BYD Sealion 6 2024 News

Many so-called “all-new” models aren’t all that new. In fact, a sizeable chunk are reskinned versions of what came before, with fresh sheetmetal over the same general hard points.

How many new standard-unleaded petrol-powered vehicles – be it ‘normal’ or hybrid of any variety – remain in 2024? From cheapest to most expensive at the time of publishing, the list may surprise you! If we’ve left any 91 RONers out, please let us know in the comments section below.

Australia and New Zealand's independent assessor of vehicle safety, ANCAP, has awarded the BYD Sealion 6 Plug-in SUV a five-star safety rating against 2023 protocols.

While electric cars and traditional hybrids have exploded in popularity, plug-in hybrids have remained a relatively niche alternative. By the middle of 2024, though, sales are up 130 per cent, from 3582 sales in 2023 to 8223 thanks to more models becoming available and improved vehicle supply. Driven by the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV and new BYD Sealion 6, the plug-in hybrid landscape is only going to become more populous in the coming months, including when BYD launches the first PHEV ute to be sold in Australia. Plug-in hybrids offer a unique combination of electric mobility but without range anxiety. Their battery packs, typically between 10-20kWh in capacity, offer between 50-150km of electric-only range, matching early electric cars. There is the added benefit of a combustion engine that can kick in when you run out of battery. This means long distance road trips, like Sydney-Melbourne, require less charge stop planning than in a battery electric car. The technology is only improving, too. Manufacturers are fitting larger battery packs, more efficient motors and adding DC fast-charge capability to their plug-in hybrids. BYD is heavily invested, releasing its fifth-gen Dual Motor intelligence (DM-i) system in China with claims of 2100km total driving range and nearly 200km from the battery alone. It is not a perfect solution. Owners need to be diligent with charging to get anywhere close to the official fuel consumption ratings, typically below 3L/100km. Dragging the extra battery weight around often means similar fuel consumption to a petrol vehicle when out of charge, too. In its first month on sale, the new BYD Sealion 6 medium SUV notched up a healthy 482 registrations – it’ll be quick to challenge the established Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV (2422) and Eclipse Cross PHEV (1482, both year-to-date).Following the mainstream nameplates come some more premium options, including the Mazda CX-60 (460 to end of May), Volvo XC60 (390), Cupra Formentor (313), MG HS Plus EV (307), Porsche Cayenne e-Hybrid (304), Audi Q5 (301), Lexus NX (175) and Mercedes-AMG C63 (163).Expect plug-in hybrid sales to easily reach beyond 15,000 this year. That’s still a long way off projected electric car (100,000) and hybrid (160,000) sales, but it is a big increase for the powertrain style. Also helping to drive sales are the current FBT exemptions for novated leasing on plug-in hybrid vehicles making them more attractive to buyers. This benefit will end on April 1, 2025. Hybrid hero Toyota sells a selection of plug-in hybrid models overseas, including the RAV4 and Prius Prime. Having committed to a 100 per cent hybrid or electric passenger car line-up (excluding GR) in Australia, Toyota may also join the fray. “As we evolve and battery technology evolves, there will be certain benefits that PHEV can offer that will also fit into those top three categories. Eventually, we'll have plug-in hybrids. What variants? We will have to decide,” Toyota Vice President of Sales, Marketing and Franchise Operations Sean Hanley told CarsGuide in May.

