Should you buy one?

If you value your family car to be quiet, calm and easy to live with every day, then yes. The Seal U DM-i excels in its level of refinement, as well as offering a huge amount of equipment for a good amount less than a comparative plug-in hybrid SUV from Ford, Hyundai, Kia or Volkswagen.

But the BYD is deeply uninspiring to drive if you value that detail, with overly soft suspension that feels wobbly on the road and a generally loose driving experience. The space and practicality offered is only average at best, too.

What we like

We love the quietness of the BYD while it’s on the move, as it removes as many intrusive driving noises as possible for a calm experience. Performance is perfectly smooth, with good acceleration and the potential for big electric driving range and fuel economy figures. The Seal U-DM-i drives like an electric car, despite featuring an engine.

It’s also remarkably well equipped, offering a huge amount of standard equipment for the money, and the interior is neatly laid out and feels a good enough quality for the money.

What we don’t like

Our largest criticisms are to do with how the car handles – the steering feels vague and the suspension is overly soft, causing the car to tilt and lean through big corners. It also doesn’t seem capable of handling potholes and smaller ruts in the road without jiggling and jolting.

The infotainment screen will likely take a lot of time to get used to, and the boot space isn’t that competitive when looking at fellow plug-in hybrid family SUVs.