BYD Sealion 8 vs Kia EV5

What's the difference?

There’s quite a bit to like here. There’s plenty of equipment, and lots of choice in price, trim level and mechanical complexity.

The driving dynamics are fine if you’re not looking for anything sporty although the performance offered by the dual-motor variants must be considered excessive, even if it’s pretty exciting the first time.

Perhaps what’s missing from the Sealion 8 experience is anything that stamps the car as something special within its hotly-contested market segment. Which is another way of saying it offers up the same limitations, most notably in the third row accommodation and access.

You only need to drive a one-box people mover and utilise the rearmost seat, to understand that the two-box SUV, while a pretty marketable thing, is compromised once the passenger count exceeds five. Nothing new there, but nothing new in the BYD, either, to change that narrative.

At which point, the front-wheel drive variant emerges as the most pragmatic choice and probably the one that meets all the important family tasks headed its way for the smallest outlay.

Note: CarsGuide attended this event as a guest of the manufacturer, with meals provided.

The size is right, the price is right and the drive is right – three things that make the Kia EV5 a pretty formidable foe, and the kind of vehicle that might finally be able to break through the wall of the temple of Tesla in Australia.

Note: CarsGuide attended this event as a guest of the manufacturer, with accommodation and meals provided.

BYD has done its best to give the Sealion 8 its own character and vibe. In fact, it’s a pretty smart looking thing - although still very much a two-box wagon concept - and that’s no given when you consider how much some big SUVs can start to look like large blobs of nothing when you look closely.

There’s the usual Darth Vader stuff at the front, but in profile, the diagonal vent across the front door makes a bit of a statement. The 'plaited' motif of the tail-lights might be stretching things a bit, though.

Inside, the modern board-room feel is invoked by the angular lines and high-tech look and feel of the large info-screens. The panoramic sunroof of the Premium grade also helps brighten up an otherwise pretty dark space.

If you’re familiar with any of Kia’s EV designs, and specifically the EV9, you’ll already know the Kia EV5, which looks a lot like a shrunken version of the company’s biggest electric 4WD.

But this one looks a bit smaller, a bit more familiar looking, and maybe a bit more accessible than the hyper-modern EV9.

Honestly, it looks like a contemporary, mid-size SUV that could be powered by anything.

There are a couple of EV5 design elements I really like. The first is the combination of hard edges and subtle curves, which combine really well. I also love the lighting treatment up front, which gives the EV5 a bold and unique light signature, especially at night.

Inside, it’s another story of familiarity, with a clean, high-tech cabin and Kia’s common twin-screen set-up. Actually, it’s more a triple screen, with two 12.3-inch screens, and a 5.0-inch climate monitor between them.

The materials are all nice, and they look great, but they don’t exactly melt under the touch, and that gives the EV5’s cabin a hard edge I don’t love.

I do, however, love the inclusion of some physical buttons, so you’re not pawing through the screen to access every in-car function.

And one final design quirk. I know it looks like it has an old-school bench front seat, but you can’t use it as a third seat in front. Kia says it’s just a design flourish. But it is also somewhere safe to pop your phone or other small valuables to stop them sliding about when you're on the road.

BYD has made sure all three rows of the Sealion 8 are fit for purpose while attempting to make the rearmost row (traditionally the trickiest to get right) less of a downmarket place to be. With that in mind, both rear rows get air vents and climate-control adjustment for that part of the car. There's also a pair of USB-C charge ports in the second row and a single USB-C and USB-A port in the third row. The third row also has cupholders bult into the wheel arch on each side.

With the third row in place, there’s a decent amount of luggage space (270 litres) largely thanks to the Sealion’s five-metre overall length. There’s no spare tyre, but a puncture repair kit lives under the floor (as does the removable cargo blind) and the rearmost luggage space also incorporates a 12-volt socket and luggage hooks.

A pair of pull-tabs drop the headrests and then the entire split third row in a single movement, at which point you suddenly have a five-seater with a huge, 960 litres of luggage space. And if you need to cart gear over people, the second row also folds flat to open up 1960 litres of space.

