Why Rival Carmakers Criticise BYD's Business Model

The loudest recent criticism of BYD, from Hyundai Australia's CEO in July 2026, targets pricing and growth strategy: claims of selling below cost and unsustainable expansion. It is a commercial argument between competitors, not a claim about vehicle quality, safety or reliability.

When a competitor attacks a rival, it usually attacks the thing it cannot copy. Here is what was said, by whom, and how to read it sensibly.

What the criticism actually says

In July 2026, Don Romano, CEO and President of Hyundai Australia and CEO of Hyundai's Asia Pacific Regional Headquarters, told CarsGuide that BYD's growth was being driven by selling below cost. His words: "I think if I were to lose money and dump cars, and if my stock price was down 40 per cent, I could do the same." He added: "I think there's a big difference between growth at any cost and growth organically, so I'm not surprised."

The context, per the same reporting: BYD's Australian sales were up around 120% year to date against Hyundai's roughly 5%, with the two brands on similar totals across the first five months of 2026, about 33,000 to 32,000. BYD Australia declined to comment.

Two things are worth separating in Romano's claim:

• "Dumping" is a specific trade-law term, meaning selling exports below cost or below home-market price. Whether it applies is a question for regulators with cost data, not a rival executive or this article. No Australian anti-dumping finding against BYD passenger vehicles existed at the time of writing.
• "Losing money" and "stock price down" are claims about BYD's corporate finances, not its products.

The tone varies even inside Hyundai. In May 2026, Group Executive Chair Euisun Chung framed pressure from BYD and Tesla as "a good opportunity to develop the specific features and products that our customers truly desire". The combative line came from the regional office fighting BYD for monthly sales positions; the measured one came from the top.

Vertical integration, explained plainly

The structural thing rivals cannot easily copy is how BYD is built. It started in 1995 as a battery manufacturer and only entered carmaking in 2003, so it makes most of its own batteries, power electronics and core systems in-house, where traditional carmakers buy those parts from suppliers.

The practical consequences:

• Cost control. The battery is the most expensive part of an EV. Making your own removes a supplier's margin from every car.
• Speed. In-house engineering shortens development cycles.
• Pricing room. A lower cost base allows lower sticker prices while remaining more profitable than a rival matching the same price with bought-in parts.

This is why the criticism concentrates on pricing structure. A rival cannot verify from outside whether BYD's low prices reflect below-cost dumping or simply a lower cost base; both look identical on a price tag. The battery at the centre of that advantage is the same one in Australian driveways; our plain-language guide to how the BYD Blade battery actually works covers the engineering side.

What it does and does not mean for owners

Read carefully, Romano's criticism contains no claim that BYD vehicles are unsafe, unreliable or poorly made. It is an argument about corporate strategy. So for an owner or buyer:

• It says nothing about your car. Build quality, safety ratings and warranty terms are unaffected by whether a rival thinks the pricing is sustainable. The warranty is a documented contract; our comparison of BYD and Tesla warranty terms side by side shows what is actually promised in writing.
• It raises one fair long-term question. If pricing were genuinely unsustainable, the risks to owners would be indirect: slower network investment, thinner support margins. Against that, BYD's Australian fleet has grown to second only to Toyota in mid-2026, and parts, servicing and resale ecosystems follow fleet size.
• Aggressive pricing benefits buyers today. Whatever its cause, the price war has made new EVs cheaper. Nobody disputes that part.

How BYD has responded

To Romano's comments specifically, BYD Australia declined to comment when CarsGuide sought a response. More broadly, the company has consistently attributed its Australian growth to demand, as when it denied stockpiling claims in late 2025, saying imported volume reflected sales. Globally, BYD overtook Tesla in battery-electric deliveries in 2025, which it points to as evidence the model works at scale.

We sell BYD accessories, not corporate defence, so we will leave the sustainability argument where it belongs: between two finance departments and, if it ever comes to it, trade regulators.

Reading industry commentary sensibly

A short checklist for the next headline of this kind:

• Who is speaking, and what do they sell? A rival CEO is a competitor first, an analyst second.
• Is the claim about the company or the car? Pricing and margins are corporate matters; safety, reliability and warranty are ownership matters. Headlines blur the two.
• Is a regulator involved? "Dumping" is an allegation until a trade authority investigates. None has.
• What would the critic gain if you believed it? Not a reason to dismiss the claim, but a reason to want a second source.