2026 Denza B5 review: Australian first road test

Not content with the growth of its master brand – selling more than 80,000 cars in a little over three years – BYD is now mounting an attack on the luxury-car market.

Meet Denza, a more 'upmarket' off-shoot of the Chinese car giant arriving in Australia with a pair of luxury four-wheel-drives, the five-seat B5 and six- or seven-seat B8.

The B5 is expected to be the more popular of the two, combining a more potent version of the BYD Shark 6 ute’s plug-in hybrid drivetrain with an SUV body and the promise of more luxury inside.

Denza sees it as a rival for prestige SUVs from European brands, but it is priced to compete with the Toyota Prado, Ford Everest, Isuzu MU-X, and the diesel 4x4 establishment.

Can it make the same waves in the off-road 4x4 market that the Shark 6 did in the dual-cab ute space? After a preview in controlled conditions earlier this year, Drive has been given a first taste of the Denza B5 on Australian roads – tarmac and dirt – to find out.

Two variants make up the Denza B5: the unnamed entry-level grade, priced from $74,990 plus on-road costs, and the better-equipped B5 Leopard on test here from $79,990 plus on-roads.

Both are five-seaters powered by the same 1.5-litre turbo-petrol, dual-electric-motor plug-in hybrid system.

While Denza aims to compete with luxury brands, the top-of-the-range B5 lines up on price with a Toyota LandCruiser Prado GXL four-cylinder diesel five-seater ($78,990 plus ORCs) and Ford Everest Tremor V6 diesel seven-seater ($79,990 plus ORCs).

Its closest plug-in hybrid rival is the larger but still five-seat GWM Tank 500 PHEV priced from $79,990 drive-away. A smaller and more B5-like Tank 300 PHEV is due in 2026.

Believe Denza’s marketing, and the B5 Leopard is a two-thirds-price alternative to a Land Rover Defender 110 P300e X-Dynamic SE plug-in hybrid ($131,100).

Our test vehicle was optioned with $1500 Glacier Blue paint and a $500 ‘Sandstone’ tan interior, which would ordinarily push its drive-away price in NSW to about $89,100.

However, the first 2000 customers will be offered Granite Grey, Glacier Blue, and Juniper Green exterior colours, paired with select interior colours, for free, so the vehicle you see is currently $87,033 drive-away in NSW.

The B5 Leopard is more than $20,000 dearer than a BYD Shark 6, but there’s more technology and luxury packed in for that price.

Features exclusive to the Leopard grade include 20-inch alloy wheels with Pirelli Scorpion tyres, hydraulically controlled adaptive ‘DiSus-P’ suspension, nappa leather upholstery, ventilated rear seats, a digital rear-view mirror, a second front wireless charger, and an ultra-wideband phone key.

These build on equipment from the base grade, including matrix LED headlights, a 15.6-inch touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, 12.3-inch instrument display, a 16-speaker Devialet stereo, power-adjustable heated and ventilated front seats, heated rear seats, a head-up display, dual-zone climate control, and a panoramic sunroof.

It also offers a heated and cooled centre-console box, ambient lighting, a 360-degree camera, front and rear parking sensors, and a full suite of advanced safety technology.

Off-road hardware includes a low-range mode and electronic front and rear differential locks – features not fitted to the Shark 6 – plus 16 drive modes, an off-road cruise-control function, and a ‘tank turn’ function.

Denza launched earlier this month with four showrooms, but it is already opening more. You can find their locations here to check out the B5 in the metal.

The Denza B5’s cabin ticks all the boxes for luxury features and appointments, but the strengths of regular BYD interiors mean it’s not the leap over a Shark 6 that a Lexus is over a Toyota.

Plush, soft-touch surfaces are used in most places you’d touch, there are chunky grab handles on the dashboard and centre console, the gear shifter retracts into the centre console when the vehicle is switched off, and ambient lighting has been used tastefully, such that it doesn’t look like a nightclub.

It’s certainly more luxurious than utilitarian. There’s no sense that this is an interior designed to be washed out or cop years of muddy boots dirtying the floor mats.

Perceived build quality is good – there were no squeaks or rattles in our test vehicle – but there are hints of the Shark 6, from the (slightly wobbly) centre toggle switches, to the stalks, steering wheel buttons, and window controls.

None feel cheap – this is an $80,000 car, not a $150,000 car – but unique switchgear is one element Lexus uses to differentiate its cars from Toyotas.

