Brand New 25 BYD Sealion 7 390kW Design AWD 83kWh 5dr Auto

Cars like BYD's Sealion 7 will in future be European-built to preserve this Chinese maker's Western sales surge. Jonathan Crouch takes a look at what's on offer.

Ten Second Review

With this Sealion 7, BYD brings us its most sophisticated car yet, an upper mid-sized electric Coupe-SUV with the engineering and luxury to take this Chinese maker firmly into premium territory, as well as threatening cars like the Tesla Model Y and the Volkswagen ID.5.

Background

If the European makers thought that imposing stringent tariffs on the flood of Chinese-built EVs entering our market, they may need to think again. For the reasons as to why, let's take the car in front of us here as a case study, the BYD Sealion 7. This BYD flagship model, a luxury Coupe-SUV, will initially be hit with a costly EV tariffs, but from 2026 when the Chinese maker's new Hungarian factory comes on stream, it will by-pass these entirely. And it's at that stage that the competitors being targeted here - cars like better Volkswagen ID.5s and Tesla Model Ys - will really feel the force of BYD. In the short-term though, the Sealion 7 will be relatively rare sight on this continent's roads, the third of this maker's models branded with a nautical name (following the Dolphin and the Seal). It aims to encapsulate everything BYD has so far learned as a car maker. Which as it turns out, is quite a lot.

Driving Experience

In this case, there are two kinds of Sealion; docile and fierce. The docile entry-level 'Comfort' version uses an 82.5kWh battery and is propelled by a 308bhp single rear motor which can power the car for up to 300 miles. It makes 62mph in 6.7s en route to 113mph. The fiercer versions use a dual motor powertrain where that rear motor is joined by a 215bhp front motor, creating a potent total output of 523bhp. This dual motor set-up can be had in 'Design AWD' form with the 82.5kWh battery, which goes 283 miles on a charge. Or in 'Excellence AWD' form with a larger 91.3kWh battery, which goes up to 312 miles on a charge. The dual motor versions have a '4.5 S' badge on the boot lid, which denotes the 0-62mph time. Quite a lot of the engineering and drive dynamics are shared with the Seal saloon, which we've tested and been favourably impressed by. BYD says it's put particular work into the suspension, which is tailored for 'excellent handling' and 'secure vehicle control'. The dual motor AWD model that UK sales will be focused on boasts a new 'Intelligent Torque Adaption Control' (iTAC) system, able to allocate toque between the wheels to prevent skidding and maximise safety. Expect excellent refinement and all the usual semi-autonomous driving aids. Handling should be aided by a stiffer version of the e-Platform 3.0 used by the Seal, which BYD calls the e-Platform 3.0 EVO. A key technical difference compared with other EVs is the way that BYD's pioneering Cell-to-Body (CTB) battery installation integrates the Blade Battery into the entire vehicle structure, with the top cover of the pack also acting as the floor of the passenger compartment. CTB features a high-strength honeycomb-like aluminium structure, enhancing safety - and using the battery pack as a structural component also helps to deliver impressive torsional stiffness.

Design and Build

With the Sealion 7, BYD says that it's taken the 'Ocean' design language previously seen on its Dolphin and Seal models and adapted it to 'a sporty SUV body style'. Which means that this car wants to be a luxury mid-sized Coupe-SUV, like say, a better Volkswagen ID.5 or an Audi Q6 Sportback e-tron. At the side, a crisp crease rising along the flanks creates a dual waistline and there's a muscular haunch over the rear wheel. Black cladding around the wheel arches adds the required crossover vibe. And at 4,830mm in length, it's quite a substantial thing (30mm longer and 160mm taller than the Seal). The pavement presence of the swept-back profile is matched by an angular front featuring BYD's signature 'X-face', with thin Dual U 'floating' LED headlights and prominent air intakes. The back has a subtle roof-mounted 'ducktail' spoiler and BYD's usual full-width light bar with 'water-drop- tail lights. More important of course is what you can't see, the advanced e-Platform 3.0 EVO underpinnings. Inside, the cabin is similar to that of the updated Seal. Through the 4-spoke wheel, you view the same digital instrument screen and a head-up display mimicking a virtual 50-inch 'screen' the driver. Plus there's a huge 15.6-inch central touchscreen that as usual with BYDs can rather pointlessly rotate to show either portrait or landscape formats. Equipment of course is generous, with climate-controlled leather seats front and rear, twin wireless smartphone charging pads in the centre console and a big 2.1 square metre panoramic glass roof. Thanks to the generous 2,930mm wheelbase length, there should be space for three adults across the back seat, helped by the fact that the rear roof line is 160mm taller than that of the Seal. There's a decently-sized 520-litre boot too, which grows to 1,789-litres with the rear bench folded). Plus you get 58-litres of 'frunk' space beneath the bonnet.

