Great Lakes Wire

Erik Soderholm, co-owner of Soderholm Bus & Mobility, continues to operate a BYD electric vehicle in the United States following a unique dealer agreement and legal settlement. This statement was made during an interview with The Wall Street Journal.

"We've had few problems," said Soderholm. "You can't just cancel a dealer in Hawaii. existential threat. If I had my druthers, I'd be driving a 1972 911 Porsche."

Michigan has seen growing momentum behind legislation aimed at banning Chinese-made electric vehicles. In April 2025, U.S. Senator Elissa Slotkin introduced the Connected Vehicle National Security Review Act, which would give the Commerce Department power to block Chinese EVs considered national security threats. According to CBS Detroit, Slotkin said she would "lay down on the border to keep Chinese vehicles from entering the U.S. market," citing risks to American jobs and technology security.

According to The Wall Street Journal, only six BYD e6 SUVs remain registered in the U.S. out of 80 that were certified compliant with federal safety standards. Of those six, four are tied directly to Soderholm in Hawaii, underscoring how rare Chinese EVs are in the American market. The Journal noted that these e6 vehicles are now at the end of their service life, with most of the original fleet retired.

BYD’s presence in Europe has expanded significantly, with registrations of its battery-electric cars up 169% year-over-year in April 2025. That same month, BYD sold 7,231 fully electric vehicles compared to Tesla’s 7,165, marking the first time BYD surpassed Tesla in the European EV market. According to JATO Dynamics data cited by Jing Daily, BYD’s combined sales of EVs and plug-in hybrids surged 359% year-over-year.

Soderholm is a 71-year-old businessman and co-owner of a Honolulu bus dealership. He has a law degree and became one of the few people in the U.S. to own and operate a street-legal BYD e6 after striking a dealership agreement in 2016. He won a $2 million settlement from BYD after litigation over the attempted cancellation of his dealership rights, as per The Wall Street Journal.