BYD, Skoda and Renault are giving premium car brands a run for their money

Long-established manufacturers of traditional premium cars enjoyed a largely uninterrupted, highly profitable run over the last few decades. But now they must deal with two self-inflicted problems.

The first is that the inflation-busting price hikes they’ve ambitiously imposed in recent years are unnecessary, unfair, unsustainable and about to backfire on them. The second is this: their products aren’t as premium, special or desirable as they were. 

How come? Because a small but growing band of allegedly inferior makers is fast catching up. Some of their models are good enough to earn them promotion to the league that Audi, BMW and Mercedes rule, along with younger wannabes such as Lexus and Genesis. 

But most of these firms have lately failed to spot or respond to brands that previously offered zero direct competition, yet are now closing the gap. One is Skoda, winner of five times as many trophies as Audi, Merc, Lexus and Genesis combined at the Auto Express New Car Awards.

If your shtick is designer labels, badge snobbery, impressing the neighbours and such nonsense, a Skoda is almost certainly not for you. But for those after credible, classless, appropriately priced, understated, super-reliable products, its cars are a smart, safe bet. 

As for China-born and bred BYD, it’s vowing to produce all of its pure-electric cars for Europe in Hungary (original home of the Audi TT) and other production lines on or close to the continent. When I first drove a fleet of BYDs a couple of years ago, I wasn’t expecting some examples to feature an almost Lexus-like look, feel and presence. A friend who served as CEO at a leading car company agrees – and has this week ordered and paid for an elegant-looking, premium(ish) BYD Sealion 7 costing less than £50,000 and about to join his impressive collection because he believes it’s a groundbreaker. 

The Renault 5, which I hailed as my undisputed car of the year in Summer 2024, is another with premium qualities. And because Audi, BMW, Mercedes, Lexus and Genesis almost certainly won’t ever sell a high-quality, accessible pure-electric model as affordable as this, I’d argue that the £21,495 R5 is the closest thing to a premium EV supermini. It's even possible to save over £2,000 on a brand-new Renault 5 through the Auto Express Buy a Car service.

Does the above mean that the likes of Skoda, BYD and Renault are now premium car companies? Er, no. Most of their models just aren’t. But, importantly, a few of them are. 

Over the years, I’ve run an Audi as a company car and bought BMW, Merc and Lexus models. But today’s showroom prices for products built by old-school premium makers are beyond my financial reach. So I’m a displaced customer forced to shop elsewhere. 

No matter. A few models from Skoda, BYD, Renault and a handful of other rapidly improving manufacturers now qualify as premium products. Don’t let anyone – least of all Audi salespeople – try to convince you otherwise. 

Did you know you can sell your car through Auto Express? We’ll help you get a great price and find a great deal on a new car, too.