BYD Seal may get a little Crazy but remains impressive

What is it and How much?

The BYD Seal is a sporty-looking saloon from Chinese manufacturer Build Your Dreams. It is their range-topper and goes up against the likes of the Tesla Model 3, the BMW i4, Hyundai Ionic 6 and the Polestar 2.

There are just 2 models available – the ‘Design’ and the ‘Excellence’. The BYD Seal Design has a single motor and rear wheel-drive, while the Excellence has twin-motors and 4-wheel-drive. It also has the ability to make your passenger swear, should you happen to mash the accelerator . . . Yes, it’s crazily quick.

So quick, in fact, that BYD have seen fit to stick the 0-62mph time on the boot of the Excellence model which may make some people think it has a 3.8 litre engine. But those are seconds, not litres.

The Design model costs £45,695, and hits 62mph in 5.9 seconds; so still no slouch. It has an excellent range of 354 miles.

The Excellence comes in at £48,695 and has a reduced range of 323 miles. But if you want to scare the bejesus out of your passengers or you really want the extra confidence of all-wheel-drive, then the extra £3k may be worth it. Personally, I’d stick with the RWD Design model as it has everything you’ll need – and more – plus the extra range.

BYD have made option choices very simple. There aren’t any. You can pay more for a couple of fancy colours, but that’s about it. Both models come with the same 19-inch alloys and a choice of two interior colours.

Miura or Minger?

The Seal is a good-looking saloon with a sculpted profile that is more sweeping and dynamic than the rather staid looking Tesla Model 3.

The front end is particularly pleasing, looking a little Porsche around the headlights but with interesting light clusters beneath the main headlights. A bit futuristic but not over the top in any way.

The rear end isn’t as interesting but is clean and modern with the rear lights stretched across the whole width in a viscous liquid effect, thinning out in the middle. Some may like the deep rear diffuser, but I think it detracts somewhat from the clean look. Still; a lot better than many EVs.

The flush door handles look neat and are fast becoming the de facto style for many cars – EVs in particular.

Overall, the Seal is a welcome change from the SUV style of electric vehicle that appears to dominate at the moment. The alloys fill the wheel wells and the stance is purposeful, low and sporty. More coupe than saloon, the BYD Seal is one of the best looking EVs on the market today.

How Does It Drive?

Very quickly. But only until the novelty of neck-jerking hyper-drive wears off. Which doesn’t take very long. And once you’ve got bored of saying “watch this” to your unsuspecting passengers, you’ll find the BYD Seal Excellence to be a very competent cruiser that is also a doddle to drive around town.

The Seal feels well-planted and well capable of handling the battered UK roads, with only the occasional ‘thump’ if hitting a particularly bad pot-hole. BYD seem to have done a good job of tuning the chassis and suspension for UK roads.

The steering is surprisingly quick and feelsome which adds to the driving pleasure. You can throw the Seal around twisty A and B Roads with its 2.4 tonnes only becoming apparent if you get really silly and carry too much speed into a corner.

There is fun to be had in this executive saloon which appears to have body-lean well under control and excellent levels of grip. Just don’t ignore the laws of physics.

It’s worth noting that Excellence model comes with semi-adaptive dampening, whereas the Design model has a passive set up, although I doubt most drivers would notice the difference.

Of course, the Seal is truly at home on a motorway jaunt where you’ll find it to be as refined as any offering from the Germans.

It’s very quiet at 70mph with only a hint of tyre noise – largely thanks to the double-glazed front windows (standard on both models). Overtakes are done in the blink of an eye and the adaptive cruise control works well, being intelligent enough to not slam on the brakes every time someone pulls into your lane.

An annoyance – as in most modern cars these days – are the intrusive bings and bongs to let you know you’ve gone 1mph over the speed limit, you’re not centrally positioned in your lane or it’s time for you to take a break.

It’s not immediately obvious how to switch these off – but it can be done after searching through the menus on the infotainment screen, or setting up shortcuts to the settings via the steering wheel controls.

Of course, due to the legislation that manufacturers must abide by, these systems will revert back to default each time you start the car.

What’s the Inside Story?

This is where things get a little quirky – and not always a good quirky.

