BYD DOLPHIN SURF

In China it costs £7500. Can BYD's export-market value EV cut it here?

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The BYD Seagull is the car that made waves when it arrived in its maker's native domestic market in 2023 as one of the very cheapest EVs in the world.

As far as European buyers are concerned - and a little regrettably, perhaps - it will be known as the BYD Dolphin Surf, but it is nonetheless essentially the same car, and it stands ready to add to the burgeoning value-EV ranks.

It brings with it BYD's expertise on battery and motor technology and an entry price that undercuts most of its European competitors. Can China's renowned global 'new energy' specialist use all of that experience to do more with less?

DESIGN & ENGINEERING

PROS Fairly light; right-sized for the growth segment of the moment; competitive on-paper performance and range CONS Lacks the design star quality of key rivals

At 3990mm long, the Dolphin Surf is sized like a Citroën ë-C3 or Renault 5. What muddies the water - not in a bad way - is the car's sub-£19k entry price, which positions it just as close to A- and B-segment EVs such as the Dacia Spring and Leapmotor T03.

It comes with a choice of two LFP drive battery packs: 30kWh in the case of the Active base model or 43.2kWh in either of the others.

Both are BYD's own 'Blade' pack, which, it says, adds torsional rigidity to the chassis under the cabin floor and is among the safest and most impact-resistant designs on the market.