Five innovative features of the BYD Dolphin

The BYD Dolphin is making waves in more ways than one

The toddler of the BYD line-up, the BYD Dolphin is subverting everything we ever thought an affordable, compact electric vehicle could be.

Gone are the days of having to compromise with a 99-mile range and limited tech when looking for an electric car lease.

The BYD Dolphin, despite its price tag, features some of the most innovative and industry-leading electric technologies, both under the bonnet and inside the cabin.

From the exterior styling to the rotating touchscreen to the Dolphin’s ability to power your kettle (or even your telly), we’ve broken down five of the most innovative features of the BYD Dolphin.

1. 60kWh battery and 265-mile range

Now, you might be thinking that a big ol’ battery and a good long range aren’t all that innovative.

And you would be correct.

Correct, that is, if you were comparing the BYD Dolphin to something much larger and much more expensive. But in terms of rivals that can beat it on the monthly lease price for the range?

You’re not going to find much there.

The Peugeot e-208 starts for price around where a BYD Dolphin lease ends, and the popular VW ID.3 is even more expensive than that. Though an MG4 EV lease is a closer rival, it’s still loses out on the base-spec model to the Dolphin when comparing range (218 miles to the Dolphins impressive 265) – and it’s not as pretty.

2. Ocean Aesthetic

Speaking of looks, the BYD Dolphin is the first car to hit UK shores with the Ocean Aesthetic styling.

You might be able to guess from the name, but the BYD Dolphin is the first of three to feature this fun new style. The larger Seal and the baby Seagull also pull from the seas for their design.

In a world where a futuristic space aesthetic seems to be dominating the EV market, the BYD pivot is a breath of fresh air.

The Dolphin itself is, in fact, inspired by a dolphin.

You'll win no prizes for guessing that one. The door handles are modelled after the flippers, and the entire side profile is built to resemble a leaping dolphin. It's a thing of beauty, really, with its two-tone colouring, all creases and swooping lines.

The Dolphin is available in seven different colour combinations with four exterior colourways and three interior ones. There’s the usual blacks and greys involved, but BYD also have you covered if you’re looking for something a little more fun, with a pink combination (pink interior included), and a purple exterior option.

It's fun, it’s fresh, it feels like a day out at the seaside no matter where you are.

3. Rotating touchscreen

The same tech featured in the BYD ATTO 3, the BYD Dolphin’s dash is dominated by the 12.8-inch touchscreen.

And not just any old touchscreen. This one rotates from portrait to landscape at either the flick of a button or a voice command.

While you’ll likely keep the screen in landscape most of the time, it is quite handy to be able to switch it about for different functions. You might even decide that you like portrait mode more – it’s completely up to you and your Dolphin.

It’s a nice party piece too.

You’ll be dining out on your new BYD Dolphin stories for weeks.

4. e-Platform 3.0 and Blade Battery

The Dolphin is built on the same platform as the ATTO 3, and it’s an innovative bit of kit.

The e-Platform 3.0 is designed with safety, intelligence, efficiency and performance at its core, and it utilises some of the newest tech to deliver the next generation of electric mobility.

Ultimately, what that means is that the e-Platform 3.0 is making a BYD lease one of the best, safest and most efficient out there – and they’re even more fun to drive.

BYD cars are particularly good in the winter, when most EVs perform at their worst (no-one likes a chilly morning, least of all a big battery) with the industry’s first direct cooling and heating system improving the efficiency of the battery in all temperatures.

BYD have also developed the Blade Battery.

It’s a lithium iron phosphate battery, which uses different chemistry to the majority of the EV batteries on the market, but beyond that it’s also been proved to be extremely safe.

Currently, the Blade Battery is the only one to pass the nail penetration test – the most stringent safety test on the market – emitting no smoke or fire after being penetrated.

The way the battery is designed also makes it smaller, freeing up more space in the rear for your passengers to get comfy.

5. Vehicle-to-Load technology

Vehicle-to-Load tech isn’t unique to BYD, but it’s not often seen in electric vehicles as inexpensive as the Dolphin.

It’s a pretty nifty bit of kit to have on board though.

Using vehicle to load charging (V2L), you can use the battery in your BYD Dolphin to power or charge electrical appliances. While you can’t charge another car using the Dolphin, you could bring your kettle along to your beach trip for a post-walk cuppa, or power your laptop for car park conferencing.

You could even bring your TV with you on your next camping trip, instead of trying to get away from it all.

Netflix under the stars?

Sold.