Car review: BYD Sealion 5 Essential
Not quite ready for an EV? A plug-in hybrid vehicle (PHEV) could be perfect for you. At $33,990, we drive Australia’s newest and cheapest PHEV.
Two cars in one
The humble PHEV is having its time in the sun. Once ridiculed as something of a joke technology, rapid advances in EV battery technology, amounting to an increase in battery density for a lower cost, has seen PHEV sales surge 130 per cent in 2025 to 53,484.
By infusing a conventional combustion vehicle with the latest EV technology – think a muscular electric motor and a battery that can be independently recharged – you effectively get two cars in one.
You get an EV for emissions-free shorter trips. Then, when the battery is flat, you have the conventional engine and petrol tank for longer journeys. Some of the latest PHEVs have more range than some of the earliest EVs.
Australia’s cheapest PHEV
The influx of Chinese brands has also seen PHEV prices plummet. At $33,990, the BYD Sealion 5 Essential joins a now 10-strong BYD range and is currently Australia’s cheapest PHEV.
Under the bonnet, a 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine produces 72kW and 122Nm, while a 145kW/300Nm electric motor pairs with a 12.9kWh lithium-iron phosphate battery. Electric-only range is 71km, while BYD says fuel efficiency with a flat battery is 4.5L/100km. Combined power is a hearty 156kW.
Inside the cabin
With a longer, wider and taller body than a Toyota RAV4 Hybrid, inside the cabin there’s at least as much space. It’s arguably more modern than the Toyota, with its combination of 10.1-inch central touchscreen (with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto) and 8.8-inch instrument cluster. BYD has kindly fitted buttons for various common controls including a roller for volume.
While the manually adjusted front seats remind you that you bought the base model, the Sealion 5 is still fairly generously equipped. It drives well too. In its EV-only mode, the electric motor offers decent and responsive instant torque with brisk, near-silent front-drive acceleration. With its regenerative braking, it may as well be an EV.
We got about 65km in EV-only mode and when the petrol engine kicked in, the drive was smooth and not too loud. And it still has plenty of acceleration in short bursts.
Where it falls short
The Sealion 5 isn’t perfect. You could argue it has all the personality of a user manual. The unusually wide turning circle will give you plenty of three-point turn practice; some of the active driver aids are a bit trigger-happy; and if you can’t, or don’t, plug it in regularly, you may as well get a more conventional hybrid like a RAV4 or Hyundai Tucson. With a flat battery, the Sealion 5 returned 6.5L/100km, about 20 per cent more than a RAV4 Hybrid in the real world.
The verdict
And at one point during our testing, the Sealion 5’s infotainment screen froze and wouldn’t come back, despite restarting the car. Forgivable given the price?
Plugged in at home overnight, a full charge will take roughly five hours. One in three Aussie homes now have solar on the roof and if that’s you, a solar-powered PHEV charged during the day could save you thousands of dollars in petrol each year. No joke.
| Specs | |
|---|---|
| Price | $33,990 |
| ANCAP safety rating | Not yet rated |
| Warranty | Six-year/150,000km vehicle warranty, and an eight-year/160,000km battery warranty |
| Range | 1001km petrol/electric |
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