MOTORING REVIEW: BYD Dolphin Surf built for the city

In September, Chinese automotive company BYD introduced its all-electric Dolphin Surf to the Irish market, expanding its line-up to six models. 

This 4-door, 4-seater hatchback was designed for motorists looking for an affordable electric car that is attractive looking, practical, climate-friendly, economical to own and to run. The Dolphin Surf fits the bill on all counts. Competitors include the Dacia Spring, Hyundai Inster, and Citroen’s new e-C3. 

I can see the ‘Surf’ appealing to many younger folk as it looks like a cool, fun-loving car with a sharp design, but just not in the black exterior colour of my review car. It looks better in lighter colours that include a bright Lime Green. 

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This is the smallest car in the BYD line-up, measuring just 3,990mm long, 1,720mm wide, 1.59mm tall, and with a wheelbase of 2,500mm, which makes it very agile to drive on city streets and to manoeuvre into really tight parking spaces. 

Getting in and out is relatively easy for tall people. Headlights consist of six angled light strips that add to the front’s funky design; daytime-running lights also help create a sharp look. The C-pillar has a dot-matrix design inspired by ice crystals that helps to visually separate the roof, creating a ‘floating’ effect. The integrated roof spoiler adds to the sporty look and helps improve aerodynamic efficiency and range. Full-width LED taillights also feature. My car had the green ‘flash’ registration plates recently introduced for zero-emission vehicles.  

The cabin has plenty of room for four adults. Front sports seats with integrated headrests are both comfy and supportive and have power adjustments. 

The dash features a 10.1-inch rotatable touchscreen with Apple CarPlay/Android Auto connectivity, navigation as standard, and voice control. Saying ‘Hi BYD’ allows you to access many key functions without scrolling through the screen, which is always useful. Below the screen is a tube-like set of controls for the dual zone climate control, air conditioning, and drive modes of Eco, Normal and Sport - but you have to go through the screen for the temperature controls. The actual temperature setting is shown on the bottom of the touchscreen in tiny figures. It wasn’t intuitive, and easier controls would be a big improvement. At the end of the tube is the twisty automatic transmission shifter. 

The smaller driver’s cluster screen is much more colourful with all the necessary information and graphics. 

There are two C-type USBs, a big wireless phone charger on the central console, an open storage area located near the floor between the front seats, a decent-sized glovebox and big door bins front and rear. 

Just two seats in the rear. Knee and head room is fine for most adults, and there’s a flat floor. All models have ISOFIX anchor points, front and rear.

The boot capacity of 308 litres can extend to 1,037 litres with rear seats folded. The high boot floor allows for easy loading and unloading, and there's a storage area below the floor for charging cables.

Features included a 360-degree camera system that simultaneously shows a view of both front and rear on the split screen. 

The model is built on BYD’s e-platform and powered by their cobalt-free lithium-ion battery. Batteries for the three variants are a 30kWh pack (Active) and 43.2kWh (Boost), while the Comfort trim has a 43.2kWh battery and 115hp motor, the latter being my review car. 

The charging port is to the front of the driver’s door, and you can charge from 10-80 per cent in under 30 minutes at a DC rapid charge station.

Safety equipment includes six airbags, an Advanced Driver-Assistance System (ADAS) with intelligent cruise control, automatic emergency braking, lane-departure assist and intelligent high-beam control. Euro NCAP has awarded the model the maximum five-star safety rating.

I had to go through screens to turn off some driver assistance systems. The driver's facial camera on the A-pillar is an intrusive distraction, and I lost count of the number of times I was told to ‘focus on the road’ while doing just that, even when driving slowly in a housing estate, with an accompanying yellow eye glaring at me on the instrument cluster. Placing masking tape over the offending camera allowed me to travel in peace. 

All-around visibility is good. Steering is light but not overly so. Acceleration time from 0-100km/h is 9.1 seconds, and the driving range with the Comfort grade is a WLTP-rated 322 km, which proved accurate during my days with the car.

The Dolphin Surf can support an outdoor lifestyle with Vehicle to Load (V2L) technology that turns your car into a power bank to charge your computer, play video games or plug in a coffee machine away from home. 

The model has already gained international recognition, being voted World Urban Car of the Year at this year’s World Car of the Year Awards.

Prices are from €17,095-€24,113. Annual road tax €120.