Five seats and Hungarian roots: BYD turns up the heat on Renault's small EVs

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BYD Dolphin Surf is set to shed one of its biggest drawbacks — the four-seat cabin. According to TestCoches, the brand has confirmed that in Spain the compact EV will get a five-seat version.

For Dolphin Surf, this matters more than it sounds. The Chinese Seagull, 3.78 m long, plays in segment A and is even 1 cm shorter than the Renault Twingo. But the European Dolphin Surf has been stretched to 3.99 m thanks to bigger bumpers, putting it closer to the B-segment: even the Renault 5 is shorter at 3.92 m.

Right now the model attacks on two fronts. The entry-level Active with a 30 kWh battery and 220 km of WLTP range competes with city EVs like the Twingo. The Boost and Comfort trims, with a 43.2 kWh pack and 322–310 km of range, already step onto Renault 5 turf. And the top Comfort delivers 156 hp — serious numbers for a car this size.

A fifth seat will make the BYD more practical for families and car-sharing fleets, where four seats often become a dealbreaker. Another upcoming ace is European production: Dolphin Surf will be the first model built at BYD's new plant in Hungary. That helps it dodge EU tariffs on Chinese EVs and unlock the full Plan Auto+ incentives.

If the price stays put, Dolphin Surf becomes even nastier for Renault: small, punchy, with respectable range — and now without the obvious cabin limitation.