Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) have drawn little attention in the South Korean market. They have been widely seen as a cumbersome choice that requires drivers to manage both refueling and charging, and their prices have weighed on buyers.
BYD is taking aim at that perception with the launch of the Sealion 6 DM-i in South Korea. The core concept of BYD's DM-i technology is that it is electric-centered. While most hybrid vehicles are built around an internal combustion engine with the motor serving as a supporting element, the DM-i positions itself as an electric-vehicle-based hybrid, led by a large-capacity battery and a high-performance motor.
Built on an electric-first design, the DM-i handles more than 80% of driving using the electric motor alone, without the engine. That is why it can deliver a driving feel and fuel economy close to that of an electric vehicle across most everyday driving conditions, including highway driving as well as city driving. The energy loss rate of BYD's electric motor is just 2.5%, meaning that for every 100 units of electric energy put in, 97.5 are converted into kinetic energy.
Fitted with an 18.3 kilowatt-hour (kWh) Blade Battery, the vehicle can travel up to 70 kilometers in EV mode on a single charge. When the battery runs low, it operates as a series hybrid, with the engine acting as a generator and the motor driving the wheels. In situations that require more power, such as hard acceleration or high-speed overtaking, it switches to a parallel hybrid mode, in which the engine and motor produce driving force at the same time.
It can also respond to a range of driving conditions through a series-parallel hybrid function that charges the battery while driving, and it uses direct engine drive on stretches where it is more efficient for the engine to power the wheels directly, such as steady high-speed cruising. With a combined fuel economy of 15.2 kilometers per liter and a 60-liter fuel tank, a simple calculation puts its range at about 980 kilometers.
The DM-i is the fruit of hybrid technology that BYD has evolved over a long period. Since launching the F3DM, the world's first mass-produced PHEV model, in 2008, BYD has continued to advance the technology for 18 years. BYD's DM-i models have now sold more than 8 million units worldwide.
BYD Korea priced the Sealion 6 DM-i in the mid-30 million won range, once again breaking the assumption that PHEVs are expensive. It also comes with premium driver-assistance features as standard, including intelligent cruise control, blind-spot detection, lane-departure warning and a 3D surround-view monitor that lets drivers check the area around the vehicle in a full 360 degrees.
