Most affordable EV in Australia: BYD makes big splash with electric Dolphin

BYD has launched what is Australia’s most affordable EV with the launch of the new Dolphin, which is to be priced at $38,890 – some $100 cheaper than the entry level MG4 announced by its rival Chinese car maker earlier this week.

The news means that Australia will – for the first time – have two electric cars priced under $40,000  (plus on road costs but before rebates).

It also means that the Australian EV market, which has already more than doubled so far in 2023, is entering a new phase – on pricing and on competition. And that’s fantastic news for EV buyers.

The pricing announcement on Thursday comes ten days after BYD opened registrations of interest for what was dubbed by the car company then as the most affordable electric car to hit the Australian market. 

This has now come true, although it is suspected that BYD had to drop its planned asking price following the cheeky, pre-emptive move by MG earlier this week.

The $38,890 price tag will be for the Dynamic variant,  which  is expected to be eligible for most state and territory subsidies aside from those in Victoria which end by the end of June.

The Dynamic variant will also come with a 44.9 kWh BYD Blade battery and 340 kms of range. This variant is equipped with 16-inch wheels.

The Dynamic variant now undercuts the MG4’s Excite variant which was announced just earlier this week, and it is also  loaded with safety features that are standard across both models. These include:

• Front airbags – driver & front passenger
• Side airbags – driver & front passenger
• Side curtain airbags – front & rear
• Far-side airbags – driver
• Auto hold
• Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC)
• Automatic Emergency Braking System (AEB)
• Lane Departure Warning (LDW)
• Lane Keeping Support（LKS)
• Traffic Sign Recognition (TSR)
• Intelligent Cruise Control（ICC)
• Front Collision Warning (FCW)
• Rear Collision Warning (RCW）
• Blind Spot Detection (BSD)
• Rear Cross Traffic Alert (RCTA)
• Rear Cross Traffic Brake (RCTB)
• Front Cross Traffic Alert（FCTA)
• Front Cross Traffic Brake (FCTB)
• Lane Departure Assist (LDA)
• Emergency Lane Keeping Assist (ELKA)
• Lane Change Collision Warning (LCW)

Many of the safety features in this electric hatchback are those seen in much more premium vehicles which are great to see at this price point.

The new Dolphin also offers fast charging with speeds dependent on the variant. The Dynamic variant can charge up to 60 kW with its 44.9 kWh battery.

The Dynamic variant will be offered with a 70 kW of power and 180 Nm of Torque. It can also go from 0-100 km/h in 12.3 seconds, which is modest but perfectly fine for a city car.

Dimensions-wise, the Dolphin is longer than the MG4. The length, width and height of the Dolphin are:

• 4,290 mm in length
• 1,770 mm in width
• 1,570  mm in height

That’s fairly good when compared to other hatchbacks in the market. Given EVs are more efficient when it comes to interior space, it’s expected that the Dolphin will be spacier. 

The ground clearance of both variants is 130 mm.

Staying on the inside, the Dolphin offers a 12.8-inch rotating infotainment screen that offers Apple Carplay. If the screen on the Dolphin is similar to the one on BYD’s larger Atto 3 SUV, it’d be quite well received by prospective buyers.

For the Dynamic model, it is available in four single-tone colours:

• Sand White
• Maldive Purple
• Urban Grey
• Coral Pink

Source: Riz Akhtar

The Dolphin is earmarked for a release date later this year. Prospective buyers can register their interest in the Dolphin electric hatchback on BYD’s website. We look forward to testing this in person when the first cars arrive in the country later this year.

Smaller EVs are a significant segment of the car market and for Australia’s transition to EVs. It has previously lacked options for electric hatchbacks and in recent months a few announcements have changed that. 

This latest announcement puts electric hatchbacks in the spotlight and will make EVs accessible for thousands of Australians in the coming months. That would help many more Australians switch to an EV and never look back.

More details on the BYD Dolphin will be released at the formal launch tonight at the Gold Coast