Tesla has just become one of the largest manufacturers of electric cars in history, surpassing the Chinese-born firm BYD (although sales of the latter include plug-in hybrid models). This milestone has been possible, thanks to the success of the Model 3.
Tesla currently sells only three models, and three of them quite expensive compared to BYD vehicles. With h affordable prices in China, BYD is the largest market for electric cars in the world today. BYD has a particularly competitive advantage over Tesla, so far, with a limited presence in the Asian country.
In October 2018, Tesla delivered a total of 807,954 all-electric vehicles, while BYD has remained at 787,150 plug-in cars. It is interesting to note that the sales of plug-in hybrids by BYD have suffered in recent years against the success of their electric models. Also, the Chinese manufacturer produces its battery cells (Tesla has plans to do this in the future), as well as buses and heavy vehicles.