This Porsche Taycan challenger offers stunning performance and super-fast charging
BYD’s Denza Z9GT EV offers up to 1156bhp – and you can have it as a hybrid too
There’s little doubt that Chinese-backed EVs are coming of age and becoming a whole lot more popular as shown by 2026 sales data so far. And the model lineups are getting bigger, too.
BYD’s established Denza brand is now coming to Europe with the e3 Platform-based Z9GT, which our correspondent Rob Clymo previously experienced in China.
The unashamedly designed to take on vehicles like the Porsche Taycan and Audi e-tron GT with its classic shooting brake-style design. Denza isn’t just a sports car marque, either, with the Land Rover Defender also in its sights with the B5, set to arrive in Europe either late this year or early next.
The question whether BYD can persuade a Porsche purchaser to look beyond the badge is an open-ended one, not least because we don’t yet have pricing for the Z9GT as yet. I think it’s no leap to suggest that the pricing will be significantly higher than we’ve previously had from other BYD models like the Seal or Sealion.
The Z9GT is available in fully-electric and a plug-in Super Hybrid DM versions. Range isn’t stunning but edges ahead of some rivals, at 373 miles (WLTP) for the EV. The hybrid version can reach around 500 miles when the electric power is combined with a full tank of fuel.
The EV has a triple-motor setup with one motor at the front and dual motors to the rear delivering a huge total output of 1156PS (850kW). This will give performance of 0-100km/h in just 2.7 seconds.
A second version of the EV with rear-wheel-drive will debut before the end of 2026, with the promise of around 500 miles of range on the same battery design.
In-car tech is predictably plentiful, including a 50in augmented-reality head-up display and a 17.3in central infotainment screen that appears to ‘float’ in front of the fascia. There are also two other 13.2in displays for driver instrumentation and passenger interaction with the entertainment system.
The Z9GT extends Denza’s team-up with French audio brand Devialet who has supplied a huge 20 speaker system for the Z9GT which includes Dolby Atmos for excellent sound placement throughout the cabin.
As previously revealed, the new models will also use BYD’s Flash Charging tech – the EV has a huge 122.49kWh second-gen ‘Blade’ battery which can be charged at up to 1500kW. The company cites some stunning charge times with access to high voltage, from 10 to 70% in five minutes and 10%-97% in nine minutes. It remains to be seen how this would practically work in Europe but the company has confirmed plans to deploy 6000 Flash Charging Stations outside China within the upcoming year. 3000 of these will be in Europe the company says, including around 300 in the UK.
Denza has a neat mantra for this: ‘Ready in 5, Full in 9, Cold add 3’ – implying that you need to add an extra three minutes if there are cold conditions, it’s been tested at -30 degrees.
The company is also set to release the D9 DM-i MPV in Europe, too, a people mover that can take seven adults and is capable of 130 miles of range on electric power only with nearly 600 miles possible when you add in the fuel tank. Again there’s Devialet-powered audio on board. With many key manufacturers not debuting electric MPVs as yet, BYD obviously thinks there’s opportunity to step in.
Dan Grabham
Editor-in-Chief 
