Last week, The Driven reported on the reveal of the BYD’s upcoming sedan, the Seal, in New Zealand. Now, for the first time, two of the sleek, all-electric sedans have been spotted in Australia.
The new sighting was captured by Richard Allan, an EV enthusiast, and shared on Facebook. The vehicles were charging at a fast charging site in Horsham in Westen Victoria, approximately 300 km northwest of Melbourne.
Given these cars were at a fast charger, it was interesting to see the charge port location which is on the other side of the car compared to Tesla’s placement.
As these cars are charging, it’s likely that they are equipped with a CCS port for charging in Australia and New Zealand.
It’s also the first time, we have seen a White BYD Seal which in the lighting looks more silvery as is the case with the Atto 3’s in white.
This white car has what appear to be lower-spec wheels compared to those spotted on the blue car being tested in Australia in the last couple of sightings.
This is likely to be a rear-wheel-drive variant (RWD) which is likely to arrive alongside the all-wheel-drive (AWD) Performance variant.
The RWD variant in other markets is offered with two battery packs. First is the 61.4 kWh battery pack that can deliver over 450 km of the estimated WLTP range.
There is also a long-range RWD variant which is equipped with 82.5 kWh battery pack. This variant has an estimated WLTP range of up to 570km.
Similarly, the Performace variant has a larger battery pack too but given its AWD power train, the range is expected to be closer to 520 km on the WLTP cycle.
Earlier this month, the blue car was also spotted in Victoria with bigger more angular wheels which are similar to the Performance wheels seen in the car revealed in New Zealand last week.
Since then, a video was taken by an EV enthusiast and a reader of The Driven, Adrian, showcasing the Seal’s premium AWD interior and comparison with the currently available Atto 3.
It’s good to see the Seal making headway in testing for the Australian market.
With specs in New Zealand looking similar to those available in its home market of China, it’s likely to be what Australian buyers can expect when the car is revealed for our local market.
Riz is the founder of carloop based in Melbourne, specialising in Australian EV data, insight reports and trends. He is a mechanical engineer who spent the first 7 years of his career building transport infrastructure before starting carloop. He has a passion for cars, particularly EVs and wants to help reduce transport emissions in Australia. He currently drives a red Tesla Model 3.