The BYD Seagull is BRILLIANT and may come Down Under soon!

I traveled to China to drive the BYD Seagull; a compact electric city car that's taken China by storm - and if we want it bad enough, they'll bring it to New Zealand & Australia!

The Seagull (also known as the Dolphin Mini) has a funky and fresh exterior design while the interior is surprisingly spacious and well thought-out. In fact, out of all the vehicles we all drove over two days, the reviewers from both New Zealand an Australia collectively agreed that the Seagull was the absolute star of the show.

Its lightness and low centre of gravity make it much more fun than you'd expect when throwing it into corners while its ample rear space, amenities in the cockpit and no vibrations from an engine make it a pleasant place to be while zipping around in city traffic.
It's the sort of car which – if the price is right – could absolutely dominate the small EV market in both New Zealand and Australia, much like a Suzuki Swift or Toyota Aqua does now, but without all the fuel costs and servicing expenses.

In China, the BYD Seagull is currently available in two models:
Vitality which has a 30.8 kWh LFP battery offering up to 260 km range (WLTP)
Flight which has a 38.08 kWh LFP battery giving up to 344 km range (WLTP)

At present, discounts in China make the entry-level Vitality model available for just $10,000 NZD which is incredibly appealing for a new car, however if these cars do make it New Zealand the level of safety features expected by kiwi drivers will push these prices up – but no one knows for sure how much, so place your bets in the comments!

Both versions of the Seagull have the same 55 kW / 135 Nm electric motor driving the front wheels, giving it a 0-50 time of 5 seconds, ideal for city traffic. As for their charging speeds, the entry level Vitality trim has a maximum DC charging rate of 30 kW, while the Flight model can reach 40 kW. This means a rapid charge from 10-80% in either model would likely take around 45 minutes.

Things I love about the Seagull:
✔ It looks great and it's fun to drive
✔ Surprisingly nice interior
✔ Plenty of intelligent tech
✔ Affordable AND well-built

Things I don’t love:
✖ Cringe-inducing “Build Your Dreams” logo
✖ No USB or vents in the rear
✖ Rear seat doesn’t split
✖ Charging speed is slower than Jeremy Clarkson on a bicycle

The big picture:
• The Seagull is one of China's best-selling cars
• They built more than 200,000 in the first 7 months!
• It's heading to global markets like Europe, Brazil and Mexico – and here if you want it

So, if you’re also getting bored with oversized blandmobiles and you're after something electric, easy to park and actually fun to drive, the Seagull might just be the car you’ve been waiting for.

Got questions or comments? Write them down below!

Content:
00:00 – Intro from China
00:33 – Specs
01:25 – Exterior design
03:19 – Interior design
06:46 – Mafia test
08:49 – Slalom course

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