Denza is coming to the UK: BYD’s premium sister brand to launch with crazy 1,000bhp estate

Denza, the premium technology-focused brand owned by Chinese automotive giant BYD, is coming to the UK next year to take on the likes of BMW, Mercedes and possibly even Porsche – and the first weapon in its arsenal will be a shooting brake estate that can deliver nearly 1,000bhp.

As we understand it, Denza is looking to compete with the German elite on technology, design, quality and refinement, but aims to appeal on value, too, just as BYD does. However, the brand won’t be trying to top its rivals when it comes to driving dynamics.

As with so many of the new car brands coming to Europe from China, you’re unlikely to have heard of Denza before. It was launched in 2010, originally as a joint venture between BYD and Mercedes-Benz, with the aim of combining European design and prestige car making experience with the latest technology from China.  

Denza is now wholly owned by BYD, but the man styling its products and ensuring they have a European flavour is Wolfgang Egger, former chief designer at SEAT, Alfa Romeo, Audi and Lamborghini. 

According to Egger, silk has played a huge role in inspiring the brand’s look – particularly the way the design flows over surfaces and also throughout the interior. 

Denza Z9GT headed to the UK

The hugely powerful Denza Z9GT shooting brake will be the brand’s first offering to customers in Europe and most likely the UK, too, which to many will seem like an odd choice considering most buyers’ preference for SUVs over estate cars these days. 

However, executive vice president of BYD Stella Li told Auto Express that the Z9GT encapsulates Denza’s design philosophy, technological capabilities and the kind of unique features it can deliver. 

Underneath, the Z9GT is based on the e3 platform – pronounced ‘e cube’ – that was created exclusively for use on Denza models, and buyers will be able to choose either plug-in hybrid or pure-electric power. 

Measuring nearly 5.2 metres long, the Z9GT is considerably bigger than the most direct rivals that spring to mind: the Porsche Taycan Sport Turismo, BMW 5 Series Touring, Audi A6 Avant and Mercedes E-Class Estate. 

The Porsche Panamera is another possible rival, although Li boldly declared to us that the Z9GT is “10 times better than any competition, and we have lots of unique features that legacy brands don’t”.

Both versions feature three electric motors, with one on the front axle and two at the rear. The back pair, combined with independent rear-wheel steering up to 15 degrees, allow the Z9GT to crabwalk, pivot around the front axle to slide into especially tight parking spaces and give it a smaller turning radius than some city cars.

Every Z9GT also utilises ‘cell-to-body’ construction, meaning the battery is integrated directly into the car’s structure to increase rigidity and crash safety.

The tri-motor powertrain produces 952bhp in the EV, which can do 0-62mph in 3.4 seconds. Meanwhile, its 100kWh battery provides up to 391 miles of range on the Chinese CLTC test cycle. A figure based on the European WLTP standard has yet to be confirmed.

Meanwhile the plug-in hybrid version, which Denza calls ‘Super DM-i’, uses a smaller 38.5kWh battery and 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine that together allow the car to cover more than 680 miles in one go. Again, though, that’s based on the CLTC test cycle.

The engine is only used to drive the front wheels once you go beyond 62mph, and the rest of the time it generates energy for the battery and e-motor. The PHEV model is slightly less potent, though, with its three e-motors combined producing 858bhp, so 0-62mph takes 3.6 seconds. 

Denza D9 MPV and others to come

It’s been confirmed that the Denza D9 luxury seven-seat MPV will also come to Europe after the Z9GT, and is “set to redefine the premium-class MPV market”.

However, in the UK that might not be a particularly difficult task, considering that direct rivals here are limited to the Lexus LM and, at a stretch, the Volkswagen ID.Buzz LWB. There is the XPeng Z9 coming next year, though, also from China.

Of course, there are plenty of electrified seven-seat SUVs it’ll face off against as well, such as the Volvo XC90 and EX90, Kia EV9 and Hyundai Ioniq 9. 

A third Denza model is set to be confirmed for Europe by the end of the year, but exactly which remains unclear. In China, the company has the Z9 saloon, N7 mid-size SUV and its latest creation, the N9 large SUV, all of which we could see on sale here. 

Denza won’t stop there, however, as according to Li, the brand will have six to seven models on sale in Europe eventually. Denza already has five models in showrooms in China, including the N7 mid-size SUV and larger N9 seven-seat SUV, which both seem like potential candidates for the European market.

However, it’s been hinted to us that some of the more off-road-orientated SUVs sold by the Fang Cheng Bao brand  – another member of the BYD family – could be offered over here as Denzas.

Customer experience and servicing

We had assumed that Denza would utilise BYD’s newly established network of dealers across the UK and Europe to sell its products, but Li informed us that the brand would in fact be creating its own dedicated dealerships, plus separate sales and marketing teams. However, there will be fewer Denza dealerships than BYD locations in each market.

Denza is also looking to work with partners who have experience selling premium cars, while Li says the brand will provide “360- degree customer service” and focus a lot of attention on aftersales support – a learning from when BYD was launched in Europe a few years ago.

The hope is that this will encourage buyers to have more confidence in a new brand, and reaffirm that BYD is, as Li put it, a “long-term player."

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