Sealion 5: The next PHEV addition to BYD PH lineup?

BYD Cars Philippines may have a comprehensive lineup of full electric vehicles, but its plug-in hybrid offerings with the DM-I and DM-O technology could soon welcome its next addition.

The Land Transportation Office has released the homologation documents of the Sealion 5 crossover, making it eligible for sale in the Philippine market. For the unfamiliar, the Sealion 5 is a crossover that measures 4738mm long, 1860mm wide, 1710mm tall, and has a 2712mm wheelbase.

Size-wise, the Sealion 5 is slightly smaller than the Sealion 6, but nevertheless remains in the compact crossover class. In its home market, the Sealion 5 is also known as the Song Pro in BYD’s Dynasty network and heavily borrows styling cues from the BYD Destroyer 05, otherwise known as the BYD Seal 5 in our market.

Under the hood, the BYD Sealion 5 is equipped with the brand’s fifth-generation plug-in hybrid system marketed as the DM-I 5.0. Based on the LTO homologation documents, the crossover puts out 197 PS, and has a maximum estimated EV range of up to 71 km.

That seems lower than the Sealion 6 and Seal 5 but in the PRC, the Sealion 5 is available with a longer range version that comes with an 18.3 kWh LFP Blade battery, giving it an EV range of up to 115 km. Furthermore, the Sealion 5 could debut BYD's God's Eye C ADAS system for the Philippine market, as it comes equipped with 12 cameras, 5 radars, 12 ultrasonic sensors, and an Nvidia chip.

With size and EV range considered, the Sealion 5 could also possibly slot in between the Seal 5 and Sealion 6 in terms of pricing. The Seal 5 Premium is priced below PHP 1.2 million, while the Sealion 6 is priced just over PHP 1.5 million. That gives BYD a slot to price the Sealion 5 around the PHP 1.3 to 1.4 million range.

For now, BYD Cars Philippines has yet to give any announcements regarding an upcoming new model launch. But since the Sealion 5 already has its papers ready, then there’s good reason to expect a few teasers and updates from BYD in the coming weeks. Stay tuned.