Likes:
The “super hybrid” system is very efficient. Incredible range & economy.
Plenty of standard kit.
Roomy and practical. Ideal for families.
Dislikes:
Tyre roar on coarse tarmac.
A firm overly rigid ride quality.
Bland to look at and equally so to drive.
Road tested By Hugh Maguire.
Is the BYD Sealion 5 the answer to range anxiety? With a claimed range of over 1,000 km using its hybrid system it’s one of the more talked about new SUV’s in Ireland right now.
To date BYD have become primarily known for their rapidly expanding range of EV’s. Their EV’s have generally been very well received here in Ireland. Their cars are innovative, generally well designed and well executed.
However realising that EV’s are not proving as popular as had been anticipated BYD quickly changed course and now have started to introduce a range of new models that are hybrid. Now when we think of hybrid naturally we think of the traditional plug-in-hybrid (PHEV) which allows drivers to charge a battery and maybe get about 50 to 90 km (depending on the brand) of electric range. Then once the battery is depleted you need to plug in again. The other version of hybrid is like that of many Toyota’s cars which are effectively self charging hybrids that you never plug in. These have proven to be a great compromise but they still run on petrol power more than pure electric. So what if you had a car that was designed to run on electric power as much as possible, but you can plug it in to fill the battery but even if you don’t the engine works as a generator to charge a battery. In effect a car that drives like an EV most of the time but to give you range the engine is charging the battery when necessary. In other words the electric motor and battery are primary power while the 1.5 litre petrol is secondary. Two trim levels are available Comfort and Design. The car on test here is the Design version.
Prices start at €36,990 for Comfort and €40,990 for the Design model.
I started this review with the car showing a very impressive range of 1005 km. Lets see if the reality lived up to the promise?
So how does it look?
It’s least attractive view is looking directly rear on. The car looks somewhat ungainly from some angles. The overall design just does not stand out in the same way a Hyundai Tucson or Kia Sportage does for example. So in my opinion its rather forgetable. BYD have done better than this for example in the Sealion 7.
What’s it like inside?
Things improve dramatically when you slip inside. Initial impressions are of a well finished, well designed and indeed attractive interior. Yes it suffers from the same theme repeated in almost every new car from China of a huge central touchscreen and smaller driver display.
The main screen menus are reasonably good but not as intuitive as some European rivals while the smaller drivers display can feel cluttered with rather small hard to read digital data for some functions. It is good to see quite a few physical buttons for a number of functions placed neatly in the centre console while the design of the metal effect knurled switchgear looks premium.
The one piece electrically adjustable heated front seats look and feel very comfortable and there is lots of head and legroom both front and rear.
The fit and feel of everything is very good too. The upholstery (faux leather) looks luxurious. Overall then the interior is really roomy, and is superbly equipped as standard. A decent size boot accessed via the electric rear tailgate completes the package.
What’s under the bonnet?
BYD’s own in house engineered highly efficient 1.5 litre petrol, and an electric motor powered by an 18.3 kWh battery. Drive is to the front wheels. From a full battery up to 86 km range is claimed, I got 71 km which is excellent. However the really clever thing here is that the engine acts as a generator constantly recharging the battery thus you are really never at zero electric range. On some trips up 30km of range was put back in the battery without plugging in. No wonder BYD call it a “Super Hybrid”. Without doubt this is the most efficient PHEV I have ever tested. I returned a fuel consumption of just 5.4 litres per 100k and it will do the claimed 1,016 km range between charging and refuels. Excellent!
How does it drive?
The new Sealion 5 is generally quiet and refined. Slam your foot down for rapid acceleration though and the engine suddenly kicks in and does sound like its revving harshly. However for the most part it is truly excellent at doing as designed. That is to say it really runs on pure electric power for a vast percentage of driving time and slips seamlessly between both.
Basically the engine really only becomes part of the propulsion when on motorways (even then its in combination with the electric motor reducing fuel consumption) or if it kicks in to recharge the battery. The handling is somewhat dull and the steering a bit lifeless but frankly most who buy a car like this probably don’t care. I did find the ride rather firm, indeed unduly so at times. Noise levels are generally low except for some tyre roar on more coarse road surfaces.
Hugh’s Verdict.
The new Sealion 5 Super Hybrid is a very clever idea. You can plug in but could in fact just drive forever without having to and yet get the fuel savings of electric only driving. However to really maximise the clever engineering plugging in where possible is the most efficient way to own this car. In short it scores hugely over a traditional plug-in-hybrid as the battery never fully depletes so you always have electric propulsion with the benefits of the fuel savings that brings. Range is a non issue as the engine keeps the battery charged no matter what. In my opinion this is what gives this new BYD a huge advantage over other hybrid rivals. It is in this respect the benchmark hybrid for value and efficiency!