The future of the automotive industry in Europe is a bit shaky, but if one thing’s certain, even with new tariffs in place, importation of Chinese EVs will continue. This one could be the next big hit. Its called the BYD Sealion 7, it comes from China’s largest automaker, and it’s aimed directly at the Tesla Model Y. On paper, it has all the electromechanical ingredients an automaker looking to take on Tesla could possibly want, but zoom out a bit, and questions emerge about whether or not it has the X-factor to resonate with consumers on an emotional level. Let’s get into this.
The 2024 Paris Motor Show isn’t the first time we’ve seen this particular crossover, but it is the first time we’ve seen it in European trim. In fact, it’s already on sale in its native China as the Sea Lion 07, along with in Hong Kong as the Sealion 7. That ought to clear up any questions about pronunciation, right?
Under the skin of the BYD Sealion 7, you’ll find a structurally-integrated, made-in-house Blade battery pack with lithium iron phosphate chemistry. For Europe, it sports an enormous 91.6 kWh of capacity, and while range estimates aren’t out yet, it wouldn’t be surprising to see north of 300 miles on the lenient WLTP cycle, simply judging by vehicle class and battery pack size. Indeed, specs for the European model are fairly light, but we do know the battery pack can charge at 230 kW and the top-spec all-wheel-drive model can run from zero-to-62 mph in a claimed 4.5 seconds. That’s seriously rapid.
As for tech, European buyers will be able to experience a rotating 15.6-inch touchscreen infotainment system with properly slick-looking software, and an actual digital gauge cluster in front of the driver adds a tick-mark for the Sealion 7 in the fight against the Tesla Model Y. Oh, and all Sealion 7 examples feature a heat pump to increase both range and cabin comfort in cool weather. Nice.
So far, so promising. Aside from the slightly weird name, the BYD Sealion 7 seems like it has the bones to battle established EV crossovers in the European market like the Tesla Model Y, Hyundai Ioniq 5, and Volkswagen ID.4. There’s just one thing that might hold it back — the styling.
Let’s start with a few minor details that probably should’ve been cleaned up, but it’s too late now. The squared-off wheel arch trims clash with everything and necessitate squared-off character lines around the arch trims, which cause issues on their own. For instance, the charging port door has a distinct bend in it and looks like it doesn’t fit on the quarter panel, and the area where the front door meets the front fender is simply too busy. It could likely be salvaged by removing the unnecessary fender emblem, giving the character lines room to breathe, but if an element like that emblem detracts from the look of the car, why include it in the first place? Still, take away those issues, and it would actually look quite sharp.
Mind you, the bigger potential issue just how derivative the design is. The Sealion 7 would make a great background vehicle in Grand Theft Auto 6 because it has familiar elements but definitely doesn’t run afoul of IP laws by being a shameless rip-off. The headlight graphics are very Renault, the fluted ten-spoke wheels feel like a mashup of two recently available BMW designs, there’s a hint of new Mercedes-Benz to the taillight silhouette, and while the floating C-pillar as an element has been around for more than a decade, the treatment on the Sealion 7 almost feels like someone stretched out the roof on a Mini Cooper Coupe.
It’s a similar deal on the inside too. The electronic shifter is very modern Volkswagen group, there’s a whiff of Kia Telluride to the steering wheel, and the slab-faced dashboard with quadrilateral vents feels weirdly old despite the 15.6-inch rotating touchscreen plastered to it. The end result is a vehicle without an immediate distinct visual identity, and while not rocking the boat is a good thing, for a brand looking to really establish itself in the West, a distinct identity is needed. After all, cars aren’t rational. People want what they drive to reflect something they see in themselves, and BYD doesn’t quite have that sense of positioning yet in the public consciousness.
Granted, there is a way in which the somewhat anonymous styling might not matter. Consumers are price-sensitive above everything else, so the not-exactly-charming styling could certainly be offset by a low enough asking price. It looks like we’ll have to wait until later this year to find out, as that’s when the BYD Sealion 7 is expected to go on sale in Europe. While we likely won’t be seeing this electric crossover in America soon thanks in part to tariffs on Chinese-built EVs, on a global scale, it’s still one to watch. How it catches on in Europe could tell us a lot about the future of the European automotive industry.
