Few marques of recent vintage have racked up approval ratings as quickly as the Chinese giant BYD.
And they are only starting – with five or six brand new ones planned to arrive here in 2026 that will take their range into double figures (cars already here include the BYD Sealion 7, SEAL, Dolphin, ATTO3, and SEAL U.
The latest here is their smallest to date. It’s called the BYD Dolphin Surf, a cleverly construed 4dr, 4-seat electric-car package designed to further increase approval ratings.
Its dimensions (3,990mm long, 1,590mm high, 1,720mm wide, with a 2,500mm wheelbase) put it ahead of keen EV rivals such as the excellent Hyundai Inster, the Leapmore T03 and the Dacia Spring.
With a starting price of €17,985, the Surf is in an elite segment of the ‘under the €20,000’ mark currently, or about to be, occupied by rivals just mentioned.
I know my test model had top-of-range décor with a price above the ‘€20,000 club’ but even at that I would not have been surprised if I’d found instances of cheap-looking upholstery and/or drab grey rock-hard surfaces and cladding.
The only thing that jarred was a rather dull, lengthy central console between driver and front-seat passenger, that I felt took from the look of an otherwise well laid-out cabin.
And there was another blemish – I’ll come to that later if I may.
My test car sat well on the road; a perky little mad-colour Lime Green mini/supermini that looked as European as any a small hatch made on the Continent.
And, believe it or not, the brand not only expects it to take on the under-€20k club rivals, they also anticipate it could clash for cash with those of you who would otherwise be ordering a Toyota Yaris or something of that ilk for registration now or for the new year.
I do think it is a big ask: the Yaris is bullet proof surely? But given the dawn of a new scenario opened by the Chinese generally, you just wouldn’t know what would happen with the Surf. Certainly, the fact that it has a 308-litre boot similar in size to some of the bigger cars in the supermini class is an indication of just how far into the next-size segment it might go.
Within the new Surf lineup are several power and equipment options. Battery packs include: 30kWh (Active), 43.2kWh (Boost), and 115kWh (Comfort).
The €17,985 for the entry-level Active model jumps a good bit to €22,230 for the mid-range Boost model and to €24,113 for the test-car Comfort.
The Surf Active, with its 30kWh powerbase will, according to WLTP figures, stay the pace for 220kms between stops. As ever, so much depends on how it is driven, under what conditions and temperature and length of journey and speed. But even 220kms looks on the short side to me. I know it is only for city/suburban driving but I’d like a few more kilometres in the tank as it were. It has a front-mounted electric motor and you get 88hp.
The Dolphin Surf Boost is next up, at €22,230, and is a good bit away on price from the entry-level version. But it might be the one to go for.
While it too has the 88hp motor, the battery gets upgraded to 43.2kWh. That means you could, theoretically, cover a range of 322km. Even allowing for a 10pc/15pc real-world driving lower range that’s more like what you want so you’re not charging so much. It has the longest official range and can charge on some DC outlets at up to 85kW.
The Comfort version has the larger battery too and a more powerful motor. It develops 156hp. It doesn’t quite make it to the top on driving range: it’s officially quoted to be capable of covering 310km on one charge – just 12kms behind the previous model. You would have to say there is good choice of power there.
Spec levels are goof. Standard on all cars is a 10.1ins touchscreen that can rotate from portrait to landscape. It caters for a broad spread of safety elements They include driver assistance aids and intuitive Voice Control telling you to watch the road or advising that maybe now would be a good time to get a keep-you-awake coffee. As well as that you get navigation, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, Vehicle-to-Load (V2L) and synthetic leather upholstery.
Wheels go up an inch in the next step, the Dolphin Surf Boost model – from 15ins to 16ins rims – electrically adjustable front seats, electric-folding door mirrors as well as the driver/vehicle spread of safety elements.
The Comfort model adds a 360-degree camera system (every car should have one), auto headlights, puddle lights, rear privacy glass heated front seats, wireless phone charging.
The Surf is built on BYD’s e-Platform 3.0 chassis and powered by their cobalt-free lithium-ion Blade Battery.
My Comfort model was nice and nippy, just enough pep to get you quietly and quickly away from traffic lights. They claim it can get to 100kmh from a standing start in 9.1secs. The slowest speed to 100kmh is 12.1secs as if anyone wants to try.
Again, depending on model and battery you can, they claim, get a 10pc to 80pc charging speed of 30 minutes.
And so to the cabin where there are two dash-mounted displays: a central infotainment outlet and one behind the steering wheel that conveys key information to the driver.
Beneath the large, central multimedia infotainment touchscreen (which can be upright or landscape) lie only a few (strange looking) buttons.
The screen was clear but some of the little engravings on the buttons beneath were hard to make out. The etchings are just too weak.
We found it difficult initially to work out the meanderings of the ventilation system and were never fully happy with it.
As far as roominess goes, it was excellent. Two adults front and rear was not a problem; there was plenty of knee and head room.
You can add a lot of boot capacity by folding the rear seats (1,037 litres) And there are 20 storage areas all through the car – front-seat cupholders to a storage area beneath the boot floor to name just a couple.
I found the front sports seats to be excellent. It was only when I got into a different car that I appreciated the benefits of the Surf.
And it wasn’t just the seats.
One to watch, for sure.