Soft and supple nappa leather upholstery is exclusive to the B5 Leopard, used to trim front seats that are comfortable, supportive, and well featured, with heating, ventilation, massaging, memory, and eight-way driver/six-way passenger power adjustment.

Drivers sit high over the road ahead, with good outward visibility, but we wouldn’t mind a little more reach adjustment in the steering column than is offered (via a lever). The steering wheel feels sturdy in the hand, though, with leather trim and heating.

Most of the vehicle’s functions run through the touchscreen, but Denza has kept a physical volume roller dial, as well as hard-keys for electric/hybrid modes, drive profiles, ride height (handy on approach to car parks), and off-road systems such as differential locks.

There’s no shortage of features inside, with dual-zone climate control, a head-up display, panoramic sunroof with electric sunshade, one USB-A and one USB-C port, dual 50-watt wireless phone chargers, multi-colour ambient lighting, and keyless entry and start, with support for an ultra-wideband phone key.

There’s generous storage space in the door pockets, as well as a deep centre console bin – which can be heated or cooled with a dial next to the cupholders – and more room under the ‘flying bridge’ centre console, though it’s hard to reach while driving.

The USB ports are located there, while above it the dual wireless phone chargers – with ventilation – sit. Glovebox storage space is on the smaller side for the class.

Space in the rear is also generous, with my 186cm (6ft 1in) tall frame able to fit behind my driving position with more than a fist’s worth of leg room, lots of head room, and decent toe room, helped by a flat floor.

Under-thigh support isn’t fantastic – as the battery pack is under the floor – and the seat base isn’t that well contoured, with a particularly flat middle seat. The backrest reclines in three positions, however, albeit with no slide function.

Amenities include one USB-A and one USB-C port, a small climate-control panel, air vents, and even heating and ventilation for the rear seats, plus bottle holders in the doors, two map pockets, and two cupholders (and small storage) in the fold-down centre armrests.

Boot space is on par with rivals in this segment – with a rectangular footprint, and room for day-to-day and holiday gear – though it doesn’t set any benchmarks, with only a netted pocket on the inside of the door and few amenities.

The side-hinged tailgate opens toward the kerbside – so it won’t be clipped by oncoming traffic, but that means it blocks items waiting on the kerb to be loaded – and has gas struts for easier opening, though they’re not quite as easy as we’d like.

A full-sized spare wheel is mounted to the tailgate. There’s modest under-floor storage for storing the charging cable, but it’s not cavernous, and the load floor is relatively high.

Standard in the B5 is a 15.6-inch infotainment touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, FM and digital DAB radio (but no AM), Bluetooth, a voice assistant with microphones spread throughout the car, and ‘over-the-air’ downloadable software updates.

The interface will be familiar to drivers of other BYD vehicles, which is not great if you were hoping for differentiation – but is ultimately no bad thing, given the BYD system is quick to respond, and has been refined over the years to become easier to navigate.

Bluetooth connected seamlessly each time I got into the car, but Apple CarPlay needed to be manually started, by tapping the icon, selecting my phone from the list, and waiting for it to connect. Once set up, the connection never dropped out.

While there’s a volume dial, the air-conditioning controls run through the screen, from basics such as fan speed to functions such as heated seats and air purification.

A row of key climate controls is pinned along the bottom of the display, with air temperature control, and shortcuts for accessing the menus with defrosters and heated/ventilated seat controls (but not fan speed).

Swiping up and down, or left to right with three fingers adjusts temperature and fan speed, respectively, and if all else fails, you can use the voice control system, which is good when you want it… but activates any time you say ‘Denza’ inside the car, even without a ‘Hey’ in front.

Still, we’d love some physical buttons for climate controls, as these features – including the shortcut menu accessible by swiping down on the display – are all band-aids for a problem BYD/Denza created.

There’s a lot of information being presented on the 12.3-inch instrument cluster, but it’s easy enough to read once you’re used to it, and there’s a choice of two layouts, plus customisable pods on the sides of the display.

Sound quality from the 16-speaker Devialet audio system is very good, while Denza offers connected services support, with a smartphone app that includes a vehicle key.

The B5 is covered by a five-star ANCAP safety rating, based on testing conducted earlier in 2025 under soon-to-be-superseded 2023–2025 protocols.

It earned category scores of 86 per cent for adult occupant protection, 95 per cent for child occupant protection, 74 per cent for vulnerable road user protection, and 78 per cent for safety assist technology.

There’s a broad array of advanced safety systems on offer in the Denza B5, which helped it earn top marks in standardised crash testing.

