BYD SEALION 7 review
The SEALION 7, a sporty coupé-like SUV, is another feather for BYD’s impressive cap. It offers loads of interior space, solid range and performance, and despite its aquatic name, is very good on land. Since BYD calls itself a tech-first brand first, it’s also packed with impressive features. But what’s it like to drive? Read our full BYD SEALION 7 review to find out.
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Pros
- 312-mile range
- Supple ride quality
- Impressive tech
Cons
- Lacks steering feedback
- Narrow rear window
Interior
Our rating: 9/10
Driving position
While BYD calls this an SUV, we think it’s more of a coupé SUV like the Porsche Macan Electric, which means you sit high up on the road but with a smaller car feel.
There’s lots of adjustment in the seat and steering wheel, too, so it’s easy to find your desired driving position quickly.
Speaking of the seats, as well as being cooled and heated, they’re sculpted to fit most body types and feel supportive yet comfortable for those longer motorway journeys.
The A-pillars and C-pillars are quite chunky (for safety reasons, we presume), but thankfully, they aren’t too intrusive.
And, due to a short bonnet and sloped windscreen, the car wraps around you and it doesn’t feel as long (4,830mm) as it is, making parking a doddle.
Tech and features
BYD is a self-confessed technology-first company and puts gadgets first, cars second. This doesn’t always work out, but in BYD’s case, it’s worked wonders.
The interior is designed slightly differently from the brand’s other models, but the all-important 15.6-inch central rotating touchscreen remains.
Featuring an all-new chip (a Qualcomm 8155 for you tech fans), this system is faster and crisper than ever before. Of course, the system is also easy to use and full of customisation.
You also get wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, but like with the SEAL U, only be used when the screen is in landscape mode.
While your phone’s connected, you can pop it on one of the two cooled wireless phone chargers to make sure it doesn’t overheat or slide around.
Enjoy your tunes through the 12-speaker Dynaudio sound system, which comes as standard on all models. It offers punchy bass and impressive volume, as you’d expect from the prestigious Danish audio brand.
More functional tech includes BYD’s crisp 360-degree camera system.
Overall, the interior is top quality, with plush vegan leather, metal and a class-leading 2.1-square metre sunroof (i.e. it’s huge) letting loads of light in.
It’s a really nice place to be – a proper rival to the likes of Porsche and the Tesla Model Y.
Performance
Our rating: 8/10
Electric motors and power
There are three different BYD SEALION 7 models you can pick from.
The lineup starts with the rear-wheel drive Comfort trim with 313hp, a 0-62mph time of 6.7 seconds and a top speed of 133mph.
The other two trims – Design and Excellence – have all-wheel drive as standard. This means there’s a motor on each axle, providing 530hp and a 0-62mph time of 4.5 seconds (which explains the ‘4.5s’ badge on the boot).
BYD offers a few different drive modes including Normal, Eco, Mud and Sport. There’s a noticeable difference between them, with Normal being best for daily driving, and Sport being great if you want some more fun (safely) on the road.
Fun fact: the SEALION 7’s rear motor can run at up to 23,000rpm, making it the world’s fastest electric motor in mass production. This helps it accelerate and reach high top speeds for an EV.
Despite all this, the regenerative braking lets the SEALION 7 down a bit. Even in its strongest setting, it just isn’t on par with most other EVs today and is too weak for proper one-pedal driving.
Our test car was the mid-spec Design trim, which is the car we’d recommend for most people, offering all the features you’d need and punchy performance without pushing the purchase price too high.
Handling and ride comfort
Out on the open road, the BYD SEALION 7 feels really good. Something the SEAL U suffered from was numb steering, and it’s more or less the same in the SEALION 7, though it’s not too bad for an EV.
You feel the weight transfer nicely when cornering, and it certainly handles much better than the larger SEAL U.
On a faster A-road, the SEALION 7 feels composed and soaks up any bumps in the road well, even when sporting large 20-inch alloy wheels.
This is made even better by minimal road and wind noise entering the cabin, which can easily be drowned out by your music anyway.
Practicality
Our rating: 8/10
Boot space
The SEALION 7 gets a 520-litre boot, which has deep under-floor storage. This is smaller than the Tesla Model Y’s giant 854-litre boot space, but it’s still plenty for most people.
Plus, if you need more space, fold the rear seats to unlock 1,789 litres.
You also get an extra 58 litres of space in the front boot (froot) – is ideal for storing charge cables or an overnight bag.
Rear seats
Despite its sloping roofline, the SEALION 7 offers loads of rear-seat space, so it’s comfortable for taller passengers, even with the sunroof.
Both head and legroom are brilliant, and thanks to a flat floor, there’s a genuinely usable middle seat.
Rear-seat passengers also get two USB-C charge ports and heated outer seats for extra comfort on longer journeys.
Storage solutions
BYD is proud to offer more than 20 cubby holes for storing smaller items, these include seat-back pockets (three on each side) for iPads and phones – or maps and magazines if you’re old school.
Plus, there’s a decent-sized glovebox, lots of central storage and decent-ish door bins for bottles.
Safety
As with all new cars, the SEALION 7 comes with loads of driver assistance features, some of which are very... persistent. The driver attention awareness noise is so sensitive that even looking at your on-screen maps will trigger it.
It also gets features such as traffic-sign recognition, intelligent speed-limit control, cross-traffic alert and braking, and automatic emergency braking – we could go on. It’s safe to say it has it all.
Plus, you get 11 airbags and rear-seat ISOFIX mounting points for the little ones.
Running costs
Our rating: 8/10
Range and charging times
If you’re buying an electric car, range and charging times are probably pretty important to you.
There are two different battery sizes available in a SEALION 7, with Comfort and Design trims getting the same 82.5 kWh battery. The top-spec Excellence comes with the larger 91.3kWh one.
This means the range rises as you move up the range: Comfort with 283 miles, Design with 300 miles and the Excellence with 312 miles.
While this does lag behind rivals from Tesla and Peugeot, which get close to 400 miles, it offers fast charging to make up for it.
All SEALION 7s can charge at 11kW AC speeds (above most car’s 7kW), and up to 230kW DC rapid charging speeds, giving you 10-80% battery in 24 minutes.
Reliability
Being electric, a BYD SEALION 7 is almost always going to be more reliable than an internal combustion engine because it has fewer moving parts that could fail.
Up until now, BYD has had solid reliability since it launched its 2023 launch in the UK.
It also offers an impressive warranty on the SEALION 7 at six years/93,750 miles and eight years for the battery pack.
The verdict
Interior
9/10
Performance
8/10
Practicality
8/10
Running costs
8/10
The BYD SEALION 7 is one of the most promising electric cars we’ve ever driven. With a superb ride, impressive performance and a high-quality cabin, it gives something for its rivals to worry about.
While it may not be as cheap as some other BYDs, with a starting price of £46,990, it still gives you an awful lot for your money.
We’d suggest most go with the mid-spec Design trim, which gets all the features you’d need and 300 miles of range, without spending £7,000 more on the top-spec car.
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