Up front, the feeling of spaciousness is amplified due to the low scuttle height and what the aviation industry calls the glass cockpit (no analogue dials or gauges at all). The 15.6-inch central info-screen runs the usual apps and control displays but, thankfully, the climate control touch-controls are tethered to the bottom of the screen, so they’re always visible regardless of what else is going on.

The 10.2-inch driver’s display adds a head-up function in Premium trim and displays the usual array of information required to operate the vehicle. But even better is the steering wheel which features a thick, well-padded rim that looks and feels pretty luxe. It also houses the usual buttons for stereo, phone and cruise-control functions.

A really nice touch is the addition of an extra set of tilt controls on the inside of the passenger’s front seat, allowing the driver to control that seat to allow people in or out without leaving their own seat. Nice one.

It is, of course, the centre row of seats that will make or break a car like this for many families. Even though many clans will not use the rearmost seat much of the time, the central row will get a huge workout. So it’s nice to see that leg, foot and headroom are all sufficient for even growing teenagers. Again, the car’s overall length appears to be the key, but it’s also worth noting the centre row seat is comfy and supportive. The outboard positions in the second row also feature heating and ventilation functions.

The third row, however, follows SUV tradition by being strictly for smaller kids. Access past those huge wheel arches is tight, and once you’re in, there’s a combination of dark trim and tiny windows to limit joy.

While it won’t matter to many buyers, the front-drive Sealion 8 is rated to tow 1800kg with a braked trailer, and up to two tonnes in the all-wheel drive version. But there’s no spare tyre fitted, and roadside flats need to be addressed by the included tyre repair kit.

At 4615mm in length, 1875mm in width, 1715mm in height, and with a wheelbase of 2750mm, the Kia EV5 is roughly the same size as a Tesla Model Y, so if you’re ever sat in the back of the Tesla, you’ll have a fair idea of what to expect here.

Sitting behind my own 175cm driving position, I found I had a heap of knee room, more than enough headroom, and I reckon you could fit three adults across the back seat pretty easily, too.

There are a couple of design flourishes I really like, too. The pull-down divider that separates the backseat is home to two cupholders, which isn’t unusual, but what is new to me is the unique positioning of the USB charge ports, which are in the middle-back of the front seats, right above the storage pocket, so you have somewhere to pop your phone and cable when you're charging.

There is also a deep storage draw between the two front seats. It’s just for extra storage in the Air and Earth, but in the GT-Line it’s heated and cooled, which means hot pies or cold drinks when you’re on the move.

The EV5 might be an all-electric vehicle, but it’s still a mid-size SUV, which means there are certain standards it has to hit to be taken seriously, and one of those is boot space.

Up front there’s 67 litres of space in the fruit, or frunk, while the boot holds 513L with the rear seats in place – that number obviously growing as you begin folding them flat.

It is also a hugely customisable space. There’s heaps of under-floor storage below the removable panels. There’s also vehicle-to-load capability, which takes the form of a standard power point in the boot that can use the vehicle’s battery to power pretty much whatever you want.

Finally, there are adjustable luggage hooks, so you can carry bigger or smaller bags as you wish.

The cheapest EV5, the Air, arrives in two guises, Standard Range or Long Range, and the former is something of a bargain.

It’s the only EV5 to get included on-road costs, and Kia is asking $56,770, on the road. That puts it well below the Tesla Model Y. As of right now, the single-motor Tesla is $60,868, on the road, in NSW.

Next is the Air Long Range, which lists at $61,170, before on-road costs. The EV5 Earth occupies the middle rung, at $64,770, before on-roads, while the yet-to-arrive flagship, the GT-Line, is a considerable $71,770, before on-road costs.

Air models get 18-inch alloys, LED lighting all around, roof racks and power mirrors, while inside there are cloth and synthetic leather seats, with a massage function for the driver, along with a synthetic leather steering wheel and LED interior lighting.

Tech is covered by twin 12.3-inch screens, with a smaller 5.0-inch climate screen sandwiched between them, and there’s in-built nav, a six-speaker stereo and Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

The Earth then adds 19-inch alloys, gloss black exterior design flourishes and privacy glass, while inside, the seats are now entirely synthetic leather. You also get a second V2L connection, as well as a powered tailgate.

