Build Your Dreams started the pre-sale for the BYD Racco, a five-door electric kei car, on July 21, 2026. Reportedly, within a week they received 5,000 orders; they have planned to deliver up to 10,000 units. With 5,000 pre-orders, the carmaker has already achieved 50% of the 10,000 delivery goal by 2026. Reports even claim that 70% of buyers are set to trade in their existing kei car and 30% to add a second vehicle.
The Chinese carmaker has already launched the model in the Japanese market on July 28, 2026, in a total of three variants, which are 200, 300 Plus, and 300 Premium. They are all set to start the delivery of the model in late August 2026; the actual date is still pending. The first one is available with the ex-showroom price of ¥2.145 million (₹13.08 lakh), second with ¥2.398 million (₹14.63 lakh), and third with ¥2.497 million (₹15.23 lakh).
They are likely to achieve the goal of delivering 10,000 units by October 2026 because many drivers in Japan are preferring the BYD Racco over the Nissan Sakura, Honda N-ONE e:, and Mitsubishi eK X EV because of its affordable pricing, decent range, fast charging, and smart features. We are expecting that by the end of 2026, they may have delivered 5,000 more units than the goal, although it is yet to be seen if it will happen or not.
Two different battery packs
The thing which makes the Racco favourable over the rivals is its powertrain; it gets a permanent magnet synchronous motor with a one-speed automatic reduction gearbox at the front axle featuring a front-wheel-drive drivetrain, which makes it ideal for city driving. Interestingly, they are offering the model with two different lithium-ion battery packs, which are 22.4 kWh and 35.84 kWh.
- The 200 variant is available with a 22.4 kWh battery pack, giving a WLTC range of 210 kilometres. It supports DC chargers up to 35.8 kW, which takes 20 minutes for 20 to 80 per cent charging.
- The 300 Plus and 300 Premium variants come with a 35.8 kW battery pack; the WLTC range for both is 320 km, 110 km more than the 200 variants. It supports a DC charger up to 49.7 kW, which takes 30 minutes for the same 30 to 80 per cent charging.
The maximum power output and peak torque are 63 hp and 160 Nm, respectively. The acceleration timing for 0 to 50 km/h is 4.2 seconds for the 200 variant and 4.5 seconds for the 300 Plus & 300 Premium variants, respectively. The top speed for all three variants is 130 kmph.
Four-person seating capacity
The Racco is available with the seating capacity of 4 people in a 2-2 layout. Behind the second row, it has 280 litres of boot space to help with carrying luggage. The rear seats are foldable 50:50. Folding the rear seat increases the cargo capacity to 1,372 litres, which makes carrying big luggage convenient. The cabin also has insulated cupholders and tray tables for rear passengers.
The length, width, and height of the BYD Racco kei electric car are 3,395 mm, 1,475 mm, and 1,800 mm, respectively. Its wheelbase is 2,520 mm; compared to the Mitsubishi eK X EV and Nissan Sakura, it is 25 mm longer, giving better legroom for the rear seating occupants, but it is the same as the Honda N-ONE e:. Its ground clearance is 160 mm, and turning radius is 4.8 metre.
The cabin has a 7-inch fully digital instrument cluster under the steering wheel and a 9-inch rotating touchscreen infotainment system at the centre of the dashboard. Other notable features are a wireless phone charging pad for phone charging convenience, keyless entry and push-button start for premiumness, automatic climate control for maintaining temperature, and a vehicle-to-load function for running external electronic devices.