bring the fight to Japanese rivals from Daihatsu, Honda, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Suzuki and Toyota

Chinese electric vehicle (EV) giant BYD is gearing up to bring the fight to Japanese car brands on their home turf.

A heavily camouflaged prototype has been spied on Japanese roads, as reported by CarNewsChina, with distinct kei car looks.

It has a boxy silhouette with a dual A-pillar layout and sliding rear doors. Everything else is covered by heavy camouflage.

Kei cars are a uniquely Japanese segment of vehicles that are ultra-compact. By law, they must not exceed 3400mm in length, 1480mm in width, and 2000mm in height and the engine output is capped at 47kW of power, which would, put it beneath the micro BYD Seagull and BYD Dolphin hatchbacks.

This type of vehicle receives tax and parking benefits in Japan, and despite the incentives being cut in 2014, kei cars still account for around 35 per cent of the country’s car market.

BYD only produces electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrids (PHEVs), and it is believed this spied prototype will be the former.

It will reportedly be built on an all-new platform with Japan in mind, and come with a 20kWh battery pack that will deliver a projected 180km of WLTC range.

The car will reportedly offer 100kW fast charging capabilities and feature a heat pump.

This means this BYD kei car will likely go head to head with the likes of the Mitsubishi eK X EV and Nissan Sakura, which are two of Japan’s best-selling electric kei cars.

It will also be the first ground-up electric kei car developed by a non-Japanese car maker.

While there’s the Smart ForTwo and Hyundai Inster, neither of these cars were designed solely with Japan’s kei car standards in mind.

According to CarNewsChina, BYD plans to produce this model in China for export to Japan in late 2026.

It also reportedly aims for a 40 per cent share of the electric kei car market within a few years.

At this stage it’s unclear if BYD plans to sell this model in other markets other than Japan.

There have been pushes to introduce kei cars to Australia in the past, including Mitsubishi with its eK X, though unique Australian Design Rules (ADRs) have deemed it uneconomic.

BYD already has a presence in the Japanese market and sells the Atto 3, Dolphin, Seal and Sealion 7 EVs.

According to Car News China, BYD sold 2223 EVs in Japan during 2024, which was up 54 per cent.

This is notably more EVs than Toyota sold in Japan over the same period. The Japanese carmaker giant sold 2038 EVs, though it’s worth noting it only currently offers one EV, the bZ4X.