Finally, the GT-Line gets pretty much everything Kia could throw at it, including 20-inch alloys, auto-flush door handles, a panoramic sunroof, two-tone seats which are now billed as offering "premium relaxation", wireless phone charging, fingerprint recognition, a heated steering wheel and an augmented-reality head-up display.

BYD has managed to keep a lid on the price of the entry-level version of the Sealion 8, by specifying it with front-wheel drive rather than the all-wheel drive of the other two variants. It still gets the same driveline beyond the lack of a driven rear axle, although battery capacity is the other difference.

As such, you’re looking at a 1.5-litre petrol engine (kind of the default powerplant for Chinese SUVs right now) with a turbocharger. With the 19kWh battery chiming in to power the electric motor, the driveline can achieve outputs of 205kW and 315Nm.

In the case of the AWD variants, the larger 35.6kWh battery and extra electric motor ups the potential outputs to 359kW and 675Nm which is a huge jump any way you look at it and gives the Sealion 8 a huge bandwidth when it comes to matching buyer performance aspirations.

All the variants have the potential for a claimed electric-only range of greater than 100km if owners use the plug-in facility to charge either at home or at work. For the AWD variants, the larger battery stretches the EV range to a claimed 152km. On longer journeys or whenever the battery has reached about 25 per cent capacity, the Sealion 8 acts just as any other hybrid with regenerative braking and electric assistance to aid performance.

In suspension terms, the BYD is pretty conventional but if you do pay the extra for the Premium variant, you’ll gain adaptive dampers.

The entry-level EV5 Air is available in Standard Range or Long Range guises, both powered by a single front-mounted electric motor, producing 160kW and 310Nm. 

The Standard Range will clip 0-100km/h in 8.5 seconds, while the extra weight of the bigger battery slows down the sprint in the Long Range, taking around 8.9 seconds. 

The Earth is a twin-motor AWD offering, with a motor at each axle, lifting outputs to 230kW and 480Nm, dropping the sprint to a brisk-feeling 6.1 seconds. The incoming GT-Line gets the same powertrain.

BYD claims a range of more than 1000km for both variants of the Sealion 8, provided you start with a fully charged battery and a full 60-litre fuel tank.

The BYD can also make use of commercial fast-chargers and, when using the maximum 40kW on the FWD version and the 74kW possible for the AWD variant, the charging times from 30 to 80 per cent are both under 20 minutes. The Sealion 8 can also charge at 11kW on an AC socket and the vehicle also offers V2L (Vehicle to Load) capability, meaning it can power on-site work tools, camping gear or even your house at night.

Provided the EV battery is kept at 25 per cent capacity or above, BYD claims a 1.0-litre per 100km fuel consumption figure for the car based on the laboratory test. In the real world, the results will vary enormously depending on where you drive and how the car is used. Deplete the battery and continue to drive at highway speeds, and your actual fuel consumption might easily increase to many times that 1.0-litre claimed figure.

The Air Standard Range gets a 64.2 kWh lithium iron phosphate battery, weighing in at a hefty 428kg, which delivers a claimed driving range of 400km. The Air Long Range, the Earth and the incoming GT-Line all share the same 88.1kWh battery, upping the range to 555km, 500km and 470km, respectively.

So, if driving range is at the very top of your must-have list, the Air Long Range is the car for you.

All cars can take 7.0kW home AC charging, while the dual-motor versions are set up for 11kW AC charging. Fast charging. When it comes to fast charging, all models can plug into a 350kW charger, taking them from 10 percent to 80 per cent in less than 40minutes.

The first thing you’re going to do in a Sealion 8 is wonder where the gearshift is. It’s a column-shift, but it's not only located where a traditional indicator stalk would be, it looks very much like one, too.

This promises two things. One, you’ll spend a few seconds finding it and two, you’ll try to turn the indicators on with it at least once every drive. (The real indicators are on the other side of the steering column.)

Another note to those test driving a Sealion 8. Sample the front-drive version first. (I’ll get to why in a minute.) When you do, you’ll soon figure out this is a driveline that prioritises electric running. That is, the petrol motor barely ever actually drives the wheels (only at full throttle and higher speeds). Any other time, if the petrol engine is running, it’s to charge the battery that keeps the electric motor purring away. This is how efficiency is defined by BYD.

