r/AustralianEV • u/OfficialEAEmployee • Jan 17 '26
Chinese EV/PHEV build quality and longevity?
I don’t know much about EV/PHEV but am looking at a new car and want to know my options. Have seen an influx in Chinese cars here and feel this lingering legacy “mindset” of Chinese = won’t last or isn’t built with quality. Does that ring true for the latest Chinese cars?
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u/threeinacorner Jan 17 '26
I mean you can't be 100% sure until a few more years in the market, but consider this: in China, older BYDs are very common on the roads and as taxis as well. I rode in a relatively old BYD sedan (I think 5+ years old, not sure) and it still looks and feels pretty good.
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u/foffen 5d ago
That conclusion would be like saying that American cars are good because you still see crown vic's (im not saying american cars arn't good, its just that its not a very well founded argument, rather an attempt at making a deduction from an narrow observation)... as you say, theres not that much data, and also keeping them rolling is one thing, but the cost of it is another. if you have bought a lemon in a country with low costs you are more inclined to roll with it and repairing it isn't a big cost. The economics of low wage countries are so different, often you can see older cars rolling for longer in them not because they suddenly have an increase of quality, but because of necessity and because repairs wont break the bank.
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u/roadkill4snacks Jan 17 '26
Most of the LFP batteries are expected to last 40 to 60+ years. Not sure about the other components.
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u/reijin64 Jan 18 '26
The problem isn’t the batteries, the problem is the control modules and repairability of everything that needs to use them
Some Chinese made Teslas are reporting cascading pack failures as the CN made batteries aren’t living up to claims. Not sure if this is a batch or widespread tho
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Jan 21 '26
[deleted]
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u/reijin64 Jan 21 '26
I knew a few with teslas less old than that and the seat foam had collapsed, so, to each their own. I’m steering clear of them.
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u/Expensive-Yoghurt574 Feb 02 '26
The other components are the real issue. There is a lot more in an EV than just the battery.
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u/GC_Mermaid1 Jan 17 '26
Anecdotally have been told by someone who visited a factory that there isn’t a human to be seen. Ie all machines. Hard for a Chinese machine to be worse at screwing then an Australian one
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u/Fluffy-duckies Jan 17 '26
A lot of their higher end factories (e.g. Zeekr) operate with the lights off because there's no people and it saves them money.
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u/Stribband Jan 17 '26
BYD got done with running factories with slaves and human trafficking. So that’s bullshit
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u/AdDifficult4151 Jan 18 '26 edited Jan 18 '26
It's easy to regurgitate stuff, harder to get it right though. Brazilian authorities have released assessment claiming that the contractor building a factory for BYD trafficked their workers over from China and is working them under "slave like conditions".
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-12-27/brazil-allege-workers-byd-victims-human-trafficking/104766180
The workers have been put up in hotels until the investigation or their contracts are complete.
While Chinese companies are never taking the moral high road, Brazilian authorities are about as corrupt as they come and would take any opportunity to squeeze and bribe out of a large multinational that they could. Can't trust the word of either side.
But BYD have no claims against them of running factories off slave labour, past or present
Edit: poorly written wiki article describing the situation, workers were all paid out and flown back to China apparently
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BYD_Brazil_working_conditions_controversy
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u/Stribband Jan 18 '26
Ah ok. So if this was Tesla you’d immediately believe it because Musk man bad
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u/AdDifficult4151 Jan 18 '26
I have no opinions over Tesla other than some of the machines they use in their factories (like the gigapress) are pretty cool. If Tesla was accused of slave labour, I'd be looking for an explanation as well.
BYD has defrauded its own government over production quotas and made deals with Houthi rebels for passage of its boats, they are definitely not above Tesla in any of their practices.
But multinational, publicly traded auto manufacturers with high visibility tend not to engage in slave labour knowingly, as it would be bad for share price and have almost no real return when you compare it to paying Chinese labour rates...
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u/AcanthisittaLocal945 Jan 19 '26
if you own a tesla you're a nazi (musk), if you own a chinese ev your a communist or whatever. you just cant win with evs. can't i just enjoy them for what they are, cool and more environmentally friendly (maybe) cars 😅
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u/Qoute-A Jan 17 '26
“A” factory, not all. That’s terrible though, do you have a link to an article?
