For the entire year, the Warren Buffett-backed automaker sold 519,800 cars, up 16 percent over 2009, BYD said in a statement.

However, sales for the year are 13 percent short of the 600,000-unit target set in August by BYD, which didn't give a reason for missing its goal.

Chinese automakers such as BYD and Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co. face a sales challenge from international rivals such as General Motors Co. and Volkswagen AG. Rising incomes have allowed shoppers to buy more expensive foreign models. GM and Tokyo-based Honda Motor Co. also are adding new, lower-priced brands to take on local rivals in China.

BYD, which is based in the south China city of Shenzhen, is China's largest private automaker and its second best-selling domestic brand. But the company's aggressive expansion backfired in 2010 when sales softened and many BYD dealerships went bankrupt.

In August, the carmaker cut its sales target for 2010 by 25 percent to 600,000 units from an earlier estimate of 800,000 vehicles.