Is Denza getting ready for PH brand launch with three initial models?

Back in November 2024, Asia Pacific Sales Head Liu Xueliang confirmed that BYD’s premium brand Denza is coming to the Philippine market. At the time, they had a target of launching Denza by Q4 2025, but it seems like the global new energy vehicle leader is taking a bit more time with its preparations.

With that being the case, a few more interesting developments are starting to pop up in our publicly available information sources in 2026. The Department of Energy’s list of recognized electrified vehicles gets updated from time to time, and in our latest information, the Denza B5 and B8 have joined the D9 MPV in the plug-in hybrid classification.

Known as the Fangchengbao Bao 5 and Bao 8 in their home market, the B5 and B8 are essentially Denza’s premium PHEV SUVs built on a ladder frame chassis, packing serious off-road gear and massive amounts of tech enjoyed on a luxurious cabin. The Chinese market version even has the flagship Yangwang U8’s party trick of an automated 360-degree tank turn to go in and out of tight spaces.

The B5 is the smaller of the two, as it’s a five-seater midsize SUV measuring 4888 mm long, 1970 mm wide, and 1920 mm tall, based on the DOE listing. It shares the same underpinnings as the BYD Shark 6 pickup truck, while the PHEV powertrain consists of a 31.8 kWh Blade battery, a 1.5-liter turbo-four making 184 PS, and a pair of electric motors that produce a combined 659 PS and 760 Nm of torque.

If you demand 7 seats, however, then there’s the larger B8. It’s also using the Shark 6 platform, but the PHEV powertrain has a larger 36.86 kWh Blade battery, a more powerful 245 PS 2.0-liter turbo-four pairing up with dual electric motors to produce a max combined output of 680 PS and 760 Nm of torque.

Based on all the available information we gathered, our crystal ball seems to be also pointing towards Ayala remaining as the likely distributor for the premium Denza brand. Some clues point to the use of “Dynamic” and “Advanced” for the variant names of the B8 and D9 – those are the same variant names used by models such as the Seal 5, Shark 6, and eMAX 9 in the local BYD lineup.

Likewise, the latest regulatory approvals now have some vehicles filed under the name Mobility Access Philippines Ventures, Inc. – the official corporate name of Ayala Corporation's ACMobility. In previous filings of BYD vehicles coming to the country, it used to be approved under BYD Philippines Corp., while ACMobility’s other brand, Kia, has its vehicles approved under KP Motors Corporation.

Of course, the timelines are still up in the air, and we should all take this information with a grain of salt. The vehicles we see getting regulatory approvals sometimes take months or years before being launched, while most, but not all, DOE-recognized electrified vehicles come from official distributors and importers. That said, we think there’s plenty to look forward to as more developments are likely to surface in the coming weeks or months.