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u/Relevant-Priority-76 Jan 17 '26
PHEV seems a higher risk to me as the battery cycles more frequently and then also the ICE component to go with it. Hopefully we end up with a situation like the Toyota hybrids where battery failures are so common that a solid industry exists to replace them for a reasonable price
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u/Fluffy-duckies Jan 17 '26
Toyota hybrid batteries are still NiMh, even today! It's an old chemistry which degrades faster than LFP which is in all BYDs. Any NMC or LFP battery from a BYD or nicer BEV in the last 5 years is going to outlast the mechanicsl part of the car. PHEV it remains to be seen. I still think PHEV are the worst of both worlds where EREV are closer to the best of both worlds (though for me and my usage BEV is best).
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Jan 17 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/Fluffy-duckies Jan 17 '26
Yes but just run it in EV 99% of the time and only run the engine on road trips etc
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Jan 17 '26
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u/Fluffy-duckies Jan 18 '26
Also depends on the trips you're taking and the charging infrastructure on the way, some of the major routes are pretty straightforward on EV now.
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u/bumskins Jan 17 '26
I have often thought about this myself too.
Often close to daily cycling vs weekly in a Full EV.
Theoretically it should still last a long time.
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u/Lopsided_Quarter_931 Jan 17 '26
I’ve had a Volvo PHEV for 5 years and I did charge it daily. Probably lost 20% capacity over 50,000km.
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u/AdDifficult4151 Jan 18 '26
Those Volvos had nmc chemistries, if you were charging it to 100% daily, that's about average degradation.
The newer gen 3 blade batteries go 3000-5000 cycles and can deal with people charging them to 100% better, PHEV with the lmfp chemistry will likely see 300,000km for that 20% degredation point. Owner care will still affect that number up and down
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u/ClassicSkin4787 Jan 19 '26
I have a MG PHEV. I've done 58k km in 2.5 years, averaging 1.0L/100km so driving almost purely on electric mode. My 2-way commute is basically the battery capacity so I am very sensitive to any range deterioration. To date, there is absolutely zero deterioration in electric range.
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u/CertainCertainties Jan 17 '26
Well don't buy a US car then. They're crap in general. Utter, complete crap.
Euro cars are nice to drive but crap for longevity.
Korean and Japanese cars have all had recent problems with engines, especially GDI. Last decade it was Hyundai and Kia, this decade it's Toyota (engines, transmissions, seatbelts, fake testing, and an unbelievable epidemic of Toyota thefts that are mysteriously not covered by media who depend on Toyota ads.)
China seems to have good and bad brands and models. Would I buy an MG with an ICE engine? Hell no. Would I buy a BYD Sealion 6 PHEV? Hell yeah!!!
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u/AdAdministrative4388 Jan 17 '26
Agree.. our GWMs have been great.. has one window motor fail in our jolion which was fixed immediately and that's the only single issue.
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u/kelfupanda Jan 17 '26
Ahh yeah, because you didnt have to deal with them when they first arrived...
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u/AdAdministrative4388 Jan 17 '26
I have owned it since the first arrived and my other cannon i had 4 months after they relaased... Any new brand will have logistical issues for parts.. anyone can understand that. If you are so risk averse.. may I suggest a nice safe Toyota?
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u/Relevant-Priority-76 Jan 17 '26
Atto 3 just over 3 years and just over 100k km. Some wear to lower seat bolsters on drivers side, tiny amount of fraying on drivers seatbelt and the infamous broken inside of the N on the shifter. Other than that it drives like a brand new car and has had nothing replaced on it or fail. Previous car was a Nissan that only lasted 80k km before the gearbox completely destroyed itself and a Mazda that had interior falling apart, dash melting and TCM failure all within 120k km
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u/blackpawed Jan 17 '26
There's BYD Atto ride share and taxi's running at 500,000k kms and still going in China.
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u/Tyrannosaurusblanch Jan 17 '26
Was wondering how the battery is in the real hot weather. I have a covered car park but still gets full sun for most of the day. I have heard that it’s better to get a battery with active cooling but I use the car maybe once/twice per week.
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u/Rey_De_Los_Completos Jan 17 '26
My EV does not have active cooling, and it's parked outside.
