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this post was submitted on 10 Jul 2025
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I am pretty sure there is some financial fuckery going on with BYD. My parents own two, and they are very nice, but way under priced compared to every other EV manufacturer.
Can't prove anything of course, but there is something odd going on when everyone else is 20-30k more expensive.
Hard to feel sorry for GM though, they suckled at our governments (Australia) teet for decades before giving up and leaving entirely. At least if BYD is being propped up we are at least getting good cheap cars from it.
The financial fuckery is that they're very heavily subsidized by the CCP. It's not sustainable.
I'd argue it is.
Just look how Amazon got where it is now: Sell way under market price, till local competition closed shop, then squeeze.
It's unsustainable to keep prices lower than costs. The Amazon example didn't have low prices forever.
Yes, I know. That's why BYD is going to
then squeezethe customers once they are locked in.Thus, not sustainable, as I said.
It worked for Wal-Mart
Which isn't really a sustainable business model, but it's quite successful
It didn't work for Walmart the same way it didn't work for Amazon
What is sustainable in today's economy?
Really, what Western corporation actually base their policies on sustainable growth?
Take your time. I'll wait.
...
All of them that I know of. Which corporations do you see running unsustainable business models until they fold completely? Take your time, I'll wait.
The point is that they eventually change their tactics. In this case, they'll have to eventually increase their prices.
Even big companies ran gigantic losses for years, just to undercut the competition and emerge as the only winner.
Some do it because they have other cash cows Epic store milking Fortnite), others have VC funding, like Uber.
Yes but after they win they have to raise prices...
Yes, and so may BYD. I have no idea what are you arguing for.
I think your muddying sustainable and successful. It definitely can be successful, but its not sustainable.
Its also high risk, especially if you can't crank up the prices enough later
https://feddit.org/comment/7714367
Sustainable implies that they can keep doing it forever without changing. Switching later means what they are doing is not sustainable. It might be successful, but its not sustainable.
There's sustainable practices and sustainable businesses. The latter is what others are arguing. Undercutting competition to take over a market is a sustainable practice IF you can hold out long enough. I'd wager the country of China can hold out longer than General Motors.
But the business model has to change in order to survive. The company cannot undercut forever, it actually needs to change in order to survive. The business model of today is not sustainable. They may have a large warchest, they may be able to crush GM, but once they do, or the warchest runs out, the business model must change.
If you want to make the argument that their overall plan with the later change is sustainable, thats fine, but this current phase is not sustainable.
You forgot the part where they raised prices on everything.
https://feddit.org/comment/7714367
It might just be that, since BYD is serving such a large domestic market/population, that allows them to have cheaper cars? Something something, economies of scale. I'm no expert though.
While they are subsidised, the Chinese are really good at low cost manufacturing. It’s not the cheap labour anymore but factory automation and robotics. They really outclass anyone else.
They're not "good" at it, they just have no minimum wage and no semblance of annoying things like worker protections or unions to be concerned with.
That's just patently false. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All-China_Federation_of_Trade_Unions
Like all things in China, this is owned by the government, making it pointless.
They actually have a problem with workers or the lack of them and they have invested heavily in robotics. They aren’t the China of the 70s and 90s. It’s really something that we need to face up to if we want to compete but our political class isn’t really ready for that sort of reality. Years behind because of smugness.
Brazil shuts BYD factory site over 'slavery' conditions
From 2016 and still true today:
Chinese Government Subsidies Play Major Part In Electric Car Maker BYD's Rise
Yeah, subsidies and other benefits from governments exist but China is going all in.
My only point of confusion is that a 20k loss on every car is insane. I'm guessing its a bit of BYD is subsidised somewhat, and everyone else is price gouging somewhat. No idea the ratio.
Also odd that other Chinese brands (really only tried MG) dont seem to have the same high quality, high pricing that suggests the same level of crazy subsidies.
Honestly, there is just so much fuckery going I just have no idea what is what.
Rivian is losing about $30k per vehicle, but with much lower production numbers.
Thats crazy. Are those public numbers from rivian?
Not exactly a number they put in a press release, but as a publicly traded company it is published quarterly.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ttu55nEtC6o - How BYD overtook Tesla?
China subsidises industries it wants to dominate in, allowing them to sell for less than cost. It's why the EU also tariffs Chinese cars.
Also for anything the big 3 make in the US, I believe they use union labor? Not sure if they did for Aussie market cars.