BYD Seal

BYD has made its mark in Malaysia yet again with the launch of its third model, an all-electric four-door coupe (D-Segment), the BYD Seal.

Underpinned is the Intelligent e-Platform 3.0, BYD’s first production EV (electric vehicle) with a Cell-To-Body (CTB) architecture. 

Fully-imported (CBU - China), two variants (Premium, Performance), priced (OTR, w/o insurance) at MYR 180,430 and MYR 200,430. 

Each purchase includes a six-year/150,000 KM vehicle warranty, an eight-year/160,000 KM battery warranty and an eight-year/150,000 KM drive unit warranty.

Four exterior colours. Cosmos Black, Atlantis Grey, Aurora White (Premium) and Arctic Blue (Performance). 

Built with seamless contours, the tiered dashboard of the BYD Seal is minimalistic and clean, and is paired to a floating-style centre console.

Featured is a black theme (Thaumas Black) layout, with metal trimmings, a large centre-mounted infotainment unit, and a crystal gear shift.

Overall, the layout is airy and non-cluttered, with every accessibility ergonomically positioned and driver-centric.

Mounted for the driver is a 10.25-Inch LCD digital instrument cluster with a Head-Up Display (W-HUD).

Interior of the five-seater is upholstered in full leather (vegan leather), and comes in a Thaumas Black with contrast stitching colour scheme.

Installed are sports seats (front), with power-adjustments (driver - 8-way/4-way-lumbar/memory, passenger - 6-way), and ventilation/heat function.

The rear comes with a bench seat, featuring a centre armrest (fold-out) and a 60:40 split-fold configuration.

Heightening the ambience is a panoramic glass roof (full roof, silver-plated, shade insert), and an RGB dynamic mood lights with rhythm system (ambient lights).

For a saloon, the interior provides comfortable seatings with generous head, leg and shoulder rooms for all five occupants. 

Offering comfort and space, this is courtesy of the e-platform 3.0, which has a long wheelbase and a rear cabin flat floor.

Several practical spaces available. E.g., centre console caverned and partitioned spaces, a glove box, seat back and side door pockets, and trunk (front, rear). 

Standard fitment is a leather-wrapped steering wheel, in a three-spoke with a flat-bottom design, finished in black.

Featured are multi-function buttons (media, Bluetooth, ACC - Adaptive Cruise Control), voice assistant and column adjustments (tilt, telescopic).

Aiding the drive is an Electric Power Steering (DP-EPS) system.

Provided are four cup holders, two located at the front centre console (height-adjustable) and two at the rear seating’s centre armrest. 

Bottle holders, four with each located at the side door pockets.

Installed standard are one 12-V power socket (front), two USB-A and two USB-C ports (one set - front-rear), and two wireless chargers.

Also included is a 3.2-KW Vehicle-To-Load (V2L) function for powering of external devices. 

Accessing its powered-tailgate (contactless) opens up to 400-Litres of boot space, and also, provided is a front trunk (frunk) with a 50-Litre capacity.

Weighing in at 2,055 KG (Premium) and 2,185 KG (Performance), the BYD Seal measures at 4,800 MM in length, 1,875 MM in width, 1,460 MM in height, and with a wheelbase spanning 2,920 MM.

Clean and sharp with overall flowing contours, its sporty exterior parades the company’s ‘Marine Aesthetics’ design concept.

The front-end sees a contoured bonnet integrated seamlessly with the X-shaped bumper. Featured is the BYD moniker and a lower bumper air-vent.

Akin to the front with an overall smooth layout, it furthers the design concept by showcasing a seamless and jointless transition of lines.

The coupe-esque rear-end features a spoiler-deleted tailgate, accompanied by a bumper with a diffuser and front-matching contours.

Tail lamps are in a fairly slim light bar design, wider towards the wrapped-around edges, featuring staggered and twin U-shaped light graphics (stereo effect). 

Fitted are full LED units, featuring sequential turn indicators and Follow-Me-Home light function. Paired is a set of fog lamps.

Body-coloured and water drop-shaped, the side mirrors are electronically-powered (auto-fold, adjust), with blind spot-indicators, and heating, memory and auto-tilt functions.

The front comes with a set of ventilated and cross-drilled disc brakes, while the rear with a set of ventilated disc brakes. 

Incorporated systems are Electronic Parking Brake (EPB) with Auto Brake Hold, regenerative braking, and Intelligent Power Brake.

Latching it to the ground is a set of 19-Inch dual-tone alloy rims, wrapped in 235/45 R16 Continental EcoContact 6 Q tyres.

The BYD Seal features a comprehensive set of Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS). 

E.g., Traction Control System (TCS), Electronic Brake-Force Distribution (EBD), Hill-Hold Control (HHC), Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC), Automatic Emergency Braking System (AEB), Lane Departure Warning (LDW), Lane Departure Prevention (LDP), Emergency Lane Keeping Assist (ELKA), Intelligent Cruise Control (ICC), Predictive Collision Warning (PCW), Traffic Sign Recognition (TSR), Intelligent Speed Limit Information (ISLI), Intelligent Speed Limit Control (ISLC), Front Cross Traffic Alert (FCTA), Front Cross Traffic Brake (FCTB), Rear Cross Traffic Alert (RCTA), Rear Cross Traffic Brake (RCTB), Blind Spot Detection (BSD), High Beam Assist (HMA), Driver Attention Warning (DAW), Child Presence Detection (CPD), and Intelligence Torque Adaption Control (ITAC).

