BYD mulls building green cars in western U.S.

Chinese car manufacturer BYD Auto was attempting to expand across the west of the United States by focusing on green cars. Well, it now appears that its tactics have paid off with Portland in Oregon attempting to win the automakers' favor.

BYD, which stands for Build Your Dreams, is China's largest battery maker and built its first plug-in hybrid, the F6DM mid-size saloon, for release in the Chinese market during the second half of this year. The vehicle has a top speed of 100mph and a range of 62 miles in all-electric mode and 267 miles total with the assistance of petroleum.

A fully electric version, the F6E, has also been planned - this five-seat saloon has a 100mph top speed and a range of 186 miles on a single charge. Also planned is the F3DM, which is expected to have a 100miles range in electric-only mode and will be available at a more competitive price for those on a tighter budget.

The initial plan for BYD was to sell cars exclusively in China before expanding across Europe over the next two-three years. It has already reached an agreement with a Dutch dealer to sell cars across the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia and Hungary from around 2010.

Now, representatives from BYD have met with Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski, US senator Gordon Smith and Portland Mayor Tom Potter, among others, who are trying to make Portland the distribution hub for the Chinese carmaker in the US.

If the vehicles are to go on sale in the US, it is expected that the F3DM and the F6DM will be sold for between $25,000 and $30,000. BYD is expected to settle on a North American test market by the end of the year.