BYD Dolphin Review: The new budget EV of choice?

BYD might not be a household name in the UK just yet, but cars such as the Dolphin and Atto 3 seem likely to change that. In the case of the Dolphin, the Chinese brand is offering a small car with easily enough interior space to transport four tall adults, a range of up to 265 miles in the bigger battery model, and a price starting from around £26,000.

In this CarGurus UK review, Vicky Parrott explores the Dolphin's many plus points, as well as highlighting where it falls short compared with more established rivals.

Would you consider a BYD Dolphin over an MG4?

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00:00 Introduction
01:22 BYD Dolphin prices
02:22 Warranty
03:11 Boot space
03:28 Rear seats
03:55 Front seats, equipment and interior quality
06:05 Infotainment system
06:39 Charging speeds
07:11 BYD's Blade battery
08:38 Driving impressions
11:30 Real world range
11:50 Verdict

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#cargurusUK #byddolphin

[ViewOfTheWorlds]

As a office working guy who drive 40 minutes (one way) to offices 3-4 days a week, I don't really need a 60+k big EV, people keep a big family car to transport children and go on long holiday journey. The use case for EV is short journey for work or local shopping - so I need a good value small EV with reasonable range - no need for 800 miles. Small EV like this is what the market needs =)

[Geoff.Turner]

Why do reviewers never mention the car has voice control, so there's little need to touch the screen. Just hit the button on the steering wheel and say "Hey BYD, turn front screen demister on", or "Play BBC radio 2". Etc. I got my Dolphin two weeks ago, and it did take a while to demist, but I guess the car been in storage a while. Now it's warmed up and demister works fine. Lane keep assist has been improved with software updates.

[stephenhall]

Excellent review with no wasted time and silly jokes. All reviews should be this thorough.

[foodgrowers]

THANK YOU for the practical aspects first, review. Nice to finally see the pros/cons of the storage usefulness in the front end of the talk since that's the reason we select one over another - the usefulness of the space for our day to day work of living with a family or a job.

[shaunm]

Fantastic review Vicky - as always - great car ! Apart from the dodgy 'Lane Assist'

[rickidango]

One of the best and useful reviews of the Dolphin! Great to see you went through the smaller details.

[AhmidPrince]

The "Mazda Bungo Bungo" definitely made my day 😆😆😆

[alfamonk]

What is it about Lane-Assist? They're a massive pita. in our Tucson it can still catch me out after a year of getting used to it. Doesn't feel safe being pulled back into a lane, and if you forget to indicate on the motorway and pull across the lane...damn, it starts crying. Hate it.

[kevindgillam]

Thanks for the review. It strikes me that either BYD failed to fully brief you on the short cut access to various functions, the button controls and the excellent voice activated commands or you did not spend enough time to really get to know the car you were reviewing. The Dolphin is a truly accomplished package once you get to know and understand it.
A far better car than what its price suggests…

[peterarmstrong]

Not sure you have the range correct... I've had mine for 2 months (3k miles) with replacement tyres and have managed an average of 4.1 which includes Mainly motorways and A roads. The switches are easily accessible when you get to know the car and the lane assist takes 2 seconds to switch off. I prefer the dolphin over my old cupra born, mg4 and niro. Oh and the 0-60 is under 6.5 on cold roads..

[protagonist]

Nice car, will increase awareness of BYD and build it's brand image. Good environment credentials

[keithwilson]

You can use the Auto switch for the Air-Con and then tell it if you want it cooler or hotter.

[renbangbprd]

Without AC on the rear seat, is it quite comfortable in sunny weather (36c)?

[alexpang]

Someone over here in Europe is absolutely screwing the british and european motorist. This car in China for exactly the same model is just £9950 ! Who or why are they charging so much for a car that is now cheaper than an ICE equivalent. I would like to see an investigation. This is another reason the take up of EVs is so slow. Rediculous

[MrGMawson]

The BYD Dolphin has a RRP range of £30, 195 to £31, 695. However, with carwow you can save on average £907. Prices start at £29, 311 if paying cash. Monthly payments start at £295.

[alangravy]

Thank you for another superb review. I think it would be the MG4 for me. Looks better, doesn't have a silly name and I would expect the RWD MG is more fun to drive.

[garethmarshall]

£26000! The car sells in China for around £8500, how on earth does it cost that much? The tariffs being put on China are a bit ridiculous when an EV for £10-15000 is what we need! £26000 for that is a total rip off, regardless of how good it may be!

[xanpagebrown]

also worth noting that BYD also build the Chassis' for a far amount of the electric buses in the UK!

[fanjan]

Can we please move away form running EVERYTHING via a touch screen!!! For pete's sake! You have to take your eyes off the road for much longer to make minor changes where a physical button can become second nature by feel.

[graffitijungle]

To be honest, I think cars from this era may be too “new” for her. If she drives the car that has just been released in China, I think it would be very interesting.