[GoBabyGo]

Originally Posted by ManiPrakash

The car is much bigger if I compare it to Honda City.
The seating position is definitely lower but since it's a long car, you wont find dearth of space at all. I am 5'10.5, and with my driving position, my brother who is 6'4, didn't find the lack of leg space sitting right behind me.

However, there are few things to note.
Due to battery under the hood, the knees are relatively upright if you compare it to ICE cars. Also, the space is limited under the front seat to stretch your legs, but I believe that is needed only if you have lack of space in the backseat.

If you're under 6 feet in the driving seat, the rear passenger with similar height wouldn't find it an issue at all. But since everyone has a diff definition of comfort, you might want to try if it suits your requirements.

Hope that helps.

Hi, thank you for the update. If you can share your thoughts on getting in & stepping out of the car, compared to City (which I also drive). Is it similar to City or slightly difficult like in Civic for people aged between 40 to 65 years and above 70 years old. I am asking because elderly people of my family are never comfortable getting in & out in my brother's Civic whereas they are okay in my City. They also say that sitting in Civic back seat is like sitting on the floor.

I am asking because Seal may look very low in GC and height wise but since it has battery under it so may be actual entry exit level might be similar to City (quoting City as rederence only)

[ManiPrakash]

Originally Posted by GoBabyGo

Hi, thank you for the update. If you can share your thoughts on getting in & stepping out of the car, compared to City (which I also drive). Is it similar to City or slightly difficult like in Civic for people aged between 40 to 65 years and above 70 years old. I am asking because elderly people of my family are never comfortable getting in & out in my brother's Civic whereas they are okay in my City. They also say that sitting in Civic back seat is like sitting on the floor.

I am asking because Seal may look very low in GC and height wise but since it has battery under it so may be actual entry exit level might be similar to City (quoting City as rederence only)

Honestly, City is a bit higher. so for aged people, it's easier to get inside a City.
You are on point comparing the ingress/egress to Civic. it's slightly better than Civic as it's seated higher due to battery but not as high as City.

Back seats have probably more padding, so it's slightly better as compared to the front seats. But reiterating, under thigh support I believe are better in ICE cars. Due to battery, the legs are positioned a bit upright which I observed in both the Seal and Ioniq 5

Hope that helps.

[wheeledwanderer]

If it were me, I would keep away from BYD brand, they do not have a very good reputation within China where I have been recently.

[darkchild82]

Originally Posted by wheeledwanderer

If it were me, I would keep away from BYD brand, they do not have a very good reputation within China where I have been recently.

BYD's sales in their own home market are crashing.

[wheeledwanderer]

Exactly and plagued with troubles of low quality, failures & poor customer service. That reminds me of this quote which is self explanatory.

Most of the time, Quality and Price are directly proportional to each other, low quality = low price, high quality = high price!

I have hardly seen a different case!

[ManiPrakash]

Originally Posted by wheeledwanderer

If it were me, I would keep away from BYD brand, they do not have a very good reputation within China where I have been recently.

At a personal level I would disagree to this. I was posted in China from 2016 to 2018 during my corporate stint and I have experienced BYD vehicles first hand. Not as driver though but as a passenger.

Moreover, checked with my Chinese peers too before taking this decision which is big on my pocket. And overall, I got a positive response.

Keeping aside our political turbulence but from pure business perspective, trust me when I say this, Asians are terrible marketers as compared to western counterparts. Despite being the largest battery manufacturers, BYD has failed terribly to make themselves known beyond South East Asia.

That might change when more products are launched in western countries. Anyway, my point is, Quality I dont doubt at the price point as compared to ither vehicles in the same category. Aftersales is something that I will get to know and will definitely share with the larger group here.

[wheeledwanderer]

Originally Posted by ManiPrakash

At a personal level I would disagree to this.
I was posted in China from 2016 to 2018 during my corporate stint and I have experienced BYD vehicles first hand. Not as driver though but as a passenger.

Moreover, checked with my chinese peere too before taking this decision which is big on my pocket. And overall, i got the positive response.

Keeping aside our political turbulence but from pure business perspective, trust me when I say this, Asians are terrible marketers ad compared to western counterparts. Despite being the largest battery manufacturers, BYD has failed terribly to make themselves known beyond South East Asia.

That might change when more products are launched in western countries. Anyway, my point is, Quality I dont doubt at the price point as compared to ither vehicles in the same category. Aftersales is something that i will get to know and will definitely share with the larger group here.

You may watch some videos about BYD quality on YouTube. Let us give the benefit of doubt that these are all false because anyone can write anything on the web. So we will wait your first hand report in the months to come!

[kaviprem]

Originally Posted by ManiPrakash

BYD SEAL
Drove it for close to 40 kms, the Premium version (mid variant) and i was blown away. What a drive. It's faaaaaasssstttttt. No other car mentioned above comes close.

Wishing you a lot of e-Miles with Seal!

What about the "real world" drive range in Seal - Premium you got?

Thanks!

[sudiptaadhya]

Originally Posted by ManiPrakash

Afterall driving all these cars multiple times through multiple dealers in Delhi and Gurgaon, I finally booked BYD SEAL PREMIUM.

It was a tough choice and I am aware SEAL is not an everywhere car but I am willing to take that bet for the amazing driving dynamics this car has to offer.

The SEAL looks amazing - congratulations on your purchase!

Has the dealer given details around the battery warranty and the replacement cost? It seems that the battery is integrated directly into the chassis.

