A new four-door luxury sedan from BYD’s luxury Denza arm could be about to threaten EVs from established prestige carmakers like BMW and Mercedes-Benz.

In China, the new four-door will be sold under BYD’s Fangchengbao name, but outside of China, as with other Fangchengbao models, the Formula S is likely to form part of Denza’s line-up.

The Formula S liftback sedan (main and below) and Formula S GT fastback wagon (bottom) are pitched as alternatives to cars like the BMW i5 and Mercedes-Benz EQE sedan. The first specification details have been revealed by CarNewsChina ahead of their official reveal.

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The Formula S sedan will offer a 76.7-kilowatt-hour battery in its most basic guise, with a 720km claimed CLTC driving range (expect closer to 590km under Western market WLTP testing) and a rear-mounted single motor producing 245kW.

By comparison, BMW’s entry-level i5 eDrive 40 lists an 84kWh battery, 582km WLTP range and a 250kW motor.

A long-range version of the Formula S upgrades to a 92.1kWh battery with a CLTC range of between 830km and 900km (680-740km WLTP) depending on the variant, and a 300kW single-motor. A 490kW dual-motor powertrain will also be offered.

The Formula S GT wagon is, initially at least, only offered with the long-range battery and a choice of 300kW rear-wheel drive with 800-850km of CLTC range (approx 655-700km WLTP), or 490kW dual-motor all-wheel drive with a claimed 730km CLTC (600km WLTP) range.

BMW’s equivalent would be the i5 M60 xDrive Touring wagon, which sticks with an 84kWh battery, has a claimed 506km WLTP range, and comes with a 442kW dual-motor drivetrain.

In terms of size, the Denza Formula S measures 5060mm long, matching the i5 sedan, with a 2960mm wheelbase (35mm less than the 5 Series). The Formula S GT is slightly shorter overall at 5025mm.

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As a latest-generation BYD product, the Formula S will be compatible with the brand’s 1500kw ultra-rapid Flash Charging system, allowing a 10-70 per cent top-up in five minutes and a near-full 10-97 per cent fill in nine minutes.

A lidar sensor on the roof hints at compatibility with BYD’s ‘God’s Eye’ DiPilot 5.0 assisted driving, capable of start-to-finish automated driving on navigation, and a wide range of hazard-avoidance intervention.

BYD’s plans for the Fangchengbao include export markets, usually badged as Denza models, with a solid chance that the Formula S could follow the similarly styled Denza Z sports car range to the UK, moving the Denza brand away from its range of body-on-frame off-roaders and into a more traditional luxury car space.

Although not yet confirmed for Australia, BYD’s UK and Australian line-ups for the Denza brand are already quite similar, meaning the Formula S could be on the cards for an Australian introduction if it joins the UK range.