BYD Seal India review: Still want that luxury sedan?

If the letters B, Y, D don’t immediately strike a chord with you, that’s okay. They stand for Build Your Dreams and are the name of a Chinese car brand whose India presence has been limited at best. But what if we told you that for a time last year, they sold more EVs than Tesla, and that if you combine EVs and PHEVs, they’re number one in the world? Moreover, their blade cell LFP batteries are regarded to be the best around, and are used by numerous other carmakers, including, very soon, Mahindra.

But back to India, and progress has not been brisk. The E6 was a forgettable MPV that until recently was only available as a taxi, while the far more capable Atto 3, unfortunately, gets lost in a sea of similar-sized electric crossovers. This new offering, the Seal, might be the one to make you sit up and take notice, however. It’s a premium executive sedan with a really attractive price tag and no direct rivals in India for the moment, which means it has a slice of the market all to itself. But as you’ll soon read, that’s not the only reason it has immense potential.

It may not have rivals here, but globally, the Seal is a challenger to the Tesla Model 3, and it's easy to see that in its similar dimensions and appearance. For better context, its 4,800mm length and 2,920mm wheelbase are near identical to those of the long-wheelbase BMW 3 Series, and that should give you an idea of the buyers it’s aimed at.

Its 145mm of ground clearance might sound like cause for concern, and while you should be careful over bigger speed breakers, in our day of testing it didn’t make contact even once. And what electric sedans lack in ground clearance, they make up for with aerodynamic efficiency, which has a huge impact on an EV’s range. With its sleek shape and flush door handles, the Seal has a 0.219 coefficient of drag (a Mercedes EQS, the second-slipperiest car in the world, is 0.202).

Its focus on aero hasn’t come at the cost of design, however, as this ‘ocean inspired’ sedan has a lot of interesting features. The LED DRLs in the black panels on the front bumper are meant to resemble ripples in water, and there are discreet lines across the bonnet and sides, smart 19-inch aero-efficient alloys, and black-ridged side skirts under the doors. The curved roofline ends in a high boot deck, with organic connected LED tail-lamps and a surprisingly sporty rear diffuser. The tight gaps in the wheel arches help give it a purposeful stance, and though somewhat understated, it’s a very elegant shape. It's available in four colours – Atlantis Grey, Aurora White, Cosmos Black and Arctic Blue.