BYD F0 goes on sale today from 45,800 yuan

Shanghai, September 2 (Gasgoo.com) BYD Auto's F0 goes on sale in the home market this morning, priced from 45,800 yuan ($6,711) to 55,800 yuan depending on different specifications, a Xinhua report said.

"BYD absorb the pressure rising from high material costs on itself and the low starting price shows BYD's good commitment to consumers,” said Xia Zhibing, general manager of BYD Auto Sales Co. He added that the car makes less than 1,000 yuan in average profit per vehicle.

F0 is powered by a 1.0L engine generating 50 kW of power and 90 Nm of torque. A five-speed manual transmission is also standard.

BYD said it has spent five years on its small car product program. The F0 was previously named as "F1" but was thereafter changed into F0 to avoid possible label conflict with Formula One Group.

In the first half of this year the company sold 72,357 vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 94%. It plans to double its sales, setting its target for 2008 at 200,000 units, and 400,000 units for 2009.

BYD F0 is to be sold at $6,711and up