2025 BYD Sealion 7 confirmed for Australia next year
10/12/2024 01:00 PM
BYD’s hotly-anticipated Tesla Model Y competitor now has a confirmed release date, but prices are yet to be announced.
The 2025 BYD Sealion 7 is due in Australia early next year, it has been confirmed – after months of speculation about its launch window – to take on the popular Tesla Model Y.
The Sealion 7 is the SUV counterpart to the Seal sedan, and unlike the plug-in hybrid Sealion 6 recently launched in Australia, it is fully electric.
It will compete with the Tesla Model Y, Xpeng G6, Kia EV5 and other models in what is quickly becoming one of Australia’s most hotly-contested new-vehicle market segments: mid-size electric SUVs.
A representative for BYD’s Australian importer EVDirect told Drive earlier this month “we are working towards a launch [in] early 2025.”
Prices are yet to be confirmed, but to challenge the Model Y, it will need to start from about $55,000 plus on-road costs – about $5000 more than the cheapest Seal sedan.
Sealion 7 prototypes have been spotted testing in Australia in recent months, alongside BYD’s plug-in hybrid Shark ute, which opens for orders locally on 29 October.
Sold in China as the Sea Lion 07, the BYD Sealion 7 is available in its home market with a choice of 71.8kWh or 80.6kWh battery packs.
Buyers have a choice of single-motor rear-wheel drive for up to 610km of claimed driving range in Chinese CLTC testing, or dual-motor all-wheel-drive for a 390kW power output and 0-100km/h in a claimed 4.2 seconds.
It measures 4830mm long, 1925mm wide and 1620mm tall, on a 2930mm wheelbase – 80mm longer nose to tail, 3mm wider, 4mm lower and 40mm longer between the wheels than a Model Y.
A 15.6-inch rotating touchscreen sits in the middle of the dashboard, alongside a 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster.
Available features include a 12-speaker Dynaudio sound system, leather seat upholstery, heated and ventilated front seats, 128-colour ambient interior lighting, and a panoramic sunroof.
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