Asian Tech Press (Sep 28) -- Japanese automaker Toyota Motor Corp. will begin production and sales of BYD battery-powered small electric vehicles in China by the end of the year.

The pure electric sedan, called the bZ3, is specifically for customers in mainland China and is the second in Toyota's new "Beyond Zero" (bZ) series of battery electric vehicles (BEVs).

Toyota initially planned to launch the first model of bZ series in mainland China in early 2022, the bZ4X sport-utility vehicle, but had to recall it after the discovery of defects, now facing the dilemma of discontinuing production.

Sources close to the matter said that Toyota had intended to launch the bZ3 featuring Chinese automaker BYD Co Ltd's blade batteries, but cancelled the event due to COVID-19.

Market rumors said that the official price of the car is about 200,000 yuan ($28,000), about 30% lower than the price of the entry-level Tesla Model 3.