BYD offices raided as JLR legal battle heats up over alleged Defender lookalike

The raid took place at BYD’s offices in the Netherlands, where bailiffs acting for Jaguar Land Rover reportedly seized documents before a court case this week over its “copycat” Defender SUV, the Ti 7. JLR takes BYD to court over its Defender-like SUV After BYD opened orders for the Ti 7 in Europe and the UK in late July, many (including us at Electrek) compared it to the iconic Land Rover Defender, with its boxy, rugged (yet still elegant) SUV design. BYD even described it as having “an unapologetically boxy profile” that delivers “the imposing, chunky design that finds favour among SUV buyers, yet delivers a contemporary look.” Apparently, JLR has also taken notice. According to a report from The Times, court bailiffs acting on behalf of the British luxury automaker raided BYD’s offices in the Netherlands and seized digital records. The raid comes ahead of a preliminary court ruling on Wednesday, which will determine whether BYD’s Ti7 SUV infringes on the intellectual property of the Land Rover Defender. JLR believes BYD stripped down the Defender to reverse engineer some of its technology. Before the raid, BYD claims it fully cooperated with JLR’s requests. BYD Ti 7 (Source: BYD) According to local reports, BYD’s lawyers called JLR’s raid a “fishing expedition” and claimed, “too many files were seized.” JLR declined to comment, while BYD said it had no comment at this time as it’s in an ongoing legal case. The Ti 7 is on sale starting at £47,995 ($64,000) in the UK, on the road. That’s over £20,000 ($26,500) less than the plug-in Defender 110, which starts at £71,840 ($95,500) in the UK. It has a seven-seat arrangement, which BYD said was specifically designed for the European and UK markets. As the first vehicle in the UK based on its DM-p (Dual Mode performance) powertrain, BYD said the Ti 7 “vastly exceeds the closest competition,” seemingly another jab at the Defender. The setup uses three electric motors and a 1.5-liter turbocharged engine, delivering a combined 402 hp (408 PS), enabling it to accelerate from 0 to 62 mph in 4.8 seconds. BYD Ti 7 (Source: BYD) The engine primarily powers a 35.6 kWh BYD Blade Battery, which provides a pure-electric WLTP driving range of up to 74 miles. In the city, it has an electric range of up to 102 miles. Available exclusively in the UK in the flagship Excellence AWD trim, BYD claims that the Ti 7 offers “a level of equipment that exceeds anything that its rivals can offer at this price point.” With the preliminary ruling scheduled for Wednesday, we should learn more about the BYD and JLR legal battle soon. Check back for updates as this is an ongoing story. FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.