New energy vehicle giant BYD’s new electric hot hatch has just been revealed in China thanks to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), as shared by ThinkerCar on X.
Seal X, BYD Ocean-M’s production version
BYD officially debuted its new electric hot hatch concept, the Ocean-M, at the 2024 Beijing Auto Show.
In a significant turn of events, this concept has made the MIIT’s catalog of new models it plans to allow in the Chinese automotive market. The production version of the Ocean-M concept is dubbed “Seal X.”
The public can submit their feedback from May 12 to 17m, 2024. Notably, being included in the catalog is the final major regulatory process determining the approval for a vehicle to be up for sale in the country.
The filing revealed the BYD Seal X’s key specs and a hint on its potential name. While the model goes by the name Seal X, the X may just be a placeholder.
Design
While the official name remains vague, it is apparent that BYD eliminated many of the over-the-top design features from the Ocean-M concept.
BYD Seal X sports the same pair of angular headlights as the concept, but it now replaced the dramatic aerodynamic splitter with newly-shaped air intakes. The production version also lost the large air intakes on the concept’s hood.
BYD also removed the skirts’ large aero fins and fixed rear wing of the concept for the production version. The Seal X also now sports a much simpler rear diffuser, with the potential integration of a small LiDar.
Technical specs
BYD’s Seal X electric hot hatch will offer two power configurations: the base-level rear-wheel-drive and the dual-motor variant.
The RWD features a 215 hp (160 kW) single motor, while the top-tier version has a combined 416 hp (310 kW) power from its dual motor.
The new model boasts a top speed of 200 km/h. As expected, it will utilize BYD’s LFP batteries. However, the document did not indicate the battery capacity of the new electric hot hatch.
In hindsight, BYD revealed at the recent Beijing Auto Show that the new hot hatch will ride on an all-electric platform. Therefore, it will likely use the recently introduced e-Platform 3.0 EVO.
BYD plans to kick off the Seal X hatch’s production in Q3 2024, with customer deliveries following soon after.