(Photo credits: BYD)
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Ever since the introduction of the Sealion 6, I can’t help myself but pronounce it as “see-lee-on” every time.
BYD cars have ‘suffered’ under the weight of their derivative styling since they were launched here in Oz in July 2022 with the Atto 3 EV when they sold about 800 cars. By June the following year they were doing over 1,500 a month. It looked like a medium SUV but importantly it was around fifty grand and it was an EV.
Since then, we’ve scored the Seal, the Dolphin and now the Sea Lion 6 which is now the top selling PHEV in Oz (since June, beating the Outlander PHEV) and it out sold the Forester and X-Trail in September. Looks had little to do with that (other than it still looks like a car) because its competitive price and competencies make it a very good deal by comparison.
Diss the derivative BYDs all you want but they sell really well in this westernised market. Their YTD sales growth in 2024 is 75% over the same time last year and they still haven’t launched the Shark pickup…
First thing I saw was Fry.
Tesla, love it or hate it, is at least distinctive. Their designs are instantly recognizable. Everyone who sees it knows it’s a Tesla. Everyone who’s inside knows it’s a Tesla.
This looks “me too”. Like a focus group designed it to be inoffensive. It has nothing to separate it from the “blob EV CUV” group except price. Which may be enough.
Write what you want about the styling, but I legit see the face of a sea lion in that front. Maybe the tail lights emulate the rear flippers…. Nah, that’s probably just cribbed cue coincidence. That face, though!
Those rear taillights are a direct ripoff of the QX55 just with a heckblende combining them. Not to mention the specs are perfectly average, looks forgettable, doesn’t appear to do anything better than the competition, save for possibly price, which isn’t announced. Unless this undercuts competitors but 10% or more, I don’t see it being anything other than “Another 300ish mile, 50k, medium sized EV Crossover that will depreciate to nothing in 4 years”
Have we already talked about how the logo looks like CYE backwards?
Like, I cannot convince myself to read it the intended way. It’s much worse IMO than the KN thing.
I see a lot of Infiniti in the design. Which is probably a bad thing.
The rearend is slightly uncomfortable. Like Jabba the Hutt is eyeing me speculatively
Let me get my chains around you TOSSABL!
Hold up now, big boy: I ain’t wearin that bikini!
I’m starting to feel like there’s really only one or two guys designing all of these newer EVs. They just all have a sameyness to them, where they all look like slightly different offerings from the same company. Or maybe that’s just the oldness talking
That would Be the crack design team of Aero and Dynamics
Those two do have a lot to offer I suppose, but maybe their long lost cousin Style could show up to help around the office from time to time.
I suppose one could fall back on that classic American favorite and chrome all the things.
No, that guy’s at retirement age, and he should stay retired
The Boomers still have some purchasing power.
Sure, they’re the only ones with disposable income at this point
Eh, there’s a lot to be desired about the aerodynamics of modern squash-box CUVs. This thing is no different, front end is too square, wheel arches are going to be turbulent suck-pits, and the back has too many steps. The overall aspect ratio is too stocky as well (but that’s all CUVs). I would guess overall Cd of .25-.27 ish.
Yeah, I think people are way too willing to give a presumption of rationality to any design that has rounded edges. The Lucid Air shows that you can reach spectacular Cd numbers without looking experimental and with looking distinctive. Everyone who’s getting (much) lesser numbers with anonymous jellybeans just isn’t trying that hard.
.25-.27 is quite good compared to the golden era of American “style” of the 1950’s and 1960’s.
Personally I think a lot of those cars looked terrible. Sorry, (not sorry) Boomers.
For sure. But something like a Lucid Air or even a Model S manages around .20 while looking much, much better. CUVs manage to be both ugly and comparatively inefficient for questionable utility.
When I was a Wee Lad, I could name pretty much any car that came down the street. Sometimes, I could even pick out the model.
Today, not so much. It appears to me that the old ways of educating stylists in maintaining a company’s design heritage are long past.
Same here. I feel like a lot of these newer cars lack the design language of a brand. Maybe they will gain that as they introduce new models, but it as it sits right now only the badge makes them distinct, and I feel like that’s a missed opportunity.
I honestly think this looks decidedly better than a Tesla Y.
