2025 BYD Seagull GLX EV

Charging forward

In the recent holiday break, I was able to meet friends and family I hadn’t seen in a long time. Most of those gatherings usually ended up with me being asked about age-related stuff. You know they kind where they ask about relationships, marriage, and whatnot. All answered with a next question please.

With my line of work, I also got a lot of automotive-related questions that I was more than happy to answer. Apart from being asked which new cars would be a good buy, I’m surprised that most are also curious about the BYD brand.

I wouldn’t really fault them for that as BYD had a breakout year in 2024. Locally, their new model introductions and their pricing simply left us with the Owen Wilson kind of “wow”. It started with the Atto 3, then they followed it up with the Sealion 6 DM-i that ended up as Autoindustriya’s 2024 Car of the Year. We’re yet to fully try out the Seal 5 which promises an even greater range than the Sealion 6. BYD is on a charge, literally and figuratively. 

If there’s one thing I’ve learned in my career as a motoring journalist, it’s that just because a particular model from a brand was impressive, doesn’t always mean it’s the same for the rest of the lineup. And when I got back in the office this year, I was handed the keys to BYD’s most affordable model – the Seagull. Let’s see how BYD does its execution to a micro-sized EV.

At first glance, the Seagull is indeed unmistakable when you see one on the road, especially in this tester that’s painted in Sprout Green. Let’s quickly get it out of the way – the aggressive front end does have some styling cues that appear inspired by Lamborghini. It’s different compared to the likes of the Atto 3 or the Sealion 6, as BYD likes to exercise creative freedom instead of having a standard design language for its models. It’s not like what BMW does with the kidney grille or the dynamic shield from Mitsubishi.

The Seagull is full of hard angles and sharp character lines, reminding me of the Mitsubishi Colt Ralliart from the early 2000s with its silhouette. It’s a different approach from cars like the Dongfeng Nanobox and the Jetour Ice Cream which go for a more cute and friendly design language, but I think it rather works well for the Seagull in that regard. If it was any larger it would have looked intimidating. But because it’s tiny at under 4 meters, it’s an adorable attempt to be angry-looking.

There are two interior color choices to choose from for the Seagull. One is the black and dark blue with orange stitching, the tester we had was iPhone 5C-spec with the light blue. Apparently, this one’s exclusive to the Sprout Green color, so I’ve learned.

As BYD’s most affordable model in the country, you’ll be pleasantly surprised that the Seagull’s cabin doesn’t feel like its price tag. Sure, there are hard plastics around but there are soft-touch surfaces where you want them, like the door cards and the front armrest. Not to mention, the steering wheel is wrapped in leather, along with the bucket-style seats.

Since the Seagull belongs to the Ocean series, you’ll see a few shared elements inside with the bigger Dolphin like the steering wheel, and the roller-style switches at the center console that include the gear selector, A/C controls, and the volume for the infotainment. But in terms of design, BYD was more subtle with the Seagull by having simpler lines and horizontal-style vents rather than the circular ones found on the Dolphin.

Much like other models in the BYD lineup, the 10.1-inch touchscreen can rotate from landscape to portrait-style while the 7-inch instrument screen is neatly laid out with information such as the energy meter, speedometer, range to empty, and state of charge. Smartphone connectivity is a breeze thanks to wireless Apple Carplay and Android Auto, while the speakers give decent audio quality as I played my tunes on Spotify.

The stretched wheelbase, high roof, and cab-forward layout do wonders inside, as legroom and headroom were not an issue for my size (5’9”) even in the second row. Four adults can comfortably sit inside this tiny car but if you want to squeeze in five, then expect elbow room to be a bit of an issue.

While it’s surprisingly roomy in the front and rear seats, opening up the hatch of the Seagull reveals its limitations when it comes to rear cargo space. But such is expected for a car that’s way less than 4 meters long. There’s still a usable amount of space to fit in a small collapsible crate and a 25-liter cooler, but the rest of the back would already be occupied by the kits provided by BYD for home charging, V2L, and tire repair. Fitting in a week’s worth of groceries would probably require you to lay down the rear seats.

There are a few things you have to get used to by the time you get behind the wheel of the Seagull. The first would be the position of the gear (or drive) selector on the center console, and the second is that no matter how much you adjust your driving position, you still won’t see the edge of the hood with its sloping design. You can almost treat the Seagull as if you’re driving a flat-nosed van in that regard.

Once you get those out of the way, then you’ll spend most of your time appreciating the Seagull’s driving dynamics. Unlike other tiny EVs that drive more like golf carts, the Seagull drives like a proper hatchback - complete with a slightly firm but agile handling. With the wheels stretched out far and wide, the Seagull remains planted as you weave in and out of urban traffic. At city speeds, the instant torque makes the car zippy, giving you the confidence to pull off overtaking moves on slow-moving vehicles with ease.

Of course, it won’t always be rainbows and butterflies behind the wheel for a car of this size and price. Once you reach the expressways, wind and tire noise start to creep in at around 80 km/h. The suspension can take on a beating with the many cracks and bumps along the expressway but drive-wise, you have to be wary of fast-moving buses as it could easily shake the car when they pass through. That is really the compromise you have to deal with in the Seagull, but the same applies to any other small hatchbacks around.

The BYD Seagull’s energy consumption will depend on how you bury your right foot in the throttle. If you’re the type of driver who likes to go for quick acceleration bursts and start-stop motion, then expect the energy consumption to average somewhere in the 7km per kWh range.

As I found out, there’s a better way to maximize the Seagull’s 30 kWh blade battery. From a stop, I kept the energy meter in the 10-12 kW range as I accelerated. Once I reached cruising speeds, I let off the throttle and kept it somewhere in the 5-6 kW range. Make good use of momentum and the Seagull’s regenerative braking feature, and the average consumption can yield up to 12.5 km per kWh.

I applied the same technique when I brought the Seagull from Manila to Batangas for a weekend drive, and I only spent 35% of the battery going South. With more downhill sections on the way back to Manila, I consumed only 30% of the battery. The back-and-forth trip was an easy 200 km, and I still had enough battery juice to go around the Metro. That was not too far from BYD’s claimed range of 300 km on a single charge with the Seagull.

There were, however, a few issues I encountered when it came to charging the BYD Seagull. Apart from the lack of charging stations in the South, the portable home charger that came with the car was quite picky for its plug. You have to make sure the 220V socket you have at home is properly grounded for it to work. On my end, I just ended up plugging in the Seagull to a mall AC charger. Good thing I was able to juice up the batteries from 8% to 62% in about 4 hours – just enough time to watch a movie, do groceries, and have a proper meal.

Overall, the BYD Seagull presents an attractive proposition for those who want to switch to EVs. It has the looks and nice build quality, it’s fun to drive in the city, it’s tiny, you have pretty much all the features you need for daily driving, and it doesn’t take much time to recharge the batteries.

However, no matter how much I give my praises on the vehicle itself, my time with the Seagull made me realize that switching to EV ownership takes more than just buying the car. It will require a lot of factors to consider – your driving routes, lifestyle, and even your location in the country.

BYD and ACMobility have made it more attainable to purchase a proper EV with the Seagull at PHP 898,000, but it’s the EV infrastructure in the country that needs to catch up to make EV ownership more compelling.