15/04/2024 Electric cars have better acceleration than car’s with engines thanks to the pulling power and efficiency of their electric motors but some EVs are supercar quick. 0-100km/h is the measurement most used to show how zippy a car is. Up until recently anything under 8 seconds would be considered quick. To say ‘the BYD Seal 3.8s is quick’ is an understatement as the all wheel drive (Daual Motor) five seat car can do the sprint in… 3.8 seconds! If you acclerate hard in the Seal your passengers will think they’re on a rollercoaster – or more likely they’ll give-out to you for scaring the bejaysus out of them!
With Seal we can forget the need for this twin motor all wheel drive high performance version (the standard Seal does 0-100km/h in 5.9 seconds via its single 313hp motor powering the rear wheels) and just look at the four door car for what it is. Seal is a serious take on europe’s finest sleek four door coupes. The exterior is styled in a way that pays homage to Porsche and Audi with a bit of Tesla Model S thrown in to please US buyers. To get an idea of its footprint, Seal is very slightly smaller than Hyundai’s Ioniq 6 and a little larger than a BMW i4. It is a very handsome car that demonstrates how far Chinese car makers have come in terms of seeking out the best European stylists to work on building cars that will appeal to buyers of premium cars. BYD’s design team is headed up by Wolfgang Egger who’s a global design figure in the auto industry. Europe may not have the scale that China can draw on but it still has the most decerning car buyers and car makers around the globe know this. A walk around the Seal and you wil find curves and design touches that are very pleasing and comtemporary.
Inside the four door the cabin features high quality materials that combine quite well to deliver a premium standard interior. All the toys like heated and cooled seats, steering wheel heater etc. are present and a heat pump is standard too. There are plenty of analog controls in and around the centre console where the tiny autmatic gear selector is located. The driver gets a neatly sized 12-inch display that is viewale through the steering wheel and in our test car a HUD head up display. The Seal has a massive 15-inch, rotating centre touch screen and excellent connectivity – although if you use carplay the screen will only display in landscape format. Using the car’s navigation in portrait mode is like have a sketch artist with their easel in the car! Like in the BYD Atto3 and Dolphin you can rotate the screen with the touch of a steering wheel button or ont escreen itself – is it a gimmick? Yes, but its still fun. dual wireless charging pads feature and there are cubbies and storage areas aplenty.
There are a few niggles to be found like the speed display that if set to 100 or 120 will often flick between the nearest number 110/99/100 etc. so a little software tweek is needed here BYD. Other than that the interior is very impressive for the car’s price point. The boot is shallow but at 402 litres probably fine for carrying a set of golf sticks. Seal also has a 53 litre frunk under the bonnet. There is seating ideally for four adults in comfort and five if required.
On the road the aerodynamic (0.219cd) slippery Seal sits solidly on the road. This is no surpise when you realise it weighs over two tonnes (2,185kgs) empty. The steering wheel has a lovely feel and is just the right size to help the driver feel that bit sportier than others. The ride in our 3.8s is firm and drivers will feel the detail in a road’s surface, passengers less so. At higher speeds this firmness becomes a dynamic asset. Maximum power is 530hp and top speed is restricted to 180km/h. As you’d expect the usual drive modes are selectable. BYD has fitted a clever torque managment system called iTAC (intelligence Torque Adaption Control) that helps reduce skidding on slippery surfaces.
So the elephant in the room! Can this premium EV value the user’s time and deliver good real world range? Yes again to this one. Our test car comes with a 82,5kWh battery that has a max range from a full charge of 520km (WLTP /570km RWD) so even on bad weather days 400km is realistic. Seal can fast charge at up to 150kW. The onboard charger is rated to 11 kW AC 3 phase. At a 150kW DC charger, the battery can go from 30% to 80 % in 26 minutes. BYD claims great longevity for the battery compared to rivals. The Seal also features vehicle to load tech (V2L) with a max 3kW output. BYD makes its own batteries. BYD’s Blade technology (in a very short space of time BYD has become worlds biggest LFP battery maker). Seal features CTB (cell to body) a pioneering technology that uses the battery as a structural part of the car’s body – adding to the car’s rigidity.
Seal features a comprehensive amount of equipment as standard and it also has an impressive amount of ADAS driver safety aids. Pricing starts from €44,036 (net) ‘Design’ RWD model, rising to €49,836 for the AWD ‘Excellence’. The BYD Seal is a great addition to the EV market with its great looks, ample performance, lots of standard ‘extras’ and a price point that shames European rivals – Two things to bear in mind the indicator stalk is on the right and takes a bit of getting used to and th espeedometre wil annoy you – BYD please fix the flickering speedo display! Michael Sheridan
