The BYD Dolphin Surf is a smaller car than it appears in these images. It may immediately surprise you as a result. It’s roughly similar in size to the new Renault 5 E-Tech – and that’s a car that’s actually larger than it looks online.
If that’s not clear, call it supermini-sized, a fully electric alternative to models such as the Vauxhall Corsa and Volkswagen Polo. Remember, superminis are the UK’s favourite type of car, which makes this a significant new entrant.Â
It’s a highly affordable one, too. New BYD Dolphin Surf prices are set to start from £18,650. Never mind by EV standards, that makes it one of the UK’s cheapest cars of all.
There’s only one Vauxhall Corsa, a petrol-powered one, that costs less to buy. A Corsa Electric is over £8,000 more. Even the cheapest new Citroen e-C3, billed as a landmark for EV pricing, is nearly £3,500 more expensive.
World Urban Car 2025
Inevitably, that’s for the smaller of two battery options, the 30kWh unit, which has a 137-mile range. Expect to pay around £3,000 more for the 43.2kWh battery, which offers a 200-mile range. That’s still exceedingly cheap. The cheapest Fiat 500 Electric, with a teeny 24kWh battery, is an eye-watering £25,000.
Sure, an electric Dacia Spring costs even less than the new BYD, but the compromises there are obvious – from the first time you clang its cheap, tinny door shut.
The BYD Dolphin Surf is a different proposition altogether. It has already been on sale for some time in China, where it’s known as the BYD Seagull. This qualified it for the 2025 World Car Awards – where it subsequently scooped the World Urban Car 2025 gong.
Now, it’s coming to Europe and the UK (and it will soon be built in the West, at BYD’s new factory in Hungary).
Sporty styling, smart interior
The crossover SUV design cues are fun, particularly in the vivid yellow launch colour seen here. I like the bold front bumper (lengthened over the BYD Seagull to boost its Euro NCAP safety potential) and the undercut lower body sides add athleticism. The door handles are also neatly flush, like in premium cars. The angular rear looks sporty and surely few small cars have such a large rear spoiler.
Inside, it’s a bit of a revelation. Those expecting cheap and cheerful, recalibrate your expectations. There are some genuinely smart materials used, from the textile on the door armrests and dash panel, to the premium-looking central controls and, yes, BYD’s trademark rotating touchscreen. You can even get ambient lighting for a high-tech look at night.
There will be three versions of the BYD Dolphin Surf, called Active, Boost and Comfort. Active gets the smaller 30kWh battery, with Boost and Surf featuring the larger 43.2kWh unit. There are two motors as well – here, Active and Boost share an 87hp motor, with Comfort getting a surprisingly generous jump up to 154hp.
Apple and Android ready
I drove the top-spec Comfort, which is expected to sell for around £25,000 (still less than the cheapest Vauxhall Corsa Electric). Its standard spec includes electric front seats, wireless smartphone charging and electric folding door mirrors, along with the 10.1-inch touchscreen, air conditioning (albeit not climate control) and a handy reversing camera.
It feels spacious from behind the wheel. The high-backed seats are decent and the driving position is good, with low sides helping in-town visibility. Reach-adjustable steering is a welcome touch, and the high centre console places your smartphone within fingertip reach, complete with a wireless charging pad (unlike a Tesla, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are included).
There are niggles, though. There is a row of physical buttons on the dash, but not for important things like changing the temperature. The touchscreen buttons are tiny too, making them hard to use on the move. And the clock is so small, you can barely read it. Buttons on the steering wheel are fiddly, and the gear selector is a bit over-styled – ‘park’ is actually a hidden button on the side. Many will miss it.
World-first EV tech
Rear-seat space is good for a small car. It can accommodate adults and the flat floor adds a feeling of roominess. It’s easy to step in and out of, and while the floor is high, there is still space for feet under the front seats. It is a four-seater only, though, while the high-backed front seats do block forward vision.
The BYD Dolphin Surf has a perfectly fine 316-litre boot with the seats up, expanding to 1,037 litres with them folded down. There’s a useful extra stowage space beneath the boot floor, which is actually large enough for an airline carry-on-sized suitcase.
The Dolphin Surf has a ‘world first’ eight-in-one powertrain. This combines all the major drive components, including the electric motor, into one unit. It’s highly advanced and shows BYD’s leadership in electric car technology.
Heavy car, but light work
On the road, the BYD performs really well. The motor feels next-generation in its general power delivery and response. It’s smooth and crisp as you go on and off the accelerator, and it’s refined too. A distant dose of in-city whirr stands in contrast, for example, to the milk-float whine of the £15,995 Leapmotor T03 city car at lower speeds.
The 154hp output sounds quite punchy, but the BYD Dolphin Surf weighs almost 1.4 tonnes (a new Volkswagen Golf GTI isn’t much heavier). Performance is fine, with 0-62mph in 9.1 seconds, but you won’t mistake it for a hot hatch, even if it is easy to spin the front wheels when you jump on the accelerator out of junctions. Crucially, you’ll have no problem keeping up with traffic at speed.
This feeling of sophistication extends to the ride, which is quiet and composed in town. Broken road surfaces are well isolated, and it’s quiet over rough roads too – this further enhances decent all-round refinement.
Verdict: BYD Dolphin Surf
Such soft suspension means plenty of body lean if you’re enthusiastic in corners. While the steering is OK, with confident stability at speed, it too isn’t as slick as the best in this sector. Needless to say, the ADAS is also over-attentive; we were scolded with bleeps simply for glancing at the touchscreen.
Such niggles apart, the BYD Dolphin Surf is a promising car that should once again worry the established brands in the UK. Ford says it can’t even justify making a petrol-powered Fiesta anymore – yet here’s BYD with an electric supermini that looks good, performs well and sells for a price potentially comparable with a Dacia Sandero.
As its UK launch nears, attention is certain to build. But first impressions of this surprisingly complete and grown-up small EV certainly justify it.
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