But let’s start with first impressions – which are overwhelmingly good. The BYD Seal looks every bit like an executive saloon on the inside with plenty of soft touch materials, mixing leather, chrome trim and an Alcantara-type material.

Swooping trim lines and diamond patterned, leather upholstery with contrasting stitching gives the Seal enough wow factor to make you smile and nod your head approvingly.

The sporty front seats are comfortable and electrically adjustable with the driver’s seat having eight-way movement along with 4-way for lumbar.

The multi-function steering wheel is also fully adjustable, so finding a good driving position is easy enough.

My test car was pre-production so the annoyance of having the indicator stalk on the wrong side of the steering wheel is moot. All UK production Seals now have the stalk on the correct side.

Dominating the dash is the huge 15.6-inch infotainment screen, whose party-piece is the ability to rotate 90 degrees so you can choose between a landscape and portrait view. However, if you want to use the wireless Apple CarPlay or Android Auto, you’re stuck with landscape.

Another annoying quirk of the infotainment screen is that it is so wide, you’ll find the right side of it obscured by the steering wheel. Changing to portrait mode alleviates this but then you lose Apple CarPlay. Even worse, those drivers with polarising lenses will lose sight of the screen altogether when it’s in Portrait mode.

The Seal is devoid of physical buttons for setting the climate, so this means you’ll need to navigate through the screen to find what you want. Hugely distracting and, in my opinion, quite dangerous when on the move.

Thankfully, most commands can be voice-activated, so if you want to change temperature, adjust volume, etc. you have a safer alternative – if the software understands your accent.

The large digital dash uses washed-out colours but it’s still easy to read, although the large graphic for kWh usage is rather useless and changes constantly which gets annoying – and again, distracting. I didn’t figure out a way to hide it, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be done.

So, an impressive looking cockpit that has some failings when it comes to use, but nothing you won’t get used to if you use the car every day.

The tech available to you is impressive; from the adaptive cruise control, dual-zone air conditioning and heat pump, to the configurable mood lighting and twin wireless charging docks just below the main screen.

Visibility is good out the front and sides but quite restricted through the rear window. However, the front and rear parking sensors are aided by a 360-degree camera view that makes parking in any space very simple. It’s a very sharp, high-res picture too.

There’s plenty of storage. The centre console has both an opening compartment in the elbow-rest and a huge space below the gear-selector, where you’ll also find USB charging ports. Door bins are adequate if not large and there is a decent glove box.

The whole interior is bright and airy thanks to the huge panoramic sunroof that is standard on both models.

The sunroof doesn’t detract from headroom in the rear either, where you’ll find adults up to 6ft tall can sit in comfort without having to slouch. Even the centre passenger will have no problem as the floor is entirely flat.

There is plenty of width in the rear for adults and kids alike, but the seat itself is a little short and doesn’t provide quite enough under-thigh support for longer journeys. Again, kids will be absolutely fine, but taller folk may find it uncomfortable on the longer journeys.

Boot space is good at 400 litres and there are an extra 53 litres in the ‘frunk’ which is the ideal place to store the charging cables. Not being a hatchback design, the Seal’s boot opening isn’t as versatile as say, the VW ID 7, but you can still get plenty of luggage in there, it’s just a little more awkward.

Conclusion

The BYD Seal certainly has a lot to offer but isn’t the bargain that some may expect. There are comparable models available for less – the Tesla Model 3 being the obvious.

What it does have though is style and a sense of identity all its own. The Excellence model is supercar fast off the line and could put many Ferrari, Aston Martin and Lamborghini models to shame.

But the debate about putting that kind of power into the hands of the everyday driver continues to divide opinion. Maybe EV manufactures should be looking to impress with greater range rather than 0-62mph figures. It makes more sense, is more desirable to most and is a lot safer for everyone.

That’s not to say the BYD Seal is unsafe in any way. No more than any other quick car would be in the hands of incompetence. It’s list of standard-fit safety features is comprehensive and includes Forward and Rear Collision Warning, Auto Emergency Braking, Rear Cross Traffic Alert, Emergency Lane Keep and Intelligent Speed Limit Control.

The RWD Design model makes more sense for £3,000 less. It’s still quick and has a better range. It looks exactly the same as its more expensive sibling both inside and out, proving that a well-built, great-performing EV needn’t be boring to behold.