Source: https://bydautoindia.com/bydseal

Upgraded e-Platform 3.0 with Cell To Body Technology

In 2022, BYD released the Cell To Body technology, it further integrates the battery and the vehicle body floor together, making the original battery pack's “sandwich” structure evolve into a "sandwich" structure for the complete vehicle. Thus, the updated e-platform 3.0 with Cell To Body technology greatly improves the vehicle safety, stability, handling and performance.

[girish.purswani]

Originally Posted by Hayek

As someone who owns a BMW X3 20d (which lots of our BHPians diss for being underpowered and unrefined for its price point) and also a Tiguan Allspace & an Ioniq 5, I think I am well placed to offer my two bits without having driven either the current X1 or the Seal.

Buying any luxury car at any price point does not make sense on an Excel sheet. Mass market brands like Hyundai, Kia and VW have products that on paper are as good if not better than those of Mercedes, BMW, Audi, Volvo or JLR. But an increasing number of people all over the world still buy luxury cars.

And that is because a car is an emotional purchase - it is the most visible indicator of your having arrived at a certain level of success. It is very easy for someone like me who already has an X3 to buy a Tiguan Allspace (which is as powerful and more spacious than an X3, and was available for half the price) as a second car. It is a great car - very refined, good interiors, nice to drive - but I still prefer to drive my X3 which has a certain “Je ne sais quoi” which an Allspace does not give. So if you want to upgrade to a luxury brand - do it! Drive comparable cars from these brands and buy the one you like. Based on my own experience, you will be happy with that car 6-7 years and 60-70,000 km down the line. A Seltos may offer a lot of what the X1 does at half the price (and more in some respects) but it won’t give you the delight of having fulfilled an aspiration. If you put cars on an Excel sheet, every Indian would buy the Innova Hycross.

If you wish to consider EVs, BYD in most markets is a great choice. But in India, it currently represents a major gamble. Despite their partner, Megha Engineering, being the biggest purchaser of Electoral Bonds, their FDI application was turned down. India is too big a market for them to ignore and they will try for a few years. But we don’t know how geopolitics will shape up and you could well end with them pulling out.

Hence if I were in your place and wanted an EV, I would (and have) look at the Ioniq 5 and potentially at the Skoda Enyaq and VW ID4 assuming they will be launched shortly. I might even look at new offerings from MG - whose JV with JSW makes them a far more stable choice in India. And of course I would look at the largest selling car of them all - the Tesla Model Y - which could well launch in 6 months or so.

If I could stretch my budget by another ₹20 l, I would consider the IX1 and the Volvo C40. But even ignoring the fact that the Seal is a low slung sedan which you would need to drive very carefully, BYD is a huge gamble.

Btw, from what I have seen, resale values for luxury cars after 5-6 years hold far better than those for mass market products.

Best wishes and do let us know what you decide.

Thanks Hayek! I have saved this response for anyone who will potentially ask me if I was stupid enough to book the x1 18i MSport. 😂

[ajmat]

Originally Posted by ManiPrakash

Moreover, checked with my chinese peere too before taking this decision which is big on my pocket. And overall, i got the positive response.

I made a small investment in a fleet operator with 75 BYD-6's and are scaling up. They have no issues except the odd electrical niggle.

[vij]

@ManiPrakash
Congrats on your purchase.

I have considered BMW X1, but then when I see someone driving a BMW X1, I kind of get the "more money than sense" vibes. Mind you this personal feeling is only about their entry level car. And consequently I cant see myself buying the X1, what would my peers think of me if I did

The Seal looks like a great car, my only worry is whether BYD will be allowed to function normally in India.

[samyakmodi]

I have voted for other.

There are a lot of capable cars in the price bracket you have mentioned. Would definitely not recommend the BMW X1 for the obvious reasons stated by every one else here, but also because BMW alloys seem to be extremely fragile. Considering the roads in Gurugram, I would not recommend anyone ever to buy a BMW. My 630D has had 3 alloys cracked in past almost 4 years of ownership inspite of babying it around. And road conditions in Indore are much better than Gurugram - so it might have higher ground clearance, but alloys are prone to cracking and bending, strongly would recommend not to consider the BMW for that reason alone.

BYD although seems to be a great car but the future of EV cars is totally unknown. With the lower ground clearance it would be tedious to drive it in Gurugram so would stay clear from it as well. Also like I said future of TVs is totally unknown as I highly doubt you would have any resale value when you plan to sell it after 5/6 years as the battery would have degenerated substantially (and the warranty also is just for 8 years), buyer for your car would probably haggle with you for these reasons - making the car's price drop like any 5/6 year old gadget. If I were in your shoes I would have steered clear from TVs for these reasons. Cost of ownership VS cost of running - there is no comparison. You would save more money buying an ICE car as they would still be saleable in the used market after few years which can not be said for EVs.

Would suggest you wait for the new Kodiaq to come along, or make use of the fantastic deals they might offer for the last few pieces left in the country before they launch the newer model.

[Cresterk]

Originally Posted by wheeledwanderer

Exactly and plagued with troubles of low quality, failures & poor customer service. That reminds me of this quote which is self explanatory.

Most of the time, Quality and Price are directly proportional to each other, low quality = low price, high quality = high price!

You might believe this until you own a Range Rover or a Jaguar.

Nowadays, pricing has nothing to do with quality but it has everything to do with brand perception.

[heydj]

Neither is my vote unless snob value matters to you and you are someone who likes to or wants to say to your friends you own a BMW.

You had City, need a SUV and have budget for X1. I would in this scenario buy a nice Diesel SUV like Fortuner or buy X3 from used market.