Toyota launches its cheapest smart EV in China, aims to up market share

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Japan's Toyota began selling a $20,000 smart electric car in China this week, aiming to attract buyers with its advanced features similar to Chinese rivals, as the automaker ups efforts to regain share in the world's largest auto market.

Toyota has had limited success so far with its previous electric vehicle (EV) models in a hugely competitive market dominated by local players such as Chinese EV giant BYD .

It began taking orders for its latest - and much cheaper - model, the Bozhi 3X, on Thursday.

Toyota and its Chinese partner, state-owned Guangzhou Automobile Group (GAC), had first unveiled the car at an autoshow in Beijing last year.

More than 10,000 orders were received within an hour of the launch, Peng Baolin, a vice president of sales at GAC Toyota, said on his Weibo social media account on Thursday.

The price for models with navigation capabilities similar to Tesla's full self-driving version starts at 139,800 yuan ($19,297.66). The less advanced version is priced at 104,800 yuan, making it Toyota's cheapest EV in China.

GAC Toyota declined to comment on questions regarding export plans and how profitable the model would be, given the low pricing.

The smart version is equipped with an Orin X chip, a lidar and Momenta's smart driving software, which is comparable to peers.

A long-running price war in China's EV market entered a new phase last month after BYD said it would offer advanced driving-assisted features on several models, including those priced below $10,000, for no extra charge.

($1 = 7.2444 Chinese yuan renminbi)

(Reporting by Shanghai newsroom; Editing by Rachna Uppal)