Sealion 7 vs Seal

Which Sealion7 finition ? The basic one has a bad range.

Yeah both are RwD with smaller battery

Well look at the range on [ev-database.org](http://ev-database.org) but I'd personnally go for the car with the longer range. But that's my personnal needs.

Seal for a much plush ride and the sportiness when needed.

I was in a similar situation.  I went with the Sealion 7 RWD (313 HP, 82,5kWh battery) because I currently live in Thailand where the roads aren’t always that great. So the additional ground clearance was the deciding factor.  My average consumption is 16,2kWh after almost 7.000km of mixed use (probably 50% normal roads @70-100km/h, 30% city, 20% highway @120-130km/h if possible) which means that a real world range of 500-550km is possible in warm weather.  The car usually says 560km of range when it’s at 100%.  Charging is decent as well. The car is 600V so it’s able to maintain relatively high charging speeds for longer.  But since it peaks at 150kWh it will still take 30 minutes from 10-80% But you are right. The Seal should be more efficient.  Besides that I’m really happy with the car. It’s comfy, quiet and fun to drive. But most importantly it’s only 30k € in Thailand.  If I was back in Europe I would probably buy a German or Korean EV because I think that the value for money isn’t as great as it is in Asia. Still cheaper and better equipped than the competition but probably also with a much lower resale value than the established brands.

wow they’re so much more expensive in europe! i got my seal for €38k

I went to BYD with the intention of buying a Seal (actually Seal 06 GT) after months of planning. Then I experienced the Sealion 7. I now own the Sealion 7 (RWD) and am more glad about the choice with each passing day (not because the Seal is bad, but because the SL7 is just that nice IMO). That's my input. Otherwise, I'd say to strongly consider the Zeekr 7X and Xpeng G7 before pulling the trigger. I'd also say Xiaomi YU7, but that's still only in CN.

If sportiness is a factor, sounds like it is, I wouldn’t bother with the SL7 unless it’s the AWD version. I have it and I love it. It’s all down to personal preference though, only you know the answer.

I had the same choice to make but went for the sealion in the end. Most important argument: my right knee kept fighting with the corner of the screen in the seal 😇. No matter the orientation.

I own the Seal 2023. My dad owns the Sealion 7 2024. I have driven both extensively. The others are right, and to top it all up here's my anecdotal experience. Subjectively, i find the Sealion 7 more wonky, not because it's a bad build or has any design flaw. It's just that the Seal has a lower center of mass and it feels more...stable, despite the differences in mass. It's just a question of Sedan vs SUV at this point. I am from Cambodia so whenever we have to go to the rural area, I bear with my dad's because...you know, road conditions. The rest of the time, I prefer my Seal over the Sealion 7 any day of the week, even for long long road trips. For my requirements, the Seal works just fine. If you're looking to have a family soon, the Sealion 7 is much more future-proof. If not, I, subjectively, find the Seal much more fun to drive and for whatever reason, less tiring.

Seal RWD is 37.990€ and Seal AWD is 39.990€ currently here in Germany.

Which country are you from?

I have 3 kids and own a Seal. But then again the Seal is my daily driver, its not the family hauler. As a family we rarely drive with all 5 people in the car at once. At worst its the 3 kids and 1 adult and its fine for that. In terms of practicality, the only issue I've had was loading the Seal up to go camping with myself and 2 of the kids. Both the boot and the back seat were packed to the brim and the back seat occupant basically had no room to move. When the littlest one was still in a pram, the pram we had was big and didn't fold down small. It took up a lot of boot space in our normal SUV, its that big. But for the Seal I had to take it apart to fit it into the boot. But a compact pram was fine. I honestly think that people feel they 'need' an SUV when really they don't. I much prefer the driving dynamics of a sedan than an SUV.

Depends on your needs - I really loved the seal but since I have a fairly tall kid (6'3 at the age of 15 so there's no guarantee he's gonna stay 6'3) and he can't fit in the back seat of seal, but sealion 7 he fits in perfectly with lots of leg room (I'm fairly short at 5'9 so that helps too I guess - I don't push the driver's seat back too much). But we ended up with atto 2 - mainly due to the price but also the fact it's got all the safety features of SL7 but with a much lower price tag.