Unlike many other BYDs, the lane-keep assist system is the most intuitively calibrated of the bunch. It does not constantly tug at the wheel when the vehicle gets close to the lines, nor is it aggressive in the way it applies steering input when it does step in.

The traffic-sign recognition feature is prone to misreading speed limits, as with most systems of its kind, but never egregiously so – and the audible overspeed alert chime can be turned off permanently, such that it doesn’t reactivate each time the car is restarted.

Less impressive is the driver attention monitor, which was overzealous and too eager in my testing.

It is prone to beeping at the driver to “pay attention to the road” when they’re already looking ahead, and seems to confuse musical singalongs for tiredness… yet, when we tried to yawn intentionally, there was no such warning. More refinement is needed here.

It is the first safety feature we disabled, but annoyingly it requires a few taps and swipes through touchscreen menus to turn off.

Owners can set two of the buttons in a shortcut menu – accessed by swiping down from the top of the screen – to the lane-keep assist and driver attention monitor, but even once in that drop-down, these systems need two and three taps to disable, respectively.

The adaptive cruise control can also pulse the accelerator like an inattentive taxi driver, rather than holding a consistent level of power, while the lane-centring assist works acceptably in most scenarios, but can wander between the white lines from time to time, rather than holding the centre of the lane.

Deactivation of the lane-centring assist – either by flicking the indicator stalk, disengaging cruise control, or overriding it with steering input – is also accompanied by an annoying chime that I couldn’t figure out how to turn off.

There were no false activations of the autonomous emergency braking, but the side exit warning – intended to prevent vehicle occupants ‘dooring’ oncoming cyclists – beeps at the sight of cars approaching from behind when stationary in traffic, rather than just when in park on the side of the road.

The Denza B5 is covered by the same warranty as regular BYD models, across six years/150,000km for the vehicle, bar separate eight-year/160,000km coverage for the high-voltage battery pack.

Three years of roadside assistance will be offered as standard, up from one in BYD vehicles, before extensions – accessed by servicing on time at Denza dealers – need to be called upon.

Servicing prices are yet to be confirmed, but intervals match the 12 months or 20,000km – whichever comes first – of the BYD Shark 6 ute.

A year of comprehensive insurance coverage from a leading provider is said to cost $2850, based on a comparative quote for a 35-year-old male living in Chatswood, NSW. Insurance estimates may vary based on your location, driving history, and personal circumstances.

The fuel and energy consumption you’ll see from a plug-in hybrid will vary heavily based on how you drive it, and how often you charge it, but testing over a mix of scenarios gives us a good idea of what to expect from the Denza B5.

First things first: the B5 allows you to drive in electric (EV) mode until the battery percentage hits 25 per cent, at which point it is locked into hybrid (HEV) mode. It then works to keep the charge in the battery in the range of 20 to 25 per cent, so it’s effectively acting like a non-plug-in hybrid that has a much smaller battery to draw upon.

Denza claims the B5 is capable of 90km of electric-only driving, 850km of hybrid mode driving, and fuel use of 3.9 litres per 100 kilometres with a battery between 25 and 100 per cent charge, or 10.92L/100km with a battery below 25 per cent charge.

Again, that 90km EV range figure is calculated with the last 25 per cent of the 31.8kWh battery pack off-limits.

Those figures are derived from WLTC lab testing – used as the basis of the WLTP test protocols used to calculate the driving ranges of most EVs sold in Australia – which are more realistic than the NEDC lab-test figures Denza also quotes (which we won’t bother including as they’re even further from reality).

I collected the B5 with a fully charged battery, drove it in EV mode until the car would no longer let me do so, then left it in HEV for the rest of our time with the vehicle, bar charging the battery up a few kilometres away from where I handed back the keys.

The B5 covered just under 70km in electric mode before the engine turned on, for energy use of about 30kWh/100km. That’s a decent result given it was a worst-case scenario test – a 37-degree summer’s day, with the air conditioning turned up, and the car sitting idle for a decent period while snapping the photographs for this review.

Once flat, energy consumption hovered around zero – as the car was constantly depleting, then using the battery, to remain around 25 per cent – while fuel use shot up from zero to about 7.0L/100km in 80km/h inter-urban driving, or between 9.5 and 11L/100km in more intensive work.

That’s pretty close to the claim but hardly impressive for a hybrid. You would likely see similar consumption – or better – from a diesel Toyota Prado in the same conditions.

The B5 can accept energy at up to 11kW AC or 100kW DC – the latter one of the highest charging power ratings of any PHEV sold in Australia – for an as-tested 25 to 80 per cent fast-charge time of 18 minutes, peaking at 109kW.

