BYD Seal arrives in Australia – officially
All-new mid-size electric sedan attracts over 10,000 expressions of interest but isn’t a Tesla Model 3 rival, says BYDThe much-anticipated 2023 BYD Seal has been officially launched in Australia, where the Chinese EV brand says more than 10,000 people have asked for additional details ahead of first customer deliveries in late 2023.
Australian pricing has not yet been announced, but while the BYD Seal will no doubt compete with the Tesla Model 3 locally, as it does globally, BYD Australia says the popular US electric sedan is not the prime target.
“We’re not competing against Tesla,” said BYD Australia managing director Luke Todd at today’s opening of the brand’s new Megastore not far from Sydney Airport.
“They’re in their own lane, we’re in our own lane. We actually believe our main competition is the mainstream automotive industry.”
That’s a big call given the Model 3 has muscled its way to being Australia’s top-selling passenger car, and is currently the EV so many brands are quietly trying to tackle.
But Todd nominated traditional car-makers and internal combustion engines as the main target for the Seal. And he said in the EV space the focus was beyond Tesla.
“Those early adopters, the majority of them have now bought an EV,” said Todd, suggesting the real opportunity was tempting people out of cars powered by an internal combustion engine (ICE),” he said.
“A lot of people cross-shop… it’s not just Tesla.”
Either way, Todd acknowledges the EV fringe benefits tax exemption as being an enormous tempter for those who can take out a novated lease through their workplace.
While BYD Australia is saying only that the Seal will “have a very competitive price”, it’s clear it needs to be priced somewhere near the Model 3, which sells from $61,900 plus on-road costs.
“We know what price we’ll be at,” said Todd. “I already know the price of the Seal, but we just can’t announce it yet.”
In many overseas markets the Seal undercuts the Model 3 and Todd pointed out that Australian BYD pricing is the most competitive in the world. All of which suggests it should come in under the Tesla.
Todd did confirm it would be offered as a generously equipped single-motor rear-wheel drive variant and in a more lavishly appointed dual-motor all-wheel drive grade.
The car we saw at the launch event in Sydney was a black dual-motor with leather trim, 19-inch alloy wheels and a high level of standard features.
According to Todd, the online buzz around the Seal has already led to loads of interest in Australia, where a camouflaged 390kW dual-motor version of the sedan and even its SUV sister model, the Seal U, have been spotted recently.
“Our enquiry level for the Seal is off the charts,” he said, adding that more than 10,000 people had asked for more information.
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