BYD And Mercedes Coming After Porsche With Panamera-Like Denza Z9 GT

The joint venture between BYD and Mercedes-Benz will soon spawn yet another model, this time in the form of the Denza Z9 GT. A handful of teasers of the car have been released before production begins later this year.

The joint venture between BYD and Mercedes has been around for over a decade and was initially a 50:50 venture. However, Mercedes has since reduced its stake to just 10%, leaving BYD with the remaining 90%. Denza already has a handful of models in its range and sold 10,279 vehicles in the first quarter, a 123% increase from the same period last year. The Z9 GT should help sales grow even further.

Read: Denza N7 Is A New Crossover From China With Familiar Styling Traits Including Porsche Taillights

The official photos show the new car has an exceptionally sleek shooting brake design, not dissimilar to the Porsche Taycan and Panamera Sport Turismo models. Up front are a pair of angular headlights and what appear to be two large air intakes.

The bodywork looks relatively simple and free of any unnecessary curves, edges, or stark design lines as is quite common nowadays. Found at the rear appears to be a full-width LED light bar, a sloping rear window, and a spoiler stretching off from the roof.

Interestingly, Denza decided to put this camouflage Z9 GT prototype on display somewhere in Europe, rather than on the streets of China like you’d expect. This is likely part of Denza’s way of saying the car has been conceived as a rival to some other shooting brake models from Europe.

The firm has even gone as far as to share images of the Z9 GT testing alongside a Porsche Panamera and a Ferrari GTC4Lusso.

Like all other Denza models, the Z9 GT will be electrified, although we don’t know if it will be a plug-in hybrid or an EV. It is expected to be unveiled at the Beijing Auto Show on April 25 and may spawn a sedan version.