The Denza B5 drives much like a BYD Shark 6, but measurably better in almost every way.

The plug-in hybrid system uses the same 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol engine, but carries significantly more powerful electric motors, now producing 200kW at the front and 285kW at the rear.

Combined outputs are 400kW and 760Nm, which are serious numbers for a four-wheel-drive, but the B5’s incredible 3007kg heft – almost three Suzuki Jimnys – calms performance from insane to brisk, covering zero to 100km/h in a claimed 4.8 seconds.

The electric motors do most of the work, relegating the petrol engine to a generator most of the time, with the ability to directly drive the wheels at certain speeds, as required.

It’s not as responsive as we’d expect, though. There is a surprising amount of lag when the accelerator pedal is pressed – noticeable when trying to make a tight gap in traffic or pull out of a junction – and it takes a few moments for the car to gather itself up.

Upon lifting off the accelerator, the power is held for a split-second, before coasting for a moment, and then allowing the regenerative braking – which is quite weak, even in ‘High’ mode – to kick in some time later.

It’s not as pronounced as in early examples of the Shark 6 – and performance once the powertrain is all up and running is great – but it is not as linear as a diesel 4x4.

In sedate driving, the transition between petrol and electric power – and vice versa – is smooth and quiet, the engine only noticeable when called upon for hard acceleration via noise and vibration.

Double-wishbone independent front and rear suspension is fitted to all B5s, but the Leopard grade replaces the base model’s traditional coil springs for a ‘DiSus-P’ adaptive system, which uses a mix of regular spring/damper technology and hydraulics to allow for adjustable damping and ride height.

It cannot hide the traditional characteristics of a ladder-frame 4WD, with smaller, repeated bumps sending jitters or ‘flutter’ through the car, some chassis shimmy and vibration on rough roads, and some firmness over sharp bumps, even in Comfort mode.

However, it is more than compliant enough to live with, and more supple over bumps than a Toyota Prado – which, admittedly, uses a more primitive live rear axle – at this price. Sport mode firms the dampers up further, but it’s not a big change.

At higher speeds, it’s reasonably settled over undulations for a ladder-frame vehicle, though it requires a few more movements of the suspension to settle compared to a Lexus GX, let alone a Land Rover Defender on air suspension. Stability on dirt and gravel is also good.

The suspension’s height can be adjusted between Low, Normal and High at low speeds, or in park – but not while holding the brake pedal – though when in Normal mode, at speeds above 35km/h or so, it reverts to its middle setting.

There are no fewer than 16 drive modes, with three basic road settings – Eco, Normal and Sport – and a series of off-road profiles (Sand, Mud, Rock, and Mountain) accessible via the steering wheel, before needing to dive into the dedicated drive-mode menu, where bizarre profiles such as Rage and Race can be activated.

We are yet to test the standard suspension tune in the entry-level B5 on public roads.

It’s hard to hide the B5’s weight on winding roads, but there is good grip from the road-focussed Pirelli Scorpion tyres – if a lot of tyre squeal and scream under even light load – and body roll is present, but not excessive for a vehicle of this type.

The steering strikes an acceptable balance in Comfort mode – not too light, not too heavy – and it’s a decently precise steering rack, although it’s not as easy as a Ford Everest, or as intuitively weighted and accurate as a Toyota Prado or Lexus GX.

The ‘good balance’ description applies to the brake pedal, which is on the softer side of the spectrum, but is easy to modulate between the electric motors’ regenerative braking, and the ‘friction’ discs behind the wheels.

Wind noise is surprisingly hushed for such a boxy vehicle, but there’s some tyre roar on poorly surfaced freeways.

The vast majority of our short first on-road test of the B5 was spent on bitumen – we will save an in-depth off-road assessment for the new year when we can spend longer with the car – but I turned off the tarmac to get a first taste of the Denza’s capabilities.

Point the B5 at a rocky climb in Normal mode, and it feels much like a Shark 6 – traction control continually limits power, shutting down all forward progress and relegating the vehicle to the bottom of the hill.

Dig into the drive modes and menus, and the B5 finds its edge.

Front and rear differential locks – controlled through electronics – are unique to the Denza, as is a low-range mode for technical off-roading, operated via a two-speed transfer case on the rear axle, rather than just clever electronics.

These features make for much more effortless and controlled progress off-road, and make the B5 feel more like a diesel four-wheel-drive, in its ability to tackle obstacles without constantly fighting wheel slip and speed.

