Recent safety accidents involving the electric vehicle giant BYD, heavily supported by the Chinese Communist Party, have once again sparked public attention. A customer experienced a rear-end collision while operating the intelligent driving system under the guidance of a BYD salesperson.
On the afternoon of July 2nd, a video circulating online showed a salesperson from BYD’s sub-brand Tangshi asking a user test-driving the vehicle to keep their hands off the steering wheel, which resulted in an error in the intelligent driving system causing a rear-end collision.
A video posted by a car blogger depicted the user being assisted by the salesperson to activate the intelligent driving function during the test drive of a Tangshi vehicle. The salesperson instructed the user not to touch the steering wheel with their hands or step on the brakes, claiming that the vehicle would automatically stop when encountering obstacles ahead.
While driving, the user noticed a white car ahead and reminded the salesperson not to hit it. The salesperson reassured, “It’s fine.” As the distance to the white car decreased, the user asked again if they should stop, but the salesperson reiterated not to. Eventually, despite the presence of the white car in front, the intelligent driving system failed to identify it and automatically stop, resulting in a rear-end collision.
After the collision, the user questioned the salesperson about the failure of the automatic braking system, to which the salesperson replied, “I thought it would brake by itself.”
According to reports from Sina Technology on July 2nd, BYD has not yet commented on the incident.
In a report by Red Star News and Beijing Business Daily, on May 13th, a woman named Deng from Xinyu City, Jiangxi Province, shared a video on social media claiming that her father, who purchased a BYD vehicle in April for ride-hailing services, suffered an electric shock leading to a hemorrhage during a recent passenger drop-off.
The medical certificate provided by Deng showed evidence of an electric shock. She mentioned that her father’s back was covered in blisters from the shock.
However, a relevant person from BYD stated that initial investigations indicated that the vehicle did not leak electricity causing the driver’s illness. After unsuccessful negotiations with the local BYD 4S store, Deng’s daughter turned to social media seeking assistance.
These incidents involving BYD vehicles raise concerns about their safety features and the reliability of their intelligent driving systems, prompting the need for further investigation and accountability in ensuring customer safety.