First Drive: BYD’s Dolphin becomes even more tempting with lower-price Active model

What is it?

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BYD is striding its way to the top of the EV charts. A relative unknown in the UK a few years ago, it now has a large presence here – helped no end through collaboration with some big-name dealer partners – and is only looking to further this in the future.

Backed by some serious know-how in the EV battery segment, BYD now has a wide range of vehicles. This car – the Dolphin – is its most popular among retail customers and with the introduction of a new lower-cost Active model, it could become an even stronger choice for buyers. We’ve been finding out if this lower price brings any cutbacks in quality by testing it here in the UK.

What’s new?

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At £26,195, the BYD Dolphin Active’s price is competitive. Sure, it’s not as low as cars like the recently introduced Dacia Spring which starts at just under £15,000, but the Dolphin does offer far more range than the dinky Dacia. Plus, as we’ve come to expect from BYD, the Dolphin comes loaded with equipment to make it an even stronger proposition for value-orientated buyers.

As we touched upon, BYD started off as a battery technology firm, which is why it has got an edge over the competitors in terms of its energy sources. The Blade battery, which you’ll find aboard the Dolphin, is free from cobalt and features a higher power density. Essentially, this means that a lighter battery can deliver more range and capacity than a ‘traditional’ one. That’s the theory, anyway.

What’s under the bonnet?

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At the heart of the Dolphin Active is a lightweight 44.9kWh battery and with this, BYD claims that you should get up to 211 miles of range from a single charge. It’s combined with a 94bhp electric motor powering the front wheels and though that’s hardly the most potent setup, it’s one of the reasons why the Active can extract over 200 miles of range from a relatively small battery.

When it comes to charging, BYD states that when you’ve hooked the Dolphin up to a speedy 100kW charger then a 30 to 80 per cent top-up will take 28 minutes. However, the Active can only charge at a maximum of 65kW, which is quite slow by modern standards.

What’s it like to drive?

The driving experience in the Dolphin is unflustered and easy-going, so it’s a great first port of call for motorists new to the world of electric vehicles. While the performance is hardly scintillating, there’s enough punch to get up to speed in good enough time while the ride quality is, for the most part, good. The Dolphin occasionally struggles with larger bumps and imperfections in the road, but smaller issues do little to unsettle.

Forward visibility is impaired considerably by the large, van-like forward pillars and this does make approaching a new area of road – a roundabout, for example – more difficult than it needs to be. However, with its compact dimensions and well-sized door mirrors the Dolphin isn’t a tricky car to place and feels at home on the UK’s narrower local roads. There is a small amount of wind and road noise to contend with – as well as the tiniest of electric motor whines – but it is largely a quiet and comfortable place to be.

How does it look?

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Styling-wise the Dolphin has enough to keep things interesting without pushing the boat out too much and alienating those who’d rather not drive something wacky-looking. As with other BYD models, it has a reasonably understated appearance out on the road, though elements like the full-width light bar and angular side panels do enough to keep things fresh.

It adopts a reasonably traditional hatchback shape overall, in fact, though the ‘floating’ contrast roof does give it some added edge. We’re fans of the intricate wheel designs, too, while the car’s small shape overall means that it’ll prove easy to live with – particularly if you live in urban areas where space is at a premium.

What’s it like inside?

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Similar to the outside, the interior of the Dolphin follows a rather traditional path. However, because of the electric-optimised platform, there are some advances over your usual hatchback. For example, those sitting in the year get plenty of space thanks to a completely flat floor, while headroom is more than adequate for this size of car.

Up front, there are some harsher plastics to be found but they’re contrasted nicely by some squishy sections which do help to make things a little more upmarket. You also get a good deal of physical controls for features such as volume and fan speed and the main dials are clear and easy to read. At 345 litres the boot space isn’t bad, either, and though a lot of it is taken up by an underfloor section where you’ll store the charging cables. However, you can also fold down the rear seats and expand that space to 1,310 litres if you need to.

What’s the spec like?

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As we’ve touched upon, BYD has always aimed to deliver plenty of technology in its vehicles and the Dolphin Active is no different. Even at this entry-level grade, you get a large central screen which can be rotated portrait or landscape and though wireless Apple CarPlay is now included on the Dolphin – and impressively displays to the full edges of the screen – using this mirroring software stops you from being able to rotate the screen.

However, it’s only a minor niggle and the display’s responsiveness makes up for it. However, a small snag is that when using CarPlay you lose the shortcut keys for the heating and ventilation, making knocking the heat down a little more of a hassle than it needs to be. But with a full suite of safety assistance systems – including autonomous emergency braking, emergency lane keep assist and adaptive cruise control – the Dolphin does benefit from a full five stars in Euro NCAP tests, while an ISOFIX point on the front seats will prove very handy for parents.

Verdict

The BYD Dolphin in Active grade may not move the electric vehicle game on substantially, but what it does is finesse the formula. BYD vehicles are becoming a more common sight on the UK’s roads and, with more lower-price versions like this Active model arriving in the line-up, it’s only likely that they’ll spread further and wider.

More established rivals should certainly take note of the level of standard equipment available in the Dolphin, too, and it’s this which helps to make this BYD appear even more financially impressive.