Rock mode – new for the B5 – activates the rear locker by default, while retaining a lessened degree of traction control on the front axle that’s better calibrated than Normal mode, or what we’ve observed in previous testing of the Shark 6.

Traction control is still quite noisy in its activation, though, and fundamentals such as wheel articulation and ground clearance feel good, rather than exceptional – despite Denza claiming as much as 310mm of the latter with the suspension lifted.

The Pirelli Scorpion road tyres – on road pressures – will no doubt limit the B5’s capabilities.

Among the 16 drive modes is a Wade setting built for water crossings (the B5 is rated at up to 790mm), and Intelligent mode, which senses the loose terrain below the vehicle and adjusts its responses accordingly, in the same vein as Terrain Response auto on a Land Rover.

There is also a Turn mode that allows for tighter turns off-road – up to 360 degrees, if you wish – while Creep is an off-road cruise control setting for climbs and descents, working well at holding the vehicle’s speed at 2–3km/h.

We’re keen to point the B5 at the same technical off-road challenges we’ve used to test other 4WDs to see how it compares, with differentials locked and low-range activated, but our first impressions are positive.

The Denza B5 is rated to tow up to 3000kg braked and 750kg unbraked, up from the Shark 6’s 2500kg, with a tow hitch and the hardware needed to connect a trailer included in the vehicle's list price.

Due to the short nature of the loan, we were not able to test the B5 with a trailer – and to see if its towing performance has been improved over the Shark 6 – but we will do so once we get it back through the Drive garage in the new year.

However, before even pulling out of the driveway, B5 owners may find themselves limited by the vehicle’s weight ratings.

In Leopard guise, the payload is just 490kg based on kerb weight.

In theory, once 300kg of down-weight on the towball – equivalent to 10 per cent of a 3000kg trailer – is subtracted, only 190kg is left for passengers, cargo, and vehicle accessories.

But the combined mass of the 3007kg vehicle and 3000kg trailer is 6007kg – only 115kg short of the 6122kg gross combination mass, the legal maximum weight of the car and trailer combined.

That is before you factor in the weight of occupants on board – and the towball itself, and any other accessories you have fitted – so, depending on the option boxes you've ticked (such as bull bars, roof racks, etc, which will come out of the GVM), it may not be legally possible to place 10 per cent of the trailer’s weight on the ball, the recommended amount for stability and safety.

The entry-level B5 ups the payload to 600kg – as it is lighter (2897kg vs 3007kg kerb) – but so when loaded up with a 3000kg trailer, it has 225kg to play with, a larger amount but still not much.

These calculations all assume that placing 300kg on the towball would still be within the B5’s axle load ratings.

The Denza B5 is an impressive start for BYD’s new prestige sub-brand.

It wraps a spacious cabin, loads of technology, plush appointments, and a long feature list in boxy styling that takes after the best-known off-roaders, and a plug-in hybrid powertrain that’s punchy, frugal when treated correctly, and capable.

Denza pitches itself as a luxury brand, but we can’t see too many Defender customers trading their $150K four-wheel-drives in for a B5.

Instead, the B5 will appeal to customers interested in the rugged appeal of a diesel Toyota Prado, but who don’t need to tow every other week, don’t want the sound, smell, and feel of diesel, and can’t spend beyond the base model.

That said, the package will fall short for customers looking to use it to its full capabilities.

The Achilles heel is on paper: the gross vehicle mass and gross combination mass, especially in this Leopard grade, are too low to realistically tow the three tonnes Denza claims it can, once vehicle occupants, and any cargo or accessories, are loaded.

The jury is also out on how it will perform with a trailer attached; the plug-in hybrid system guzzles fuel like a diesel when the battery runs low, and the safety aids are too eager for our tastes.

And the price, while fair compared to an equivalently specified Toyota or Ford, could prove a big ask for a new brand, particularly given much of the B5’s appeal can be had in a BYD Shark 6 for $20,000 less.

If none of that is a deterrent – and you love the look and on-paper capability – the Denza B5 is well worth a test drive before signing on the dotted line for a diesel 4WD.

Alex Misoyannis has been writing about cars since 2017, when he started his own website, Redline. He contributed for Drive in 2018, before joining CarAdvice in 2019, becoming a regular contributing journalist within the news team in 2020. Cars have played a central role throughout Alex’s life, from flicking through car magazines at a young age, to growing up around performance vehicles in a car-loving family. Highly Commended - Young Writer of the Year 2024 (Under 30) Rising Star Journalist, 2024 Winner Scoop of The Year - 2024 Winner

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