PETALING JAYA: Sime Darby Motors today unveiled the second electric vehicle (EV) from BYD - the highly anticipated BYD Dolphin.
The 5-door hatchback now joins the Atto 3 EV launched earlier in December 2022.
Offered in two variants, the entry-level Dynamic Standard Range comes with a retail price of RM99,900 and the Premium Extended Range variant at RM124,900.
Attending the launch at 1Utama Shopping Centre were Sime Darby Bhd group chief executive officer Datuk Jeffri Salim Davidson, Sime Darby Motors Southeast Asia, Hong Kong and Macau retail and distribution managing director Jeffrey Gan, BYD Asia Pacific Auto Sales Division general manager Liu Xueliang and BYD Malaysia Sdn Bhd managing director Eagle Zhao.
Colour options include Urban Grey with Grey and Black Interior or Sand White with Brown and Black Interior for the Dynamic Standard Range.
The Premium Extended Range rolls in with three dual-colour combinations of Atlantis Grey with Delan Black and Ski White with Urban Grey - both featuring a Grey and Black interior.
Meanwhile, Surf Blue with Urban Grey uses a Blue and Black colour combination for its interior.
Externally, the Dolphin's standard features include LEDs for the headlights and rear light clusters (cabin lights included too) while illuminating the entire 1,770mm width of this EV's fore and aft.
At 1,470mm-tall and 4,290mm-long, it sports a 2,700mm wheelbase while rolling on 16-inch wheels with 195/60 series tyres which hide the front MacPherson struts and rear torsion beam as well as partially obscure the brake discs (with regenerative braking) at all four corners.
The base variant uses a 44.9kWh BYD Blade battery to power up its permanent magnet synchronous motor, producing 70kW and 180Nm of torque, and dedicates itself to the front wheels.
The Dolphin comes equipped with a Mode 2 portable charging cable and it is capable of receiving up to 60kW of DC power (80kW for the Extended range) while also being able to provide Vehicle-to-Load (V2L) via an included V2L adapter.
The Dynamic Standard Range can sprint from 0 to 100kph in 12.3 seconds and can go up to 340km (WLTP).
The accoutrements that accompany the entry-level Dolphin are LEDs for the front and rear lights as well as powered external mirrors with power-fold function.
Inside, the cabin features an Ocean Aesthetic interior design concept that has its upholstery wrapped in faux leather while the digital screens include a sole 5.0-inch digital instrument cluster for the driver and a rotatable (panoramic or portrait) 12.8-inch infotainment touchscreen with an inbuilt satellite navigation system that powers the six-speaker sound system.
Along with its fin-shaped door latches, the Dolphin boasts of having a 360-degree high-definition camera system while keyless entry with push-start start button, driver-side one-touch powered windows with anti-pinch function, four USB ports (Type-A and Type-C for the front and rear) as well as Bluetooth connectivity and Apple CarPlay (wired) are standard-issue.
For safety, the Dolphin is able to provide plenty of peace of mind with its inclusion of six airbags, anti-lock braking system, front and rear seatbelt pre-tensioners, tyre-pressure monitoring system, intelligent power brake system, electric parking brake, electronic stability control, traction control, electronic brakeforce distribution and front (two) and rear (three) parking sensors.
Also included as standard is the advanced driver assist systems (ADAS) which include adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking system, lane departure warning, lane keep assist, predictive collision warning, rear collision warning, blindspot detection, rear cross-traffic alert and braking system, lane departure prevention, emergency lane-keeping assist and lane change collision warning.
The higher-specced Premium Extended Range variant sports a higher capacity battery 60.48kWh BYD Blade Battery which allows it to travel further - up to 427km (WLTP), while having 150kW and 310Nm of torque.
The Premium Extended Range is also quicker in the 0-100kph dash in 7.0 seconds.
Here, its rear torsion beam suspension makes way for a more sophisticated multi-link set before upsizing its wheels to 17-inch with 205/50 series tyres.
Furthermore, the list of added goodies comprises a panoramic glass roof with a double-tap touch function for the powered blind, an integrated wireless phone charger, a six-way powered driver seat, a four-way powered front passenger seat and front seat ventilation.
The rear of the cabin's centrally mounted LED cabin lights have been replaced with LED side reading lights before adding a one-touch power window function with anti-pinch for all windows while dual-stage pre-tensioner seatbelts are now used for the front seats.
Deliveries will start next month and the company expects 70% of buyers to opt for the Dynamic Standard Range variant and the rest for the Premium Extended Range.
The Dolphin is currently available for viewing and test drives at 1Utama Shopping Centre from 10am-10pm on July 28-30.
After the launch event, the Dolphin be available in all BYD showrooms.
For more information, visit http://byd.simedarbymotors.my/ or follow www.facebook.com/BYDCarsMalaysia or www.instagram.com/bydcarsmalaysia/.
For enquiries, contact the customer care number at 1300-38-1888.
