BYD’s luxury arm YANGWANG has pulled the covers off the all-electric ALTIOR at its global premiere in Abu Dhabi, presenting a rather ambitious vision of Chinese ultra-luxury. And subtlety, it seems, wasn’t particularly high on the design brief.

Measuring a sizeable 5.6 metres long, the four-seat flagship takes inspiration from the ancient Chinese ceremonial bronze vessel known as a ding.

Its enormous proportions, elaborate detailing and coach-style doors are designed to make arriving somewhere every bit as important as getting there.

Inside, things get properly extravagant. Yellow Hetian jade, traditional Suzhou embroidery, full-grain leather and natural wood feature throughout, while the rear passengers get aviation-style zero-gravity seats, massage functions and a 21.4-inch overhead entertainment screen. There’s even a 39-speaker Dynaudio sound system.

Underneath all that craftsmanship sits some seriously clever hardware. The e4 Platform uses four independently controlled electric motors, while the next-generation DiSus active suspension aims to keep the cabin remarkably composed.

There’s also emergency flotation technology and BYD’s latest assisted-driving equipment.

The Second-Generation Blade Battery promises more than 621 miles of range on the Chinese CLTC cycle, with FLASH Charging technology providing additional convenience.

ALTIOR will arrive in Executive and Bespoke editions, including a limited-run Shanhe Dingyun model.

Whether it can trouble established luxury marques remains to be seen, but BYD clearly has its sights set considerably higher than simply building another electric car.