No one names cars after marine mammals, do they? BYD, the Chinese auto giant, does. Already it has plunged into the UK market with the Dolphin, a medium-size hatchback, and now it has taken another leap with a battery-powered sports saloon called the Seal. Presumably next there’ll be a large SUV called the Whale.
So far the blubbery names don’t seem to have deterred buyers: BYD, which stands for Build Your Dreams, recently overtook Tesla in global electric sales. The company helpfully explains that “marine creatures are popular in most countries”. Plus there are Chinese cars with stranger names here already — the Funky Cat from Great Wall Motor, for example.
Is the Seal good enough to take a bite out of the market-leading Tesla