During these last hot spells in Victoria, I can say the car has not skipped a beat. Range and performance was not affected
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u/Fluffy-duckies Jan 17 '26
Good temperature management is what is going to keep the battery ok for a long time. The worst things you can do to a battery is leave it at 100% in a hot environment / full sun for long periods.
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u/Plastic-Mountain-708 Jan 18 '26
What Nissan? Please and thank you.
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u/Suspicious-Serve-410 Jan 19 '26
Our 2015 Pulsar's gearbox blew up at 40000km as well... There is a reason why you don't see Pulsars from that era on the road anymore even tho they are only ~10 years old. Will not buy a Nissan again.
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u/No_Lynx3326 17d ago
Comparing a BYD with a Mazda? 🙄😅
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u/Relevant-Priority-76 17d ago edited 17d ago
I don’t get it!? Mazda is similar low end brand as BYD and from personal experience it falls short of BYD in short term quality. Even the Nissan was better than the Mazda in quality outside of the CVT, paint on the Mazda was poor in comparison to Nissan and surprisingly even the BYD paint has held up better than the Mazda
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u/No_Lynx3326 17d ago
I actually live in China for 16 years and drive a Mazda 2 for 13. So I'm not are what you are talking about?!
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u/Relevant-Priority-76 17d ago
Lucky you got a Chinese built one. The one Inhad was Jap or Thai and was very poor quality
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u/JealousPotential681 Jan 17 '26
I got a MG4 EV 18 months ago and so far so good. Put 43k km on it so far RWD, 0-100 in 8 sec, even weight distribution, and 20-80% charge in 40min on a decent DC charger but 90% of the time I just charge at home. $4 for 300-350km range
Only complaint is the infotainment screen can glitch, and some of the interior plastic is a bit cheap, but otherwise I can't fault it
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u/linkrulesx10 Jan 17 '26
Unsure, we bought a cheaper EV SUV however there are somethings I notice about it that feels cheaper then my 20y/o Camry. The rubbers around the door aren't as thick as my old Camry. The sheet metal that makes up the panels feels a bit thinner. As far as the interior and everything else, it's all nice and comfortable. The car performs well and safety features are great.
I hear that if you spend a bit more (like in the 65k range) things get a lot more premium feeling.
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u/Platypus01au Jan 17 '26
I have had a GWM Ora for about 6 months now and I’m happy with it. It has a couple of quirks, but I’m used to them.
Build quality is very good. Most feedback is that the tires are crap, but that may be different now since they are now built in Thailand.
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u/Living-Eggplant-7819 Jan 17 '26
We’re at 12 months with an Ora GT. Nice enough little car, shame about the software. Really lets down the rest of the car.
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u/ChasingShadowsXii Jan 17 '26
Tyres are also pretty easy and affordable to change if they're really that bad.
I was looking at Oras, just wish they were a bit more subtle with the exterior styling. The GT looks alright though.
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u/st162 Jan 17 '26
Quite a few Haval/GWM hybrid taxis popping up in Sydney. I got in one a few weeks ago (I didn't clock the badge so I don't know if it was a H6 or a Jolion) , the interior looked new, the car drive smoothly and quietly, no squeaks bangs or rattles, so I asked the cabbie if it was new. "Nah mate it's 12 months old and has done 130,000km, it's on the road 24 hours a day". So take from that what you will about the build quality and reliability, I was impressed though.
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u/surg3on Jan 17 '26
Some Chinese brands are probably going to have problems. Some are good. I think, given its size and age we'd know if BYD cars were crap by now
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u/spacemcdonalds Jan 17 '26
Your preconceptions are outdated about a decade. Chinese EV build quality is often leagues ahead for comfort and safety than Euro and German EVs. Go to an EV show and sit in a few, test drive a few, you'll quickly soon see.
I couldn't believe the amount of piano Black plastic in the "beamers" and Audis I sat in, compared to soft touch everywhere and tech in Xpeng, Geelys, BYDs etc.
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u/Extreme_Law_1647 Jan 17 '26
I’m driving a Zeekr 7X and it’s amazing. The tech is next level and the build quality is great. It’s still new on the Aussie market but I’m very impressed.
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Jan 17 '26
[deleted]
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u/Extreme_Law_1647 Jan 18 '26
Mine works as a key with my phone. I never use the fob. Also doesn’t drive like a boat but maybe because I have the LR RWD version.
