What next from BYD? Three more products coming to South Africa

Its local operations still on a comparatively small scale compared to rivals GWM Haval and Chery with its Jetour, Omoda and Jaecoo sub-brands, BYD has started teasing three more products due to arrive in South Africa this year.

While the post on its website doesn’t reveal any powertrain, specification or date-of-launch details, the depicted models are confirmed as two plug-in hybrids and one EV in the respective forms of the Shark bakkie, the Sealion 6 SUV and coupe-SUV styled Sealion 7.

Set to join the all-electric range currently consisting of the Atto 3, Dolphin and Seal, all but the Sealion 6 forms part of BYD’s so-called Ocean range, while the former, known as the Song Plus in China, comes from the Dynasty range.

Shark

Seemingly the first to arrive, the Shark will become South Africa’s first plug-in hybrid bakkie as sales of the locally made Ford Ranger PHEV, for now, hasn’t been approved for local market consumption.

Measuring 5 457 mm long, 1 971 mm wide and 1 925 mm tall while riding on a 3 260 mm long wheelbase, the Shark has a claimed tow rating of 2 500 kg, and while no ground clearance was announced at its world launch in Mexico last year, BYD did confirm a payload of 835 kg.

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Offered solely as a double cab, the Shark sports BYD’s Dual Mode Offroad powertrain consisting of a 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol and its 29.5-kWh Blade design lithium phosphate battery pack powering a 150kW/340Nm electric motor.

Combined with the petrol’s 170kW/310Nm, the setup produces 320kW/650Nm, which BYD claims will propel the Shark from 0-100 km/h in 5.7 seconds.

Supporting AC charging up to 40 kW, the claimed all-electric range is 100 km, with the combined being 840 km.

Down Under, pricing starts at $57 800 (R670 569) for the solitary Premium variant that comes standard with all-wheel-drive.

For the moment, details about the South African variant remains unknown, though as with the Australian version, it will undercut comparative versions of the Toyota Hilux, Ford Ranger and Isuzu D-Max on price.

Sealion 6

On-sale since 2020 as the Song Plus in China, the Sealion 6 underwent its first mid-life update in 2023 that saw it adopt the same frontal appearance as the Seal.

Named Seal U and now Sealion 6 in export markets, the five-seat Sealion 6 measures 4 775 mm long, 1 890 mm wide and 1 670 mm tall, with its wheelbase stretching 2 765 mm.

Offering between 425 and 1 440-litres of boot space, the range sports a plethora of conventional petrol and plug-in hybrid engines in China, but under the Song Plus name only.

Instead, Seal U and Sealion 6 badged versions are marketed solely with a plug-in hybrid powertrain modelled around BYD’s in-house developed 1.5-litre petrol engine.

As in Australia, South Africa could offer both options, the first involving the unit being paired with an 18.3-kWh Blade battery pack driving a single 145kW/300Nm electric motor.

Combined with the 72kW/122Nm petrol, the setup produces 160kW/300Nm, allowing for an EV-only range of 92 km, 0-100 km/h in 8.5 seconds and a combined distance of 1 092 km.

For the second option, the combustion engine receives a turbocharger that lifts its outputs to 96kW/220Nm.

Incorporating a second electric producing 120kW/250Nm, the dual-motor, all-wheel-drive Sealion 6 outputs 238kW/550Nm.

Unsurprisingly, the claimed EV range drops to 81 km, the combined to 961 km and the 0-100 km/h sprint time to 5.9 seconds.

On-sale in Australia since late last month, pricing starts at $42 990 (R498 778) and ends at $52 990 (R614 800) for the dual-motor variant marketed as the Premium.

As with the Shark, exact details for the South African model aren’t known at present.

Sealion 7

The newest product as it only debuted last year solely as an EV, the Sealion 7, sports a lowered roofline and fastback rear facia, along with dimensional differences compared to the Sealion 6.

This involves an overall length of 4 830 mm, width of 1 925 mm, height of 1 620 mm and wheelbase stretching 2 930 mm. The claimed boot capacity is 500-litres.

Launched in Australia on Tuesday (12 February), the initial two-model range both derive motivation from an 82.5-kWh Blade battery pack with a choice of single or dual electric motors.

For the former, outputs are 230kW/380Nm and the claimed range 482 km. According to BYD, the single motor Sealion 7 will get from 0-100 km/h in 6.7 seconds.

With the inclusion of a second electric on the front axle, thus making it all-wheel-drive, the dual-motor Sealion 6 offers-up 390kW/690Nm, resulting in it getting from 0-100 km/h in 4.3 seconds and requiring a charge after 456 km.

Priced between $54 990 (R638 004) and $63 990 (R742 424) in Australia, final specification for South Africa remains outstanding and will only be announced at a later stage.

Additional information is from carexpert.com.au, BYD Australia, and BYD South Africa.

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