You’ll also find that the Sealion’s acceleration is purposeful in that electric-motor way, but hardly startling. And when you do smash the throttle and force the petrol engine to drive the axle, you’ll notice that this takes a fair time to play out, and that when everything is grunting as hard as possible, the petrol engine is quite noisy and even a little harsh sounding. Use the driveline sensibly, though, and it’s all smooth and quiet, even if that then means you can hear a little suspension noise creeping into the cabin.

That done, you’re now free to drive the AWD variant. Why wait? Because this thing is seriously off the leash. Bear in mind that 359kW of power is getting on for the thick end of 500 horsepower in the old money, so even though the Sealion 8 is a hefty critter at about 2.5 tonnes, all that power and torque will get it from rest in under five seconds, or thereabouts. The relevance of this to family-car technology is hugely debatable, but it’s one heck of a party trick the first time you try it.

The huge torque also magnifies the Sealion 8’s natural tendency to lift its inside front wheel when accelerating out of a turn. A small tyre squeak can sometimes be heard before the traction control gathers it all together, but even the single-motor variant displays the same trait.

In steering and suspension terms, it’s probably fair to say the Sealion 8 doesn’t unlock any new depths of talent. The ride is pretty comfy but at the expense of body control and the steering points the wheels but doesn’t convey much else to the driver.

That said, the fact everything seems to be tuned to the same frequency means it all works okay. You don’t have too-fast steering fighting the tyres or too firm suspension upsetting the interior calm. Use it as a family would, and it’s 100 per cent fit for purpose.

First things first – I spend most of my time behind the wheel of the EV5 Earth, which though it shares its dual-motor powertrain with the GT-Line, is actually the fastest of the lot owing to the extra weight of Kia's flagship.

That means zero to 100km/h in just over six seconds, and trust me when I say this, that is more than fast enough. I know you read about EVs knocking off the sprint to 100km/h in supercar-besting times, but you don't need that sort of crazy acceleration in a family-focused mid-size SUV.

Actually, forget needing, you don't want it. The EV5 feels more than punchy enough, without shaving years off your life every time you plant your foot.

Fit for purpose, then, which is exactly how I'd describe the rest of the EV5's very good drive experience. Kia's Australian ride and handling wizards have once again had their way with the EV5, and the result is an EV that handles most everything Australian road surfaces can throw it at it with ease.

Surprisingly, it's maybe not quite as dynamically sharp as the bigger EV9, but it's always comfortable, without feeling floaty or disconnected, and it will happily grip its way around tighter corners without tipping from side to side, either.

There are a couple of small quirks, though. The first is the steering, which is definitely responsive and confidence inspiring, but it also has a kind of artificial weight or heaviness at times that feels a bit disconnected from what's happening beneath the tyres. And the cabin can be a little noisy through wind, too.

But these are small beans, really. The EV5 is comfortable and capable, and without the harsh ride or too-sharp steering that can be found in some of its rivals.

We drove it for hours across all sorts of road surfaces, and in all sorts of conditions, and found very, very little to complain about.

Every EV5 gets a comprehensive safety offering, including 'Advanced AEB' that includes junction crossing, lane oncoming and lane changing alerts. There’s rear-cross-traffic alert, semi-autonomous highway cruising and a whole heap more.

If you want a blind-spot view monitor, surround-view monitor or remote park assist, you’ll need to spring for the GT-Line.

The EV5 hasn’t been crash-tested yet, but Kia will be shooting for the maximum five-star ANCAP rating.

Servicing any hybrid can be a bit more expensive thanks to the presence of two propulsion forms.

In any case, the Sealion 8 requires routine servicing every 12 months or 20,000km.

Warranty is BYD’s normal six-year/150,000km cover, although there’s also eight years and 160,000km of cover for the EV battery.

BYD also claims its 'Blade' battery technology is among the safest in the business, and says the design resists damage (and, therefore, the risk of fire) better than the competition.

The EV5 is covered by Kia’s seven-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty, and you can prepay your servicing costs, too.

Three years will set you back $980, five years is $1535 and the full seven years will set you back $2431 ($347 per workshop visit), which is category competitive.