It Looks Like The Seal Will Start Having A More Prominent Role For BYD

The original BYD Seal was launched in China as a sporty sedan and started off doing quite well. BYD’s Seal sedan is part of BYD’s “Ocean Series.” It had been highly anticipated, and it landed with a bang when it was launched in August last year. In its first month, the Seal had an impressive 1,726 sales. It then followed up with sales of 7,473 units in September, 11,267 in October, 15,356 in November, and 15,378 in December. The sales total for the Seal’s first 5 months was an impressive 51,200, which is pretty cool for a new model in early production ramp-up mode. Since then, however, sales of the all-electric sedan seem to have stagnated a bit in China, hovering below 10,000 units per month. That said, this sedan is coming to the United Kingdom, mainland Europe, Australia, and New Zealand soon as well, so sales should pick up when more exports are added.

In Europe, this D-segment sedan is coming later this year. The European version of the Seal will have an 82 kWh battery pack with a combined WLTP range of 570 km (2WD) or 520 km (AWD). Another model that is being introduced in several markets by BYD now is the Dolphin, a smaller compact hatchback. Both the BYD Dolphin and the Seal use the e-Platform 3.0 as standard. The Dolphin is based on cell-to-pack (CTP) battery technology, whilst the BYD Seal uses advanced cell-to-body (CTB) technology. BYD says the benefit of this advanced CTB technology is that the vehicle’s body is lower, for better aerodynamics and range, while increasing body rigidity for enhanced safety. The design offers more cabin space due to reduced battery pack volume. The BYD Seal (AWD) also has an 8-in-1 electric powertrain with dual motors providing a combined power of 230/390 kW or 313/531 PS. Both the Seal and the Dolphin have BYD’s revolutionary Blade Battery.

The Seal and the Dolphin are also going to other markets around the world, including Costa Rica. Here are the specs of the Seal that is offered in Costa Rica:

• 56 kWh BLADE Battery (LFP)
• Semi-autonomous Di-Pilot drive
• Range: 650 km (CLTC)
• Power output: 523 HP
• Torque: 590 Nm
• Speed ​​from 0–100 km/h in 3.8 seconds
• 6-way power-adjustable seats (front), 10.25-inch instrument panel
• 6-inch touchscreen
• Dual wireless charger
• Di-Link 3.0 Ecosystem
• Adaptive Cruise Control

BYD has several models under the “Dynasty” series, such as the Han, the Song, and the Tang. There is also the “Ocean” series, which has the Dolphin and the Seal, amongst others. A subset of the Ocean series includes the so-called “Warship”series, including models named Frigate and Destroyer. Some of the Destroyer models are also called Chasers. Some of these are already exported to markets like Uzbekistan, where the Destroyer 05 will be sold as the Chaser 05. The Destroyer 05 is part of BYD’s series of plugin hybrid models, or so-called “Super Hybrids” — the DM-i (Dual Mode Intelligent) and DM-p (Dual Mode but more powerful all-wheel drive) range. These DM models are paired with a 1.5L turbo petrol engine. One of the other highly anticipated models in this range is the Destroyer 07 DM-i that has versions that can go up to 200 km in electric mode.

However, an interesting thing happened recently when BYD announced the start of production of the Destroyer 07. This car has now been “rebranded” as the BYD Seal DM-i. The Seal sedan only had a fully electric version when it was announced and did not have a PHEV version. Now the Seal brand will come to the PHEV side of the Ocean series with this new Seal DM-i, which is a remarkably interesting development. Perhaps the name Destroyer 07 was a bit aggressive or maybe there are big plans for the Seal DM-i PHEV to be exported to some markets around the world?

Now, another model seems to have now been given the Seal name as well. The BYD Song Plus Champion Edition electric SUV appears to be having an export version perhaps that will be known as the BYD Seal U SUV. Have a look at this video from Nevo EV Review Ireland having a look at the BYD Seal U all-electric SUV. The Song Plus EV in China has versions with a 71 kWh and an 87 kWh Blade Battery, giving a range of 520 to 605 km in CLTC, respectively. Charging is up to 11 kW on AC and 140 kW on DC.

So, two new models are getting the Seal name. What are your thoughts? Let us know in the comments section.