BYD starts pre-sale of Seagull with prices starting at $11,460

With a range of up to 405 km, the BYD Seagull is expected to be one of the vehicle choices for many families for short trips.

(Image credit: BYD)

BYD (OTCMKTS: BYDDY) has started pre-sale for a mini electric vehicle that promises to be one of the vehicle choices for many families on short trips.

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BYD unveiled the Seagull, the latest addition to its Ocean series, and started its pre-sales on the first day of the Shanghai auto show on April 18.

The vehicle is available in three versions with starting prices of RMB 78,800 ($11,460), 83,800 and 95,800 respectively.

It is worth noting that these are not the final prices of the model, and BYD's previous practice was to have final prices slightly lower than the pre-sale prices.

Seagull received more than 10,000 orders 24 hours after the pre-sale began, BYD said.

The BYD Seagull is an A0-class electric vehicle based on the e-Platform 3.0 with a length, width and height of 3,780 mm, 1,715 mm and 1,540 mm, respectively, and a wheelbase of 2,500 mm.

For comparison, the SAIC-GM-Wuling Binguo has a length, width and height of 3,950 mm, 1,708 mm and 1,580 mm, with a wheelbase of 2,560 mm. Its Hongguang Mini EV has a length, width and height of 2,920 mm, 1,493 mm and 1,621 mm, with a wheelbase of 1,940 mm.

The starting price of the Binguo is RMB 59,800 and the Honguo Mini EV starts at RMB 32,800.

The BYD Seagull is powered by a permanent magnet synchronous motor with a maximum power of 55 kW and peak torque of 135 Nm, accelerating from 0 to 50 km/h in 4.9 seconds.

The car is available in two range versions, with the lower-priced two models having a CLTC range of 305 km and the highest-priced version having a range of 405 km.

The BYD Seagull uses BYD's blade batteries with pack capacities of 30.08 kWh and 38.88 kWh respectively.

The car supports fast charging, taking 30 minutes to charge from 30 percent to 80 percent.

Previous rumors suggested that the model would have a version with sodium-ion batteries, but this does not appear to be a reality.

(1 $= RMB 6.8760)