BYD Recalls 180,000-Plus Vehicles at Home While Weighing France and Spain for a Second European Plant
Published on 09/19/2026 at 07:40 | Editorial boerse-global.de
A manufacturing defect at the brake pedal has forced BYD to order repairs on more than 180,000 vehicles in its home market, China's market regulator disclosed. Reuters reported that the safety-related flaw is to be fixed without delay.
Investors took the news in stride. BYD shares ended Friday's session down 0.8% at EUR 9.00, leaving the stock with a 16% loss since the start of the year.
The recall lands at an awkward moment for the Chinese electric-vehicle maker, which is leaning hard on overseas expansion to sidestep a punishing price war at home. Quality problems in China carry the risk of eroding the confidence of prospective buyers abroad.
Three assembly plants and a battery factory
Europe sits at the center of that push. A BYD adviser for the region said on Thursday, according to Reuters, that the company will ultimately need three vehicle assembly plants plus a battery factory on the continent. Production at its first site, in Hungary, is currently ramping up, and a decision on a second plant is due before the end of the year.
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Spain and France have emerged as the most viable candidates for that second location, with the company also examining the takeover and modernization of existing industrial facilities rather than building from scratch.
The localization drive extends well beyond passenger cars. At the IAA Transportation trade fair in Hanover, BYD announced on Monday that it will bring its first heavy truck to Europe next year, with production of commercial vehicles eventually to be handled locally as well. Stella Li has made the long-term goal explicit: everything BYD sells in Europe, it intends to build in Europe. The strategy is designed to blunt tariffs and trade barriers while shortening transport routes and sharpening the company's hand against established Western rivals.
Overseas deliveries set to double
New markets are already carrying more of the load. In August, BYD shipped 440,293 units worldwide, up 17.8% from a year earlier, while overseas deliveries more than doubled over the same period to 189,466 vehicles.
Citing a management meeting on September 8, Deutsche Bank and a second brokerage reported that the company is targeting 1.9 million to 2.0 million vehicles shipped abroad in 2026. Management believes overseas deliveries could surpass 2.5 million units the following year.
Before any of those expansion steps are taken, shareholders face a formal date. BYD has called an extraordinary general meeting for September 29, 2026, with the agenda covering amendments to the company's articles of association, resolutions on its asset-pool business and external guarantees, and the election and re-election of board members.
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