I have a Seal. I sat in a SL7 for the first time on the weekend (at the Everything Electric show) and I found that I couldn't adjust the seat/steering wheel in a way that I found comfortable. I couldn't even figure out what wasn't right, it just didn't work for me. Kinda cured any regret I had about the small boot in the Seal (even though SL7 wasn't out when I bought)

I bought the Sealion over the Seal only because of one thing - my bad back 😆 I was really attracted to the Seal at first - it had good looks, really fast (0-100 in 3.8s) and I wanted my next car to be an EV. However, after sitting in it for a few minutes, my back started to ache and I knew, it wasn’t for me. The Seal is definitely the better driver’s car with better cornering. With the Sealion, I couldn’t chuck it at corners as agressively as my previous sedan, but powering out of corners is certainly addictive. But it’s still an SUV, and a family oriented SUV at that, even with the “performance” moniker due to the HP & Torque. But my back thanks me every day for my choice.

For "a few camping trips" you could think about a roof rack + a roof box for extra storage.

We have both in the uk both AWD models and both cars are great. I’m 6ft3 and well built so I drive the sealion 7 more than my other half but I do love to go out in the seal way more fun to drive

Our biggest issue is the tent we have. Its a massive inflatable tent and the only place I could put it was on the backseat and it takes up 1.5 seats. Would def consider a roofbox if we go out more often, but right now we don't go out often enough for me to justify it.

Almost a copy paste, living also in Thailand but i went for the Seal RWD a bit more than 7000 km, consumption is at 15,2kWh. City 40% Highway 60% not a huge difference in efficiency. I understand the ground clearance, flooding makes me nervous :) More a personal preference since both are similar.

I got the sealion a few months ago; love it , but if it wasn’t used as the family car I would get the seal.

I'm taller than your son and my son is near my height, we both fit in the back of my Seal.

Seal is a firmer ride.

I had the same thoughts as you from driving them both. If you enjoy the Seal more, buy that, you can alway switch to something bigger if you need to later. I take my Seal on family roadtrips without issue.

Test drove both earlier this year and felt SL7 has pretty bad body roll during cornering, particularly for passengers. Went ahead with seal in the end as it’s sporty and handles much better than SL7.

Sealion 7 is designed for family, look at the rear cabin and how huge that is, definitely thinking of the rear passengers here. The Seal is spacious too, but sitting in it feels like you have just got control of a weapon of mass destruction. I love the feeling and if I didn’t have a kid and no intentions of having children, I’d probably have gone the Seal for its sportier profile. Space and comfort? SL7 Sportier drive? Seal

The seal is a drive you look forward to all day everyday any excuse to take her out and cruise in comfort, style and with blistering speed. I have kids & I still bought and we manage even with 2 grommets in the back.

I'm always shocked at how much a premium these cars command overseas compared to Australian prices: Seal 47k/53k/62k AUD (27k/30k/34k EUR) It really does feel like a mid-premium car, though. I would've bought the Sealion 7 if it was available to buy at the time. But I am happy with my base-model Seal.

Since my wife has a Jaecoo 7 PHEV that is already an SUV, I went for the Seal AWD and I couldn’t be happier. I thought that the ground clearance was going to be bad, but it’s really good compared to my CLA.

Figure it's all taxes - on cars not made in the EU.

If it's for a primary only car, I'd get the Sealion 7. But if you have another family hauler then Seal all the way. We have an ICE SUV already (no kids) so the Seal was a no brainer for me as a personal commuter. It gives me joy everytime I jump in the car.

BYDs "extra chinese car tax to save the local car makers" is 17,4% here in Germany additional to the normal 19% VAT.

I’ll get roasted I’m sure but 33k kms in a Seal Performance AWD has been hellish. First and last Chinese car. Breaking the novated lease as it’s that bad. Never had such poor customer service and the car is problem ridden with a strong driveline vibration that BYD refuses to diagnose or take responsibility for it. Caveat Emptor.

I own a Seal Premium (end of 2024). Before ended up buying it (thought about buying it since May 2024), I decided to wait for Sealion 7 to be released in China (before it went global). After looking at the design of SL7, I decided to give Seal a test drive (love the Seal's design much more), since I have not driven a sedan before. Iits not like SL7's design is bad, but for me, something feels weird about the half to rear-end of the car. Based on looks and ride quality, Seal hands down. Tech and space, Sealion 07 is the obvious answer.

In Ireland Seal RWD is €47,435 and AWD is €53,435. Anything other than the default colour will need another €1,200 - €1,500 on top. So significantly more expensive.

Are you stating "official prices from the BYD brochure" or real world prices? The "official brochure prices" for the Seal are also 49k and 53k here in Germany. But when you then check the real prices at the dealerships you find cars around the 40k range, as stated above. I myself paid 42k for a new BYD seal excellence 7 months ago.

That’s the drive away prices. It’s the official price plus delivery and service.

why you wouldnt bother unless its the AWD? I think the RWD is a good option too, no?

Just the mention of sportiness. There is a noticeable difference between the acceleration on the RWD and AWD. But yes, the RWD would still be faster accelerating than the vast majority of cars.