Market and Model

Budget at around the £45,000 mark for this Sealion 7 in base 'Comfort 82.5kWh form - or around £49,000 for the mid-range 'Design AWD' 82.5kWh model. For the top 'Excellence AWD' version with the bigger 91.3kWh battery, you'll need around £57,000. In the UK, BYD has established partnerships with key dealerships, and opened 60 stores across the nation, including a flagship showroom in Westfields Shopping Mall, West London, with plans to double this figure by the end of 2025. Interestingly for an unknown brand, BYD isn't looking to substantially undercut its main competitors on price. But equipment levels are high. Across the range, the cabin gets a 15.6-inch rotatable screen equipped with an intelligent voice control function that can be activated with the voice command 'Hey BYD'; and seamless smartphone integration via 'Android Auto' or 'Apple CarPlay'. It also features a 10.25-inch full instrument LCD panel and an impressive Dynaudio Performance Audio System provides premium quality sound. In terms of safety and advanced driver assistance, the Sealion 7 offers Forward Collision Warning, Automatic Emergency Braking, Rear Collision Warning, Rear Cross Traffic Alert and Rear Cross Traffic Brake, Lane Keep Assistance, Lane Change Assist and Emergency Lane Keep. There's also Adaptive Cruise Control and Intelligent Cruise Control, a 360-degree Panoramic Camera, Blind Spot Detection System, ESP, Traction Control, Hill Decent Control, Automatic Vehicle Hold, Intelligent Speed Limit Information and Intelligent Speed Limit Control. Cutting-edge lighting technology provides a wider beam to aid visibility during night driving, with high beam assist, adaptive headlights and Follow Me Home as standard.

Cost of Ownership

The battery used here is of the unique-to-BYD lithium-ion-phosphate 'Blade' variety, which incorporates cells mounted in the strips directly to the pack. Which, the Chinese maker says, allows for a much higher cell density than a conventional battery could offer. So a much higher driving range then? Afraid not. The 300-312 mile range figures of the top Dual Motor models are reasonably class-competitive, but way off being class leading. To preserve driving range in cold conditions, a heat pump is standard. Seal customers benefit from what the brand calls 'a high-voltage electric drive boost charging solution', which allows for faster charging. This technology innovatively uses the motor inductor to replace the boost inductor, to meet the 420-750V voltage range of charging piles with high-power DC charging. During the charging process, this BYD's drivetrain reduces the heat generation of the charging and distribution assembly for more reliable performance. The Seal offers an 11kW 3-phase on-board charger for AC charging, and the 91.3kWh version can be fast-charged at a DC ultra-fast charging station at up to 230kW; it's up to 150kWh for the smaller 82.5kWh battery. With the 91.3kWh model, the battery can be charged from 10% to 80% in just 24 minutes (it's 32 minutes with the 82.5kWh model). You'd think that BYD building, designing and owning this car's entire set of EV drivetrain components (including battery and semiconductors) would allow the company to make the Seal able to offer a truly modern 800V electrical architecture capable of allowing charging with the new breed of ultra-rapid DC public chargers - something we've already seen in this class with the Hyundai Motor Group products. But no, it's the same conventional 400V system as everyone else uses.

Summary

Right now, choosing a BYD of any kind - particularly this exclusive flagship model - feels something of a left-field choice, but in the future it won't be. In a few years time with production from its Hungarian factory in full swing, BYD will be a true rival for the VW Group, Ford and Stellantis on our continent; and this Sealion 7 gives those brands a foretaste of the kind of products they're going to be up against. There's almost everything here you might want, not only in a Tesla Model Y or Volkswagen ID.5-class mid-sized electric Coupe-SUV but also in something much pricier like an Audi A6 Sportback e-tron or Mercedes EQE SUV. And though we're surprised that a battery maker as accomplished as BYD still hasn't adopted kind of 800V electrical infrastructure for its cars that would enable them to use the fastest ultra-rapid DC Chargers, the range figures from the 'Blade' batteries on offer here seem competitive. So getting to know a Sealion might actually be worth thinking about. The Chinese makers are no longer merely 'coming'; they're here, they're good and with cars like this, they're here to stay.