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Everything you need to know about the BYD EA1 All the details of the BYD Dolphin, which we initially knew by its codename ‘BYD EA1,’ are now officially out now. Australia will get the BYD Dolphin, Nexport, the country’s official distributor of BYD vehicles, has confirmed. Design Wolfgang Egger, the former Audi design chief who is now the Global Design Director at BYD, has designed the Dolphin. The little electric hatchback is the first BYD model to adopt the company’s “marine design concepts,” and it premieres a new logo as well. The new Chinese EV features a swoopy but odd-faced front and sporty side and rear structures. The interior has a fluidic and minimalist design theme and a huge central touchscreen in landscape orientation. The cabin has more than 20 storage spaces, and the boot can accommodate four 20-inch cabin bags. YouTube channel Wheelsboy has uploaded a walkaround showing the BYD Dolphin in the metal. On the outside, the design of the lights, especially the tail lights, impresses the presenter. The technical-looking tail lights take inspiration from the Chinese knotting handicraft. The 16-inch two-tone alloy wheels look more than inspired by the VW ID.3’s 20-inch Sanya rims. Inside, the cylindrical panel of physical controls on the centre console has the attention of the YouTuber. Indeed, this panel with rotary dials for most functions and a nice little gear selector switch that allows selecting, drive, neutral, and drive with a simple flick is a neat touch. The sports seats in two-tone white/black colour and orange accents make the cabin very appealing for young car buyers. Platform The BYD Dolphin sits on the company’s new e-platform 3.0, but it is just an economical city car. So, it doesn’t benefit from the platform’s top-end specifications, like support for 800-volt high-power chargers for rapid charging, for instance. BYD calls e-platform 3.0 “the cradle of the next generation of electric vehicles.” The design of the vehicle body integrates the company’s ultra-safe Blade battery pack into it as a structural part. The new platform allows parameters like 2.9-second 0-100 km/h acceleration time, a 1,000 km range, and rapid charging at a level powerful enough to gain a 150 km range in just five minutes. The company suggests that the torsional rigidity of e-platform 3.0 models can be double that of its ICE models. Specifications The BYD Dolphin measures 4,070-4,150 mm in length, 1,770 mm in width, and 1,570 mm in height. The small electric car has a 2,700 mm wheelbase. It is available in three technical configurations, each with a different range. The base and middle configurations employ a 70 kW/180 Nm permanent magnet synchronous motor. This motor draws energy from a 30.7 kWh Blade LFP battery pack in the base configuration and a 44.9 kWh Blade LFP battery pack in the middle configuration. The base configuration provides a range of 301 km (NEDC), and the middle configuration allows a noticeably longer range of 405 km (NEDC). Both these configurations feature 16-inch alloy wheels with 195/60 R16 tyres. The top-end BYD Dolphin, which should make it to Australia, gets a more potent permanent magnet synchronous motor that generates 130 kW (177 PS) and 290 mm of torque. An MIIT filing that we have accessed has shown that it can attain a top speed of 160 km/h. Its battery pack is the same 44.9 kWh unit as that of the middle configuration, but it gives a slightly lower range of 401 km (NEDC). Price & Features The BYD Dolphin launch in China was held at the 2021 Chengdu Auto Show on 30 August 2021, with prices falling in the range of CNY 93,800-121,800 (AUD 19,808-25,721). According to a report from autohome.com.cn, BYD received 2,000 pre-orders for the Dolphin in just one hour after pre-sales began on 13 August 2021. LED headlights and taillights, heated ORVMs, 12.8-inch touchscreen infotainment system, 5-inch digital instrument cluster, heat pump, 6-way adjustable driver seat, 4-way adjustable front passenger seat, driving recorder, mobile key (NFC-based), and a panoramic sunroof are some of the main features of the Dolphin. It is worth noting here that no other EV in this segment comes with a heat pump.

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