BYD confirms Seal U’s starting price of £33,205

BYD’s new Seal U has gone on sale in the UK with a starting price of £33,205.

Arriving as the brand’s first plug-in hybrid, the Seal U combines a 1.5-litre petrol engine with a battery and electric motor to help deliver high levels of efficiency with the safety net of a combustion engine.

The petrol engine works to charge up the 18.3kWh battery – though it can also be topped up through regenerative braking – and means that the BYD Seal U can manage up to 49.7 miles of electric-only range. BYD says that when combined with the petrol engine, this allows the Seal U to travel for up to 671 miles when fully filled and charged. BYD says that a maximum 18kW charge rate could see the Seal U’s battery taken from 30 to 80 per cent in 35 minutes, too.

Vehicle-to-load technology is also included on the Seal U which allows users to power domestic devices via the car’s battery power.

The exterior of the Seal U incorporates an X-shaped ‘face’ and U-shaped headlights for a svelte, aerodynamic look. All versions come on 19-inch alloy wheels, too.

Inside, there are seats trimmed in Vegan-friendly leather fitted alongside full ambient lighting and a crystal ‘water-droplet’ gear selector. As with other BYD models, the Seal U’s 15.6-inch touchscreen can be rotated to show either portrait or landscape orientation while over-the-air updates ensure that it is always running the latest software.

Other standard features include a head-up display and intelligent voice control, as well as wireless smartphone charging and two USB points at the rear.

All cars come with a standard six-year or 93,750-mile warranty, while the battery is covered by an eight-year or 125,000-mile warranty on ‘at least’ 70 per cent of its original capacity.