Last year was a very active period for BYD in introducing their electric cars. Four electric cars were introduced, namely BYD Dolphin, BYD Seal, BYD M6 and BYD Sealion, all of which have their own target users. They even updated their BYD Atto 3 offering in 2024.
Starting this year, BYD Malaysia invited media partners to the BYD Seal Performance event to provide opportunities and exposure to their fastest vehicle in the sedan family. Although BYD Seal Performance was launched in February last year, it still looks fresh with a futuristic design that certainly distinguishes this electric car from other electric cars and has also recently been awarded the title of Car of The Year 2024 from MARii & Mobility Media.
Interior Exterior Design
Starting with the exterior design that looks bright and stylish, the headlights are equipped with an automatic high beam function, and the smooth lines form a very unique DRL (Day Running Light) image. From afar you can recognize the BYD Seal that is following you. The front and rear turn signals can also flash in the direction you are going (sequential lights). From the side design, it is clear that the design looks like a fin that houses the camera, completing the 360-degree view of this electric car which is useful when parking. The rear design also has the BYD label and especially for the Performance version, there is a 3.8s label to distinguish it from other versions.
On the right side there is a charging plug for this car which has a battery of 82.56 kWh which provides a travel distance of 580 km NEDC or 520KM WLTP. It supports 150 kW DC fast charging which allows 30%-80% charging in 18 minutes, and 7kW 1-phase AC charging which theoretically allows a full charge of 0-100% in 11 hours. It also supports the V2L function, allowing you to use electricity wherever you are.
The interior of the BYD Seal Performance is no less luxurious with a leather-wrapped steering wheel and seats, a translucent roof, a stylish central steering wheel, a large head-up display (HUD) that displays various information, and a 15.6-inch central entertainment display that can be rotated. There is also a storage space under the gear knob, and a wireless charger for your smartphone. In my opinion, the position of the wireless charger and the rotatable entertainment display can compete if a thick smartphone is placed in the space, or any thick object placed can compete with the entertainment display if it is rotated vertically.
One thing that for me is a drawback is how the driving display is not very futuristic. It may display all the important information, but for my taste, it is not neatly arranged. As shown in the display below, you can see the position of certain symbols that are seen arranged evenly. However, this is something you may usually see for electric cars from China.
In terms of storage space, it has a 400L luggage space which also has a second space due to the absence of a spare tire, as well as a 50L front storage space, enough to accommodate a charging cable. This sedan-shaped electric car is quite suitable for family use because the rear passenger compartment also has an air conditioning system that can ensure the comfort of rear passengers for long trips.
All-Wheel Drive Acceleration Performance as Fast as 3.8 Seconds
In this driving session, we had the opportunity to drive the BYD Seal Performance from Bamboo Hills to Le Meridien Putrajaya, then from Le Meridien Putrajaya to the Sepang Circuit before returning. In both sessions, several functions were tried and also showed the capabilities of this electric car. I had the opportunity to drive from Bamboo Hills to Le Meridien Putrajaya and tried accelerating several times. It can be said that the BYD Seal Performance is very responsive and provides fast power without any time lag. A 3.8 second time to accelerate from 0-100 km/h can be easily achieved right after paying the toll on the DUKE highway and this is achieved with two front and rear drive electric motors that provide power as high as 360 kW and 670 Nm of torque.
The BYD Seal Performance which has all-wheel drive was then taken to the next activity where we had the opportunity to do a timed race or popularly known as Gymkhana / Time Attack. In navigating the obstacle course and there was room to make sharp turns, the safety system of this electric car also worked well, especially the Intelligence Torque Adaption Control (iTAC) which is only available for the BYD Seal Performance version. If the traction control function is working, the signal light will light up for a few moments to tell the others. I did this activity in the Sport option to get maximum acceleration and power, as well as more responsive steering control with my driving control.
Next we were also taken to experience the 'drift' driving by an electric car. Although there is one big drawback, which is the roar of the engine, it does not reduce the fun of being in the BYD Seal Performance because all that is heard is the sound of the tires rubbing against the road surface. It may be a somewhat different experience, but since the maximum driving power of the rear motor and the front motor of this electric car is different, it allows this car to turn according to the driver's control.
Although this trial and driving experience was short, the battery used was not that much, and we were still able to get back to Bamboo Hills with 46% battery remaining for a trip of nearly 200 KM. In this driving session I can conclude that the BYD Seal Performance is quite worth the price offered for those of you who are looking for a high-performance electric car and has other added values.
This is because at a price of RM 199,800 it can accelerate from 0-100 km/h in 3.8 seconds and in that price range, other electric cars that can accelerate in that period are offered at higher prices, such as the Smart #3 Brabus which is offered at RM 255k, or the Smart #1 Brabus at RM 249K, the Tesla Model Y is offered at a starting price of RM 285K before any discounts. And some of the vehicles above such as the Smart #3 Brabus have a shorter travel range than the BYD Seal Performance. What may compete with the BYD Seal Performance is the MG4 Xpower which can accelerate in the same time at a lower price of RM 158K, but has a smaller battery causing its travel distance to only 385KM WLTP.
BYD Seal Performance also comes with a 6-year or 150,000 KM warranty, an 8-year or 150,000 KM warranty on the electric motor drive, an 8-year or 160,000 KM warranty on the battery. BYD also offers a 3-year or 60,000 KM warranty for several other components such as the multimedia system, charging socket, and a 4-year or 100,000 KM warranty for the suspension, tire pressure monitoring system and lighting system.
If you are interested in the BYD Seal Performance, BYD now has various official dealers throughout Malaysia, and this is an important benchmark for owning an electric car without worrying about after-purchase support.