The new BYD Song L was revealed in Chinese technical documents and measures up almost identically to the newly-arrived Sealion 6 SUV (known as the Song Plus in China).The vehicle you see here, though, is powered by BYD’s new fifth-generation plug-in hybrid system debuted on the Seal DM-i sedan that boasts over 200km electric-only and 2100km combined driving range by CLTC standards. This new Song L emerges less than a month after our first Sealion 6 drive and before the medium SUV appears in VFACTS industry sales figures. The Sealion 6 is available to order from importer EVDirect but there’s no guidance on delivery timing yet. The Song L is visually similar in proportion to our Sealion 6 though the details are more striking. A broad ‘dragon face’ grille is expressive and aggressive while retractable door handles tidy up the Toyota RAV4 and Mitsubishi Outlander rival’s sides.At the rear there is a hint of Porsche Cayenne in the light details – probably no bad thing – and the tailgate comes to a very similar point to the existing Sealion 6. Dimensionally, the Song L is only 5.0mm longer and 8.0mm wider than the Sealion 6, while its 2782mm wheelbase is 17mm longer. This size proximity suggests the Song L is the Sealion 6’s replacement in China. While BYD’s plug-in hybrid mid-size SUV is new in Australia, the vehicle was first released in 2020 and facelifted in 2023. An on-sale date in the second half of 2024 is expected in China but Australian arrival is unlikely so soon. Its new fifth-gen plug-in hybrid system promises in excess of 2100km of combined driving range thanks to a 2.9L/100km efficiency when the battery is discharged – beating the Toyota RAV4 and Nissan X-Trail e-Power. So far only a single motor, non-turbo system has been detailed producing a maximum 160kW – the same as the Sealion 6. The system is said to be more efficient, though, as evidenced by such an improvement over the existing car’s 1200km combined driving range. A new turbo twin-motor AWD variant, as found in the Sealion 6 Premium, producing 238kW and 550Nm, is yet to be announced. Though there is some clear overlap between this new model and existing vehicle, they may be sold alongside each other. The Chinese market is vast and, like the MG ZS and ZST, manufacturers occasionally choose to keep the old model in production to offer a lower price point. The Song L, therefore, may become a premium alternative to the mainstream Song Plus we know as the Sealion 6. The Song L’s start price is earmarked at 130,000 yuan, equivalent to $27,000 Australian. Expect the final price to be much closer to the Sealion 6’s $48,990, before on-road costs, starting price if it comes to Australia. CarsGuide has contacted Australian BYD importer EVdirect for additional information and this story will be updated if there is a response. 

BYD has launched its answer to the Toyota RAV4 hybrid in Australia.Dubbed the Sealion 6, the mid-size SUV brings plug-in hybrid power to the brand’s range that has, until now, been electric-only in Australia. BYD will add its second plug-in hybrid model later this year in the form of the Shark dual-cab ute.The Sealion 6 will take the fight to some of the most popular vehicles in the country such as the Kia Sportage, Hyundai Tucson, Mitsubishi Outlander and Mazda CX-5.The numbers are impressive.Prices for the two-tier range start from $48,990 before on-road costs for the base Dynamic and $52,990 for the Premium variant.The Dynamic uses a 1.5-litre petrol engine paired with an electric motor fed by an 18.3kWh battery to send a combined 160kW and 300Nm to the front wheels.Step up to the Premium and you gain a turbocharged 1.5-lite petrol engine and a second motor on the rear axle providing all-wheel drive. Outputs jump to a beefy 238kW and 550Nm.The addition of turbo power and a second motor drops the Sealion’s 0-100km/h time from 8.5 seconds to 5.9.BYD claims the Dynamic can be driven up to 92km on pure electric power and the Premium can go up to 81km before the battery is depleted.The Sealion can accept up to 7kW of charge via an AC wallbox charger or 18kW when connected to a DC fast charger. It has a vehicle-to-load function that allows owners to plug in appliances via conventional household power socket in the car.Fuel use is minuscule at 1.1L/100km for the Dynamic and 1.4L/100km for the Premium.Those figures can be misleading, though, as once the battery has run out of juice the car relies solely on the small capacity petrol engine to drive the wheels and charge the battery, which would result in a big jump in fuel use. Both variants come with a basket of goodies as standard.There are 19-inch alloy-wheels, a panoramic sunroof, roof rails and LED lighting front and back.Inside there is a giant 15.6-inch multimedia screen paired with a 12.3-inch digital display for the driver’s instruments.Power adjustable seats are wrapped in synthetic leather as is the steering wheel. The front two seats are heated and ventilated, there are lots of USB ports, two wireless device charging pads and a 10-speaker Infinity stereo.All the safety boxes have been ticked with a wide array of active driver aids and seven airbags.

The Sealion 6 PHEV SUV is set to be BYD's bestselling model in Australia, as the Chinese brand chases volume in a big way.