(Yicai Global) Nov. 21 -- BYD has said that the spraying of white powder from the air conditioner vents on the Chinese electric vehicle and battery maker’s EA1 model, also called the ‘Dolphin,’ will not make people ill.

Owners of the Dolphin have been complaining since last month that when the air conditioning is on full blast, it will sometimes eject a white powder through the vents, at times the size of rice grains.

The powder is mainly made up of aluminum hydroxide, which is frequently used to treat stomach problems, the Shenzhen-based carmaker said on Nov. 18, citing test results. The powder is made up of large particles which will settle on the car floor. They are too big to enter the human body and will be filtered out in the nose.

If car owners are concerned, they can visit any BYD outlet for free testing, it added. The issue can be resolved by replacing the vaporizers free of charge and cleaning the air conditioning pipes.

Some 65 percent of complaints received about the Dolphin as of yesterday were related to the air conditioning, at 369, according to data from third-party auto consumer complaints platform 12365auto.com.

The EA1 came on the market in August last year at a starting price of CNY100,000 (USD14,000). It was the sixth best-selling sedan in China last month at 25,000 units. In the first 10 months, BYD sold more than 150,000 units of the electric hatchback.

The carmaker has been in the news recently. On Nov. 18, a fire broke out at its production base in Daya Bay, Huizhou, southern Guangdong province, according to local news outlets. There were no casualties but an investigation is ongoing to find out the cause of the fire.

Editors：Shi Yi, Kim Taylor