• News
  • Guides
  • Reviews
  • Media
  • About
  • News
  • Guides
  • Reviews
  • Media
  • About
Sign up Now (For Free)

Sign up for our newsletter and receive the latest automotive news in your inbox!

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Thanks for subscribing!
News
Read Now
  • All News
  • Automakers
  • Automobiles
  • Auto Shows
  • Business
  • EVs & Environment
  • Guides
  • Lawsuits/Legal
  • Regulatory
  • Ride-Sharing
  • Safety & Recalls
  • Technology
Recent
  • The Inside Story of the 2024 Ford Mustang Dark Horse
  • Honda’s Big Bet on Fuel-Cell Tech Doesn’t Stop with Passenger Cars
  • First Look: 2024 BMW X5 and X6
  • Nissan, Renault and Mitsubishi Expand Global Partnership
  • Better the Second Time: Mercedes-Benz eSprinter
  • VinFast Raises Launch Concerns by Cutting 80 U.S. Jobs
  • Faraday Future Secures Cash, Prepares to Build Cars
  • BMW Spending $865M in Mexico for EV, Battery Plants
  • Q&A: Dave Marek, Acura Global Creative Director
  • Biden Admin. Makes EV Credits Available to More Buyers
Editor’s Choice
    Reviews
    Read Now
    • All Reviews
      • Feeder
    • Classic Cars
    • Concept Cars
    • Convertibles
    • Coupes
    • Crossovers/CUVs
    • Diesel
    • Hot hatches
    • Hybrids
    • Luxury Vehicles
    • Minivans
    • Muscle Cars
    • Pickups
    • Sedans
    • Sports Cars
    • Super Cars
    • SUVs
    Recent Reviews
    • First Drive: 2023 Honda Accord
    • A Week With: 2023 Lexus GX 460 Black Line
    • A Week With: 2023 BMW X1 xDrive28i
    • A Week With: 2023 Kia Niro EV
    • A Week With: 2023 Hyundai Palisade Calligraphy
    • A Week With: 2023 Ford F-150 Raptor R 4x4 Super Crew
    • A Week With: 2023 Genesis Electrified G80 AWD
    • A Week With: 2023 Land Rover Defender 110 V-8
    • First Drive: 2023 Honda Pilot TrailSport
    • A Week With: 2023 Jaguar F-Type R Coupe
    Editor’s Choice
      Guides
      Car Warranty
      • Endurance Warranty Reviews
      • BMW Extended Warranty
      • Extended Warranty For Cars Over 100k Miles
      • Extended Car Warranty Cost
      • Subaru Extended Warranty
      • CarShield Reviews
      • CarShield Cost
      • Aftermarket Car Warranty
      • CARCHEX Warranty Reviews
      • Reputable Extended Car Warranty Companies
      • Used Car Warranty Companies
      • Best Car Warranty
      • Is CarShield A Scam?
      • Mercedes Extended Warranty
      • CarShield Plans
      Insurance
      • How To Identify A Car Insurance Company
      • Geico Mechanical Breakdown Insurance
      • How Far Back Does A Car Insurance Company Look
      • Mechanical Breakdown Insurance For Used Cars
      • State Farm Mechanical Breakdown Insurance
      • Mechanical Breakdown Insurance From Progressive
      • Dollar A Day Insurance
      • Auto Insurance For SSI Recipients
      • Car Insurance Rates After A Suspended License
      • Auto Insurance For Salvage Vehicles
      • Average Cost of Dodge Ram 1500 Car Insurance
      • Car Insurance Florida
      • Full Coverage Auto Insurance
      • GrubHub Insurance
      • Amazon Delivery Auto Insurance
      Shipping
      • Car Shipping Companies
      • uShip Reviews
      • Auto Shipping From California To Hawaii
      • Montway Auto Transport Reviews
      • Cheap Car Shipping
      • Easy Auto Ship Reviews
      • Auto Shipping Miami
      • Auto Shipping To Alaska
      • Car Shipping Cost
      • Auto Shipping Hawaii
      • Auto Shipping Puerto Rico
      • Sherpa Auto Transport Reviews
      • Auto Shipping Atlanta
      • Auto Shipping Boston
      • Auto Shipping. Chicago
      About
      • About Us
      • Contact Us
      • Terms of Use
      • Privacy Policy
      • Affiliate Disclosure
      • Sitemap
      TheDetroitBureau.com

      More than just “another” place to find news, reviews, spy shots, commentary, features, and guides about the auto industry. TheDetroitBureau doesn’t stop with the press releases or confuse a few lines of opinion with insightful, in-depth reporting.

      Contact Us

      Like what you see? Have some ideas for making The Detroit Bureau.com even better? Let us know, we’d love to hear your voice.

        Media
        Listen Now
        • Headlight News: All Episodes
        More from TheDetroitBureau
        • Guides
        • Latest News
        • Auto Reviews
        • Podcasts
        Headlight News

        TheDetroitBureau.com’s Headlight News offers a look at the past week’s top automotive news stories, as well as what’s coming up in the week ahead. Check out the week’s top story and our latest review…along with a dive into the past with this week in automotive history.

        home > news > Auto Shows > Byton Ready to Put M-Byte EV – Complete with 48-Inch Video Screen – Into Production

        Byton Ready to Put M-Byte EV – Complete with 48-Inch Video Screen – Into Production

        Chinese automaker pulls wraps off production model in Frankfurt.

