BYD has launched the Yangwang Altior as part of their premium brand.
The four-seater EV is a flagship offering, with an extremely long body, four separate motors, luxurious back seat, plus a range claims of over 1000km (CLTC). The Altior marks Yangwang’s first foray into the executive sedan market after the U8 and U9.
Luxurious Sedan
The Altior is not your average luxury sedan, it is designed around a luxurious experience in the back seat. The sedan has a long wheelbase and four seats inside. Inside there is a lot of luxury with a luxurious lounge aesthetic. The Altior took three years to develop and has the Chinese name Dingyao, meaning a ceremonial vessel from ancient times.
By launching this new sedan, Yangwang have moved away from their performance focused halo vehicles. Whereas the U9 is designed to show off its extreme performance, and the U8 is designed to show off its tough off-roading capabilities and tech prowess. The Altior is aimed at wealthy customers who want a luxurious chauffeur experience with advanced tech.
Extremely Large
At 5600mm long, 2030mm wide and 1590mm tall, with a wheelbase of 3500mm, this is definitely an ultra-luxury vehicle. The size gives plenty of space for the luxurious layout of the Altior.
Out on the outside the Altior features a short front overhang, a large grille with polished sections surrounding the Yangwang branding and two long body lines measuring 4.8m. Customers can choose between three different 21-inch wheel designs.
Four Motor Electric System
Inside, the Altior uses the e4 electric system with an individual motor on each wheel. The torque can be adjusted over 100 times per second to ensure you have plenty of control. This system allows for a tank turn with the opposite torque applied to each wheel.
The Altior also has an emergency float function. Whilst this does not make it an off-road vehicle, it does show how much of a focus they have on advanced safety and unique capabilities. Inside there is DiSus smart suspension that takes into account all 6 axes of motion. This also scans the road ahead so the suspension knows what to expect.
Long Range
The Altior uses a second generation Blade Battery system to deliver a range of over 1000km (CLTC), an extremely impressive range. However, the CLTC test is generally much more generous compared to the ARAI tests in India and the WLTP tests globally. This means in reality it won’t be anywhere near as long, especially if you’re using the aircon, driving at high speeds or using all the luxurious features that require lots of power.
BYD have confirmed Flash Charging technology will be used. Whilst we haven’t been told how long it takes to charge, having a large battery pack and fast charging capability should mean less time lost on long journeys.
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Luxurious Back Seat
Inside, the Altior has two individual seats that recline. The seats have extendable legs and come with mechanical massagers. Each massager has four spherical heads.
The Altior offers plenty of space in the back seat with 1209mm of legroom and 354mm of kneerom. Pressing a button will move the front passenger seat forwards to give you a great view out of the back seat. This makes it feel much like a luxury lounge.
The doors open to 80 degrees for the front doors and 90 degrees for the rear coach doors. This makes getting in and out of the back seat much easier. The Altior also comes with an auto-relax mode that will adjust the seats, windows, lights and scents.
Luxurious Interior
The Altior has some luxurious touches inside with yellow Hetian jade used for the vents, Suzhou embroidery used on the upholstery, semi-aniline full grain leather seats, pure wool flooring and wood trim.
The luxury touches include inspiration from the ancient Chinese ceremonial vessel ding. Inside everything is made from real metal and there are 48 luxury items throughout the car with 11 different locations. This makes it feel like it has been handmade.
Luxurious Entertainment
The Altior has a 21.4 inch powered entertainment screen in the ceiling of the back seat. The audio system is very luxurious too with 39 speakers from Dynaudio Platinum Evidence. The tweeters pop up and swivel when the car starts.
It also has front and rear fridges. The rear fridge has a capacity of 5.5 litres and can be cooled or heated. Whilst it focuses on the luxurious back seat, there is still plenty of storage with a 532 litre boot.
Driver Assist
The Altior uses BYD’s God’s Eye A driver assist system. This allows for highway and city navigation assist as well as automated parking. This is becoming very important in the luxury EV market.
This will likely help to take the strain off drivers on long journeys, but should be seen as driver assist rather than fully autonomous.
Executive & Bespoke
The Altior will be available in Executive and Bespoke versions. The first Bespoke version has been themed around the Shanhe Dingyun. This has brown and gold exteriors with jade inspired interiors. This really shows how luxurious this sedan is.
BYD have not announced any pricing, markets or plans for launching in India. Considering the size, tech and positioning this will likely be a niche ultra-premium vehicle.
The Altior shows how serious BYD are about wanting to push themselves beyond just competing in the mainstream EV market. They want to challenge the ultra-luxury brands with advanced EV tech, extreme range figures and a luxurious back seat inspired by private aviation.
In the luxury EV market, this could become a benchmark for luxurious back seats. With the four motor system, smart suspension, Flash Charging and over 1000km range, this is one of the most ambitious EV sedans we have seen. Even if it doesn’t make it to India, it shows how quickly the premium Chinese EV brands are pushing themselves upwards.
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