But I also think that many auto journalists are quick to jump onto the bandwagon on styling cures of Chinese brands. And, honestly, so many SUVs out there are just a sea of sameness (though, I’d think the Lexus RX might have been its inspiration of the body)
I think we have to stoop all the way down to Masonry or Youabian to find Tesla Y’s aesthetic level.
Eh, Tesla’s 3/Y aesthetic is bland egg with cheap interior.
Mansory and Youbian’s aesthetic is overwrought gaudy vomit.
Neither is desirable, but Mansory and Youbian are on a different plane of existence from Tesla.
I can’t put my hands on it but there’s something about the looks of Model Y that I find wildly offensive. I’m quite OK with the 3 though it looks just like a flattened Y. The X was tolerable.
Model S was such a high water mark for Tesla and it still looks good to this day.
I think most of the criticisms are essentially quibbles, but the wheel arches are objectively bad design. In the side view, they look like calipers pinching the wheels, which might be OK if they provided literally any other benefit to the design. But they don’t.
A reminder: aesthetic taste is essentially subjective; design is not, because it’s based on principles that are universal across time and distance. A given design move works in some contexts but not others, and it’s not arbitrary which is which.
And those arches SUCK.
The real question I have with BYD and other Chinese products is how well will they hold up after a few cold winters in the rust belt?
I see older Teslas and they seem to be holding up well… I see plenty of early Model S and Model 3 vehicles still on the road, functional and in great shape.
Financial incentives mean that the most heavily depreciated Teslas are sold into Michigan, which makes the quality of those still operating in Ontario artificially high.
One of the Euro market prototypes for this thing spent the night at a hotel near my old flat in Glasgow. It looked pretty good in the evening light, although it had badly been bashed in on one side by something on its journey to the city from (I think) Sweden.
It doesn’t look all that awful to me. It’s a generic design that could come from Toyota, or GM, or one of the European makers without raising an eyebrow. In fact, it’s an improvement over the Toyota Busy Forks….
This is Electric car Normal.
That is an unfortunate, but accurate take.
“Aside from the slightly weird name, the BYD Sealion 7…”
It’s from a company with a backronym name of Build Your Dreams. Sealion 7 sounds positively normal compared to that.
Sort of like Lucky Goldstar electronics?
It sounds like a Sharknado movie title passed through Google Translate into Chinese and back a few times.
Some people say that what this car is missing is tariffs.
(I’m not among them)
Profile-wise, I prefer the BYD to the Tesla, or VW, etc., but that nose? Nope. I’m still waiting for the 7-Up of EVs, the UnTesla, so this would be too wide of the mark for me.
Chinese car has derivative and unoriginal styling?! What?! That never happens! That’s as rare as a classic British car having electrical issues!
You really shouldn’t complain about sea lions https://wondermark.com/storage/2023/06/2014-09-19-1062sea.png
If you do you’d best have a car with a 0-60 < 4.5s and a range > 300 miles on the lenient WLTP cycle
I would assume that the generic styling is a feature for the BYD, as I doubt there’s too many people excited to scream from the rooftop “Look at my new Chinese car!!!”. I could be wrong, but I’d imagine these will be deeply unpopular in any region with a history of manufacturing.
As for the naming, I’ll never understand why Chinese companies refuse seemingly any attempt to regionalize their marketing. The Build Your Dreams Sealion 7? Really? Though I’m glad they continue to trip up on this, because watch out if they figure it out.
While I wish the first part of your article would be more the case, I suspect your point about price will carry the day.
The car is attractive enough in exactly the generic way that if it’s significantly cheaper than the competition most buyers simply won’t care. This is for the people who want a car as an appliance.
My bigger issue is that Europe appears to be willingly cutting their own throats by letting these vehicles in without significant tariffs. The price to pay for access to the Chinese market is apparently going to be the demise of their own automakers.
I think most buyers already don’t care. Nothing Chevy makes is really all that good looking, you could slap a BYD badge on the Equinox and nobody would bat an eye. Everything Toyota makes is hideous. Nissans are mostly questionable. Kia and Hyundai have so many overdone models that it’s getting absurd. Cars with excellent styling, like Mazda and Genesis, may earn a few buyers based on style points alone, but I don’t think the anonymous styling of the BYD will lose it anything because nobody seems to really care. It looks like any other modern crossover, it fits into the automotive landscape, and that’s all it needs to do.