Passive safety includes nine airbags (driver-passenger, driver-centre, front-rear-side, front-rear curtain), seat belts (pretensioner (dual-stage front pretensioner), anchor, reminder), ISOFIX (outer rear seats), electronic child lock (Performance), automatic anti-dazzle interior rear-view mirror, parking cameras (reverse, 360-degree), ultrasonic parking radars/sensors (two-front, four-rear), Intelligent power brake system, Electronic Parking Brake System (EPB) with Auto Brake Hold, Door Open Warning (DOW), and Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS).

Four drive modes at the driver’s disposal (Normal, Sport, Eco, Snow).

Equipped is a 15.6-Inch intelligent rotating touchscreen (landscape/portrait) infotainment system with Bluetooth connectivity, Apple CarPlay (wired), Android Auto (wireless), voice assistant, and satellite navigation.

The comprehensive set of ADAS will make the day-to-day driving less fatigue and much safer in urban areas. 

Plus, long-distance travels will be less of a burden for the driver, as well as ensuring the safety of occupants on board.

Standard fitment is a 12-speaker setup of the HIFI Dynaudio Premium Sound system.

Embedded in the BYD Seal are two variant-specific setups.

Variant Premium nestles a rear-mounted electric motor (Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor (PMSM)), producing 230 KW/308 HP of power and 360 NM of torque.

Variant Performance fuses two electric motors (front - Induction Asynchronous Motor (Squirrel Cage) (160 KW/215 HP, 310 NM), rear - PMSM (230 KW/308 HP, 360 NM)), generating a combined output of 390 KW523 HP and 670 NM.

Mated to the setups is a single-speed automatic transmission.

Variant Premium sees a Rear-Wheel Drive (RWD) setup, while variant Performance sees an All-Wheel Drive (AWD) setup.

Acceleration from 0 to 100 KM/H is done in 5.9 seconds (Premium), and 3.8 seconds (Performance). 

Powered by BYD’s Blade Battery Technology, featuring a Blade Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) battery (82.5 KWH), providing a total driving range (WLTP) of 570 KM (Premium) and 520 KM (Performance).

AC charging (Type 2 - 7 KW), takes 15.2 hours for a 0% to 100% State of Charge (SoC). DC charging (CCS2 - 150 KW), takes 37 minutes for a 10% to 80% SoC.

Also included is a 3.2-KW Vehicle-To-Load (V2L) function for powering of external devices. 

The BYD Seal gets these as standard convenient features. E.g., keyless entry/start with portable card key (NFC), voice assistant, dual-zone automatic air-conditioning (rear-vents), PM2.5 air filtration system, PM2.5 high efficiency filter (CN95), negative ion air-purifier, sports seats with power-adjustments (driver - 8-way/4-way-lumbar/memory, passenger - 6-way - ventilation/heat function), voice assistant, steering wheel (multi-function, column adjustments, EPS), side mirrors (blind spot-indicators, heating, memory, auto-tilt), automatic anti-dazzle interior rear-view mirror, parking cameras (reverse, 360-degree), parking sensors (two-front, four-rear), powered-tailgate (contactless), panoramic glass roof (full roof, silver-plated, shade insert), soundproof double-glazed glass (windshield, front doors), rear windscreen (electric heating/defrosting), LED interior lighting (reading, boot), height-adjustable cup holders (front), automatic headlamps, rain-sensing wipers (frameless), wireless chargers, Electronic Parking Brake (EPB) with Auto Brake Hold, Vehicle-To-Load (V2L) function, and a frunk (50-Litres).

Ride comfortability feels flexible and firm at the same time. The e-coupe delivers a comfortable and light steering feel, smooth overall electric performance at all speeds.

Underpinned is the Intelligent e-Platform 3.0 (BYD Cell-To-Body (CTB) architecture), providing the vehicle body with a ‘Sandwich Structure’ build (stability, handling, performance).

Installed suspension setup is double wishbone (front) and multi-link (rear), featuring Frequency Selective Damping (FSD) shock absorbers (front, rear - Performance).

Also incorporated is the Intelligence Torque Adaptation Control (iTAC), which allocates drive torque to minimise skidding and enhance safety.

Good sound insulation with most of the NVH (noise, vibration, harshness) aspects accounted for. The ride is quiet, refined and the road noise is mostly muted.

An extra sound dampening feature comes in the form of a soundproof double-glazed glass (windshield, front doors).

The all-new BYD Seal exudes a sleek and energy filled outlook. An ocean-inspired design language that features smooth and seamless body contours.

Interior-wise, its innovative layout paired with many elements of advanced sophistication, give a sense of airiness and easy connectivity to the occupants. 

Performance-wise, it offers a great fully-electric drive with two powertrain options and the Intelligent e-Platform 3.0 (BYD Cell-To-Body (CTB)) underpinnings.

Overall, inside and out the build quality is satisfactory, and with its distinctive outlook and competitive pricings, the BYD Seal is truly a contender in its segment.