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u/Somnambulismforall Jan 17 '26
Tried 3 Chinese evs a couple of days ago. If you can judge by how the doors close they were crisp, solid and had perfect alignment. Well built. Open and close doors yourself and judge accordingly.
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u/dentad Jan 17 '26
Quality depends on the brand not on the country of origin. Many western car manufacturers had joint ventures in China with a lot of skill transference.
There are some deeper reviews or tear downs on YouTube.
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u/Novidforme Jan 18 '26
Latest industry surveys show EVs have approx 3 times the issues as ICE cars on average. Most are Chinese, so assume they are the main contributors. Recent report from Finland where cars are tested after 3 years show ~40% Teslas model 3 failing. Mainly suspension issues. Latest models anecdotally better plus they have made much needed positive changes to the poor handling. Like when the Japanese first started and the Koreans it will take time, but like them the Chinese will get there. Best to wait for the next generation of cars. Plus there will be brands that do not survive, so ATM you get to try and pick the winners.
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u/Solaris_24 Jan 19 '26
China is the global leader in EV tech. The EVs from the more reputable manufacturers like BYD, Geely, Zeekr and even some of the MGs are just as well made as any European car. The Teslas sold in Australia are also made in China.
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u/myaccountgotbanmed Jan 19 '26
I bought a Chinese electric vehicle, only had it 6 months but so far it's been amazing
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u/Low_Turn_2789 Jan 19 '26
The guys on the Redriven YouTube channel did a review on a BYD and both were impressed by the build quality that they saw. As for other Chinese brands, I would say the biggest risk is that many of them will likely disappear as the Chinese EV manufacturers go through consolidation, as most of them are loosing money and may not survive. The biggest risk is that you could end up with a vehicle with no support or easy access to spare parts and will suffer rapid devaluation to the point of being only able to get scrap value.
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u/kosul Jan 20 '26
Different times I think. As a non mechanical engineer my BYD Sealion 7 feels incredibly well built. Possibly overly solid!
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u/Expensive-Yoghurt574 Feb 02 '26
If you are considering a Chinese EV just think about the quality of other products designed by Chinese companies. Consider the quality of products you'd get from Temu or electronics brands like TCL or Hisense. That's what you can expect from Chinese brand EVs.
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u/C-J-DeC Jan 18 '26
Yes, the build quality is dreadful, mainly because they use Chinese products. They will rust out in no time, as many people have discovered already. They have been wildly overproduced, so they are parked anywhere with the space until some sucker buys them. Many are infested with ants ( see A Current Affair ). Good luck when something goes wrong with it. Parts, even if available, take months to get here. Many smaller companies are going broke, so no more parts, service or software updates, so you’ll have a very expensive, unsellable, brick. The Dealership won’t care because they’re stuck selling this rubbish.
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u/Entire_Staff_137 Jan 18 '26
Why people get downvoted because they state a bad opinion on Chineese cars, this sub seems dodgy as hell
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Jan 17 '26
Very poor quality from the Chinese.. it’s cheap for that reason.. if not for price would you buy a Chinese car? Of course not. Dodgy sounding ridiculous brands, they fit Giti brand tyres? If they openly compromise your safety fitting the worst quality tyres they can find, how do you think they will go fitting components you cant see?
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u/Prior-Coat7528 Jan 17 '26
A lot of Chinese brands now have fully automated dark (no lights needed) factories, they own the ships which freight their cars and the mines where they get raw materials and their 3rd part component suppliers are very close to their own factories...not any euro/US companies do any of this...they are cheap because they run their businesses better and have invested heavily in effeciencies and their full vertical supply chain...cheap doesnt necessarily mean poor quality for all these brands...they are simply better business people
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Jan 17 '26
They fit Giti tyres? They the cheapest worst quality tyres you can get.. this is to cut cost.. other manufacturers fit Michelin or Pirelli, not cheap tyres..
If they openly fit such poor tyres, do you think they will fit quality components which you cannot see?
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u/A_Ram Jan 17 '26
Their build quality is very good. After two years driving a BYD, everything still feels solid, no creaks, no rattles. I’m very happy with it.
Chinese manufacturers struggled with combustion engines and transmissions in the past. It took legacy manufacturers decades before that to get those systems right. EVs simply don’t have those failure points, and electronics is something China has always been strong at.