        Paul A. Eisenstein
        Paul A. Eisenstein , Publisher & Editor-in-Chief
        Sept. 10, 2019
        Byton looks like its ready to jump into the ever-expanding electric vehicle fray with its M-Byte.

        There were plenty of skeptics when Chinese start-up Byton pulled the wraps off its M-Byte concept vehicle at the Consumer Electronics Show last January. But eight months later, with what the company has dubbed a production version of the battery-electric vehicle makes its debut at the Frankfurt Motor Show, Byton’s plans are being taken a lot more seriously.

        Sure, the model that’s on display at the Frankfurt Messe, the German city’s convention complex, can stretch the idea of what an automobile is supposed to be – especially when one gets a look at the interior, with its 48-inch video display replacing a conventional dashboard. But there are plenty of reasons to start believing Byton can pull off what only a few other start-ups, notably Tesla, have managed.

        “Today’s unveiling,” Byton founder and CEO Daniel Kirchert said in Frankfurt, “shows the effort paying off for the team, which has worked relentlessly on the car for over two years. Within that short amount of time, together we have taken a smart electric car from an initial idea on a white sheet of paper to series production readiness, while also building a coherent infrastructure with locations on three continents and an efficient Industry 4.0 production facility in China. We can rightfully be proud of this.”

        (Byton M-Byte’s Videoscreen Will Be as Large as 7 iPads; Following Different Model)

        Byton has several different products it is working on, but the M-Byte is set to become the first to go into production. It is targeting what might be called the mid-luxury EV market, somewhere between the Tesla Models Y and X, and going up against the likes of the Jaguar I-Pace and newer Audi e-tron.

        The M-Byte will start at about $45,000 and its expected to compete in a segment between the Tesla X and Y.

        The base version of the M-Byte will start at $45,000, the company said in Frankfurt, for which a buyer will get a 72 kilowatt-hour battery pack capable of yielding 224 miles, according to the European WLTP test cycle, (and likely slightly less than 200 once tested for the U.S. market by the EPA).

        Following the Tesla model, Byton also plans to offer an upgraded version with a dual-motor drive, one on each axle to create a through-the-road all-wheel-drive system. It also gets a bump up to 92 kWh and, again using the European test cycle, should yield closer to 270 miles per charge. The base car will produce 270 horsepower, the upgraded version 402. It hasn’t yet released performance numbers.

        The distinctive styling of the M-Byte is likely to get it noticed. And that’s especially true inside, where it features a video screen dashboard stretching from door-to-door. The screen will replace conventional gauges and most traditional controls. It will incorporate infotainment features and even allow passengers to watch videos – though regulators are likely to put some limits on what can be seen by the driver.

        (Chinese EV Maker Byton Unwraps 2nd Model)

        The 48-inch display also will anchor the autonomous capabilities Byton is planning to build into M-Byte, though almost certainly not at launch next year. But its focus on incorporating self-driving capabilities has earned credibility considering it is working with Aurora, the start-up founded by autonomous tech pioneer Chris Urmson.

        Byton’s other big coup was inking an alliance with one of China’s biggest homegrown auto companies, First Automobile Works, or FAW. The companies are expected to announce even bigger ties later this year, but the investment by the state-owned company has been crucial as it readies its $1.5 billion factory in Nanjing, not far from its Chinese headquarters.

        The M-Byte uses a 48-inch touchscreen to control several functions.

        Byton is no longer a garage start-up, not with about 1,600 employees around the world. But it still has some of the headaches that go along with a company just getting its act together. Among other things, it lost its co-founder, former BMW i chief Carsten Breitfeld, earlier this year. He is now trying to salvage what’s left of another Chinese-funded battery-electric vehicle start-up, Faraday Future.

        Barring a meltdown on the order of what Faraday has experienced, Byton plans to launch production by the middle of next year, initially targeting the home Chinese market. But it wants to start shipping cars to both Europe and North America in 2021.

        (Byton Looks to Make a Splash at Pebble Beach)

        How to Care for Your Car

        Cheap Car Warranty

        Editor's Choice

        Best Extended Car Warranty

        Editor's Choice
        Recently Published

        The Inside Story of the 2024 Ford Mustang Dark Horse

        Today
        2023 Honda CR-V hybrid production REL

        Honda’s Big Bet on Fuel-Cell Tech Doesn’t Stop with Passenger Cars

        Today
        2024 BMW X5 xDrive 50e - front 3-4 driving v2

        First Look: 2024 BMW X5 and X6

        Yesterday

        One response to “Byton Ready to Put M-Byte EV – Complete with 48-Inch Video Screen – Into Production”

        1. Jim says:
          September 10, 2019 at 2:00 pm

          Is that a keyboard on the steering wheel? Fat chance they’ll succeed.

          Reply

        Leave a Reply Cancel reply

        Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

        Share this article:
        © The Detroit Bureau 2023
        • Guides
        • Privacy Policy
        • Terms of Use
        • Affiliate Disclosure
        • Contact Us
        • Sitemap
        Follow Us: