Photo: BYD
BYD has revealed the interior images of its upcoming Seal sedan, showing a departure from its current models in terms of interior design. The BYD Seal also shows impressive features that put it on a collision course with the Tesla Model 3.
The fully-electric four-door sedan is more than a nod to the last year’s Ocean-X concept. Although the lines mimic the Model 3’s shape, the front fascia and headlights are clearly inspired by the Porsche Taycan. This is not necessarily bad, showing an improvement in Chinese design, while still finding inspiration in more successful western models.
Leaked documents from the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology showed us a while back the exact dimensions of the car. BYD Seal measures 4.80 meters (189 inches) long, 1.88 m (74 in) wide, 1.46 m (57.5 in) tall, and has a wheelbase of 2.92 m (115 in). This makes it slightly bigger than Tesla Model 3 in all directions and on par with the Nio ET5 and the BMW i3 eDrive35L sold in China.
The interior shows a different image than other BYD vehicles, with a huge 15.6-inch free-floating central display complemented by an 8.8-inch instrument cluster. The lines follow the organic shapes that go well with the ocean-themed nomenclature of BYD’s electric vehicles. The diamond-shaped gear selector on the central tunnel reminds us of Volvo’s, but the buttons circling it appear to be original.
The BYD Seal is based on the e-platform 3.0 and will be offered in three versions, depending on the number of motors and the range on offer. The base RWD trim features a 150 kW (201 horsepower) and will have a range of 550 km (342 miles), while a more powerful RWD Seal will be offered with 230 kW (308 horsepower) and a 700 km (435 miles) range. The top 4WD trim mates a 160-kW (215 horsepower) motor on the front axle to a 230-kW motor on the rear axle for a total of 390 kW (523 horsepower). The range will drop to 650 km (404 miles) in this case, while the 0-100 kph (0-62 mph) acceleration takes 3.8 seconds.
According to CarNewsChina.com, the BYD Seal will go on sale next month in China with a price range of RMB 220,000 ($33,400) to RMB 280,000 ($42,500). It’s a lot cheaper than Tesla Model 3, which starts at RMB 279,900 ($42,490) for the RWD version and gets to RMB 367,900 ($55,850) for the Model 3 Performance. The Seal will also land in Australia next year, where it will be sold under the Atto 4 name, which makes us think it’s the top 4WD version of the car.
Leaked documents from the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology showed us a while back the exact dimensions of the car. BYD Seal measures 4.80 meters (189 inches) long, 1.88 m (74 in) wide, 1.46 m (57.5 in) tall, and has a wheelbase of 2.92 m (115 in). This makes it slightly bigger than Tesla Model 3 in all directions and on par with the Nio ET5 and the BMW i3 eDrive35L sold in China.
The interior shows a different image than other BYD vehicles, with a huge 15.6-inch free-floating central display complemented by an 8.8-inch instrument cluster. The lines follow the organic shapes that go well with the ocean-themed nomenclature of BYD’s electric vehicles. The diamond-shaped gear selector on the central tunnel reminds us of Volvo’s, but the buttons circling it appear to be original.
The BYD Seal is based on the e-platform 3.0 and will be offered in three versions, depending on the number of motors and the range on offer. The base RWD trim features a 150 kW (201 horsepower) and will have a range of 550 km (342 miles), while a more powerful RWD Seal will be offered with 230 kW (308 horsepower) and a 700 km (435 miles) range. The top 4WD trim mates a 160-kW (215 horsepower) motor on the front axle to a 230-kW motor on the rear axle for a total of 390 kW (523 horsepower). The range will drop to 650 km (404 miles) in this case, while the 0-100 kph (0-62 mph) acceleration takes 3.8 seconds.
According to CarNewsChina.com, the BYD Seal will go on sale next month in China with a price range of RMB 220,000 ($33,400) to RMB 280,000 ($42,500). It’s a lot cheaper than Tesla Model 3, which starts at RMB 279,900 ($42,490) for the RWD version and gets to RMB 367,900 ($55,850) for the Model 3 Performance. The Seal will also land in Australia next year, where it will be sold under the Atto 4 name, which makes us think it’s the top 4WD version of the car.
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