Does the internal combustion engine have a future? This question has sparked endless debate across the internet.
Some say yes, pointing to convenient refueling, mature technology, and strong resale value. Others say no, citing rising EV penetration, policy momentum, and an expanding charging network. All this back-and-forth is really just about the present moment.
If we look at this through the lens of historical development, where exactly do fuel vehicles stand in the long arc of history? History has already given us the answer.
The story of human progress is a story of breaking old records. When the Wright brothers attempted flight, everyone said a machine heavier than air could never fly. They flew. When Musk built electric cars, everyone said EVs could not go far. The Model S hit 400 kilometers. When Byd Company Limited (002594) developed flash charging, everyone said charging could never be faster than refueling. 6.5 minutes to 98%. Every breakthrough happened not because conditions were ripe, but because someone acted first and conditions followed.
Fuel cars did nothing wrong. They simply chose a slower pace in an era that demands faster iteration.
On September 23, 2026, Byd Company Limited (002594) Chief Scientist Lian Yubo laid out a set of numbers: by the end of 2028, build 90,000 flash charging stations. How many gas stations does China currently have? About 90,000. Byd Company Limited's goal is simple: wherever you pass by, there must be a charging station.
Fuel Cars Are Not Wrong, the Era Simply No Longer Needs Them
Are fuel cars good? Yes. Over a century of accumulated technology has made them mature, reliable, and durable. A Toyota Camry can run for twenty years, something EVs currently cannot match.
But here is the problem: the era no longer needs a car that lasts twenty years. Today's consumers change phones every three years and cars every five. Battery technology is iterating, autonomous driving technology is iterating, cabin experience is iterating. Driving a car for twenty years means you are using twenty-year-old technology for two decades.
The durability of fuel cars has become backwardness in the intelligent era. The refueling convenience of fuel cars becomes meaningless once charging station density matches gas stations. The high resale value of fuel cars becomes negligible once new energy vehicle resale values close the gap to just 1.27 percentage points.
How to View the 90,000 Charging Stations BYD Plans to Build
Gas stations are the blood vessels of the fuel era; flash charging networks are the blood vessels of the electric era. Wherever the vessels reach, cars come alive.
Byd Company Limited (002594) says it will build 90,000 charging stations. The number of gas stations nationwide is also roughly 90,000. Put these numbers together and the message is clear: the last irreplaceable advantage of fuel cars is being systematically dismantled.
Why do fuel cars sell well? Not because the engine is advanced, not because the transmission is clever. It is because two kilometers to your right when you leave home there is a gas station, and you never have to worry about refueling. Refueling was never a problem. That is the biggest moat of fuel cars. What Byd Company Limited is doing now is filling in that moat.
The plan is 90,000 flash charging stations by the end of 2028. By the end of 2026, 20,000 will be built first, another 30,000 in 2027, and another 40,000 in 2028. The Beijing-Shanghai expressway has already been fully covered, with over 11,000 flash charging stations nationwide and more than 50 stations built per day on average.
When charging is as fast and as convenient as refueling, the only reason left for fuel cars to exist is habit.
Are Fuel Cars Destined to Have No Future?
Many people assume new energy vehicles are only popular in China. This view is completely wrong.
In 2025, Chinese automakers' cumulative global sales approached 27 million units, while Japanese automakers sold about 25 million. This is the first time since 2000 that Japan has fallen from the top spot in global sales.
Being number one in exports is not thanks to cheap fuel cars, but to new energy vehicles. In the first eight months of 2026, this trend is still accelerating. New energy vehicle exports reached 3.435 million units, up 1.2 times year-on-year, with the export share exceeding 50% for three consecutive months. When more than half of exported vehicles are new energy, the claim that it is only popular in China becomes a self-deceiving comfort.
What truly strips fuel cars of their future is not how many EVs China sells, but that major global economies have already closed the door on fuel cars through legislation.
The EU regulation is explicit: from 2035, the sale of new fuel-powered passenger cars and light commercial vehicles that are not zero-carbon emission will be banned. The period from 2030 to 2034 is a transition phase, with new car carbon emissions required to be 55% lower than in 2021. The UK aims for 80% of sales to be zero-emission vehicles by 2030, with a full ban on fuel car sales by 2035. The Netherlands, the Flanders region of Belgium, Sweden, Greece, and Slovenia have set their timelines between 2029 and 2031.
The International Energy Agency forecasts that global EV sales will reach 23 million units in 2026, accounting for nearly 30% of new car sales. By 2035, EVs could account for nearly 50% of global auto sales.
Fuel cars will not disappear. But they will become a niche product. Bought by enthusiasts, bought by collectors, used in special scenarios. But the mainstream choice for daily commuting will no longer be them.
This is not a battle of positions. This is arithmetic. When policy closes the door, automakers stop iterating, the supply chain shifts to electrification, and the charging network matches gas stations, the time left for fuel cars is merely a physical stock digestion period.
A trend never needs everyone to agree. It only needs enough people to have already started acting.
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