In the superhero world, great power comes with great responsibility. In the automotive world though, great power comes at a cost. Either you’re sacrificing fuel efficiency, or that car has a high price. BYD has a different belief though as they proved to us that both can be had in the same car.
BYD took us for a drive to what we called the Western Luzon Loop with the BYD Seal 5 DM-i. We started at Ayala Malls Manila Bay and then went to Pangasinan, down to Zambales, and headed for Subic. Then we went to the east side of Zambales and Bataan, going as low as Mariveles before going back up to Subic, then back to Manila Bay. Unlike other drives though, this wasn’t meant to flaunt the top-of-the-line model. We also didn’t alternate between the two variants of the Seal 5. Instead, BYD had us experience the entry level Dynamic trim.
At P 948,000, the Seal 5 DM-i Dynamic is P 250,000 cheaper than the Premium trim. BYD is positioning this for first time car buyers, or those looking for a fleet vehicle. They were able to reach that price point by taking away some components from the Premium trim. It has less EV-only range, a bit less power, a smaller battery, has a rear camera only, no power folding mirrors, no puddle lamps, no powered driver’s seat, comes with a single-zone automatic climate control only, two less speakers, no wireless charger, and no sunroof. When all is said and done, can the Seal 5 DM-i Dynamic be a formidable force in the sedan segment?
Exterior styling is very subjective. I say the Seal 5 looks good, but some will probably not like the whisker-esque look of the front end. The rear is undeniably handsome though especially with that slim red light running across the trunk.
Where the Seal 5 really trumps the competition is in the cabin. Its rivals can only hope to have even half of the interior appointments of the Seal 5. The dashboard has a soft-touch upper material, a gloss accent at the middle, and a harder surface at the bottom. Different textures that look and feel cohesive despite their differences.
It may be the base model but it still has appointments unique in the segment. There’s a digital gauge cluster, rotating 12.8-inch touchscreen, as well as rear air vents. Combine those with the two-tone leather upholstery, the two-piece bucket-type seats, rotary shifter, and you’ll have to remind yourself of its price. I, for one, got irritated a couple of times when it was my time to drive the Seal 5, and I saw it had no powered driver’s seat. I was treating it like a premium sedan, when its price tag is less, way less than most sub-compact sedans.
The hybrid system of the Seal 5 Dynamic made it more powerful than its class rivals, even with the slight setback when compared to the Premium variant. This one has 179 horsepower and 316 Nm of torque against the Premium’s 197 horsepower and 325 Nm. Those are far ahead of the Vios, City, and even the electrified Altis and Civic. Not even the old “torque king,” the diesel Hyundai Accent can match those figures. Thanks to that electric motor, Seal 5’s torque will hit you nicely when you floor the throttle. Even overtakes on uphill roads are a cinch.
The Seal 5 may have that ‘daily driver’ vibe but once you’re on mountain passes, its driving prowess shines bright. The steering is light (the material also feels so good for its price), but the precision is just insane. It doesn’t matter if it’s a wide or tight turn—there’s no correction needed. It’s that precise, for as long as you judged the corner correctly.
There’s also the body roll, or lack of it. I thought the Sealion 6 crossover was already very planted on the roads, but this Seal 5 DM-i just took that to the next level. We’re looking at the cars in front of us and there’s minimal dip on either side when taking corners.
It’s also a delight over mediocre roads. The suspension has a lot of play and in our experience, even the heavy loaded cars didn’t bottom out despite a couple of pothole surprises. It also helped that the tires are thicker here than in the Dynamic trim, and that gave a nice cushion when going through those undesirable roads.
BYD may have gone beyond choosing between power and fuel efficiency but the Seal 5 is still not perfect. For one, the air coming from those rear vents is weak. I had to bring out my portable fan just to cool down in the backseat. If you increase the fan level, the front occupants would be cold while you at the back would only have it just right. This, I wager, could be easily solved with window tint (our unit had none).
Next is the noise level. Generally, the Seal 5 has a quiet cabin. Where you’ll notice the shortcoming is on the windows. As a driver and passenger, I can definitely hear the wind noise when we were on the highway even at only 85 km/h. Onto rural roads, you’ll near motorcycles coming from the opposite direction even if they’re two to three cars away. In traffic, you’ll be able to make out the engine noise emanating from the cars beside you, especially if they’re jeeps or trucks.
The P 948,000 price tag gets you far in both value and distance. It may not have ADAS, but it more than makes up for it with everything else. Fuel efficiency, power on tap, comfortable seats, and premium cabin amenities—the Seal 5 DM-i Dynamic sets the new benchmark for base models. For first-time car buyers, it represents an insanely high standard that other car companies will struggle to match. For companies looking for their next fleet of choice, it will likely earn the thumbs up from your employees. I only wish for BYD to apply for TNVS eligibility so that Grab and others can have this in their pool. I guess, you can’t have it all with the BYD Seal 5 DM-i Dynamic, but you can definitely have a lot.
Words and Photos by Vincent Villa
How good is BYD?
ReplyDeleteI think byd needs to push this car to more taxi operators and shared ride drivers. The more you see it in the real world abuse and punishment in the metro, people will have more confidence in the reliability. Most fleet buyers still prefer the vios for that reason alone not the specs.
ReplyDeleteThe Toyota Vios being a popular fleet car is more about repairability and access to it (i.e. mechanics). Many roadside mechanics won't even touch a Honda City or a Nissan Almera, but those very same mechanics will not turn away a Vios.
DeleteHow good are the motor engines of BYD? Since BYD is known for electric motors, would its ICE engine for PHEV in-house still or sourced from others?
ReplyDeleteSealion 6 planted on the roads? You must be joking
ReplyDeleteI have to respect what my writer says. However, I'll need to test drive the Seal 5 to find out for myself. Soon.
DeleteThat would be honest to do that because Filipinos, like Uly himself, are deeply committed to real life after all.
DeleteMaybe more planted vs mg5
DeleteThe BYD Atto 3 is more planted compared to the Sealion 6. No experience with the Seal 5 yet though, but I would assume it rides better than the Sealion 6 given that it's a sedan.
DeleteRemain to be seen if byd is good or just hype, byd selling well in china because of heavy subsidies and also china has very good EV infractures/chargers on the roads. Meanwhile Phil insurers and reinsurers association(PIRA) plan to double EV insurance premium vs ICE cars due to EV's inherent risk for repair and servicing. PIRA also mentioned that EV's very proned to flood damaged and battery replacement cost estimated at half the priced of EV car
ReplyDeleteI’m willing to bet that insurers have paid out more ICEV claims than EV claims on any dataset they may have. Even if we avarage the payouts to each unit of ICEV and EV insured, ICEVs would still have a higher average payout per unit compared to EVs.
DeleteThen you will probably lost, clearly insurers want to double premium for EV's because they will spend more for it. Another problem emerging in china is insurers hesitates to insures EV's 3 year olds and above or they charged very high premium specially those EV's approaching expired warranties.
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