BYD Seal

At the end of 2023 I sold my Volkswagen Passat that I'd driven for six years. I hesitated for a long time between the Seal, Xpeng P7i, and Tesla Model 3. Test drove them four or five times. In the end I chose the Seal for two reasons: rear seat space is noticeably bigger than the Model 3, and the Blade Battery gave me slightly more peace of mind about safety.

The day I picked up the car I specifically brought a tape measure. The distance from the rear seat cushion to the front seat backrest measured 78 centimeters. I had previously measured the Model 3 at 71 centimeters. This 7-centimeter difference is very noticeable when you sit in it.

Blade Battery capacity is 82.56kWh. I recorded charging data over the past eight months. In summer the ratio of displayed range to actual range is roughly 1:0.85. In winter it drops to 1:0.68. Those few days at the end of December last year when Beijing temperature dropped to minus 10 Celsius, full charge showed 650 kilometers, actually drove less than 440 kilometers.

I installed a 7kW charger at home. Charging from 20% to 90% takes about 7 and a half hours. Used 120kW fast chargers at highway service areas three times, 30% to 80% took 28 minutes, 31 minutes, and 34 minutes respectively. The difference might be related to battery temperature.

Chassis is double wishbone front, five-link rear. Suspension tuning is on the firm side. The entrance to my apartment complex's underground garage has a section with very dense speed bumps. Rear passengers get noticeably jostled going over them. I later found a pattern: passing at 15-18 km/h is more comfortable than going slower or faster.

I'm personally quite satisfied with the steering feel. Very little play in the steering wheel, car nose responds quickly when changing lanes at highway speeds. Once I drove over 100 kilometers on mountain roads near Zhangjiakou, the handling through continuous curves made me feel this car's sporty orientation is well-deserved.

Wind noise and tire noise isolation is good below 100 km/h. Above 120 km/h, wind noise starts seeping in near the A-pillar. This car came with Continental EC6 tires, 235/45 R19. At 16,000 kilometers I switched to Michelin PS4. Tire noise improvement wasn't significant, but grip improvement was quite noticeable.

This car's driver assistance is BYD's self-developed system. Hardware is 5 millimeter-wave radars, 12 ultrasonic radars, 1 front-facing camera. No lidar.

On highways I frequently use ACC adaptive cruise plus lane keeping. Performance is stable where lane markings are clear, following distance and braking timing are both reasonable. When lane markings are unclear the system frequently alerts asking me to take over.

I don't really dare to use it on city roads. Once on the Third Ring Road the car ahead suddenly merged out, revealing a stationary traffic cone. The system didn't identify it in time, I braked myself. After that incident I just drive manually in the city.

This car's trunk space is 400 liters. Fitting two 20-inch carry-on suitcases is no problem. Rear seats fold down 40/60. With them folded I once moved a 1.8-meter curtain rod, it just fit.

The frunk is much smaller than Tesla's. I measured it, can only fit maybe one laptop bag.

Body dimensions are 4800mm × 1875mm × 1460mm, wheelbase 2920mm. Fits fine in my underground garage parking spot, doors can open fully. Some older residential complex parking spots would be tight.

I turn on seat ventilation every time I get in during summer. Takes about two to three minutes before you feel the cooling. Used seat heating a few times in winter, works fast.