BYD Dolphin Surf is a small, simple £18k motor packed with things that please… it knocks its rivals out the park
I'M a big fan of small and simple cars because I like value for money more than I do screens and gadgets.
This
Advertisement
4
This BYD Dolphin Surf is small and simple
4
The Dolphin Surf has four seats, three with ISOFIX anchor points and a surprisingly practical boot
Just press and go.
It's value for money at £18,650.
And yet it's got a rotating touchscreen and all those gadgets thrown in anyway.
Where's the catch?
Advertisement
read more on motors
I can't see one.
It knocks a
Finance from £269 a month with £269 deposit. Or £199 a month with about £3k deposit.
It'll cost pennies to run.
Advertisement
Most read in Motors
I reckon many will be bought as second cars but end up being the one owners use the most.
Dolphin Surf has four seats, three with
Japanese giant unveils its new bargain EV with quirky 'bug eye' headlights
Properly comfy seats by the way. Made of 'vegan leather' whatever that means.
Big drink holders. Phone storage tray.
Advertisement
Apple CarPlay. Reversing camera.
Adaptive cruise control for your out-of-town runs.
All things that please and all included in the price.
You can even use your little BYD bud as a mobile power bank – running everything from party lights to a fridge.
Advertisement
Now I should spell out that Dolphin Surf comes in two
The entry-level Active gets you a 137-mile battery by the WLTP test and a big enough e-motor to keep you swimming in quick traffic.
Then there's the £22k Boost nudging 200 miles from the 43kWh
'BRIM THE BATTERY'
Both use lithium iron phosphate (LFP) chemistry for higher levels of durability and safety.
Advertisement
So you can 'brim' the battery every time without depleting it.
Both roll on Hankook tyres. Another positive.
Even the lime green paint job is free.
How safe is it? It's engineered to attain a four-star safety rating.
Advertisement
The body uses 68 per cent high-strength steel and the car is brimming with anti-crash gear.
The car will be made in Hungary soon – and avoid tariffs.
I told you BYD would quickly chime with UK drivers and the Chinese are already outselling Honda, Citroen, Fiat and more.
There are a load of plug-in hybrids coming next, including a junior SUV and a pick-up truck called Shark.
Advertisement
Key facts: BYD DOLPHIN SURF
Price: £18,650
Battery: 30kWh
Power: 87hp
0-62mph: 11.1 secs
Top speed: 93mph
Range: 137 miles
CO2: 0g/km
Out: Now
4
The Dolphin Surf boasts a rotating touchscreen
4
There's also a phone storage tray, Apple CarPlay and a reversing camera
Unlock even more award-winning articles as The Sun launches brand new membership programme -
Sun Club.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Irish Sun
9 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
Millions of drivers due free TV upgrade in car that lets you watch telly – and it'll work even on old motors
A CLEVER upgrade to cars across the world will let you watch video on your motor's built-in screen. It's all thanks to a new update to Apple CarPlay, which is in millions of cars globally – and unsurprisingly, there's a big catch. 7 Apple CarPlay is getting a major update this year Credit: Apple 7 CarPlay will be upgraded as part of the iOS 26 update for iPhones – which we're expecting in September Credit: Apple The feature will only work if you're parked. That's to prevent drivers from catching up on Love Island on the M25 – a dangerous combination. With CarPlay, your And with the iOS 26 update for iPhone later this year, you'll be able to beam video from your mobile to your car's display. Read more on Apple This works through the same AirPlay feature that lets you stream iPhone video to your telly. So you could play a video that was saved to your Photos app. Or you could use one of the many TV apps that support AirPlay to easily stream content to your Apple CarPlay monitor in your car. That includes Apple TV+ and YouTube – or any other app that offers CarPlay. Most read in Tech "AirPlay video in the car enables people to watch their favourite videos from iPhone right on their CarPlay display when they aren't driving," Apple explains. The other catch is that your carmaker will need to switch the feature on. Apples's big announcements from WWDC with a flurry new features for the gadgets you already own CarPlay is managed by Apple, but your car provider still needs to activate the new ability to watch TV. And it won't go live until at least September, when we're expecting models as a free update. But plenty of cars support CarPlay. CarPlay launched back in 2014, and more than 800 models of motor across 40 brands now support it. 7 CarPlay gets a brand new Liquid Glass look Credit: Apple 7 You'll be able to quickly respond to messages with Tapbacks Credit: Apple Apple recently revealed that it's used more than 600 million times a day. So there's a good chance that the new feature will come to your car in the near future . DRIVE ON That wasn't the only car upgrade from Apple. This week, the company held its IOS 26 SUPPORTED DEVICES – THE FULL LIST Here are the iPhone 16e iPhone 16 iPhone 16 Plus iPhone 16 Pro iPhone 16 Pro Max iPhone 15 iPhone 15 Plus iPhone 15 Pro iPhone 15 Pro Max iPhone 14 iPhone 14 Plus iPhone 14 Pro iPhone 14 Pro Max iPhone 13 iPhone 13 mini iPhone 13 Pro iPhone 13 Pro Max iPhone 12 iPhone 12 mini iPhone 12 Pro iPhone 12 Pro Max iPhone 11 iPhone 11 Pro iPhone 11 Pro Max iPhone SE (3rd gen) iPhone SE (2nd gen) Picture Credit: Apple For a start, Apple CarPlay is getting the new Liquid Glass look that other Apple gadgets are getting later this year. That gives the apps a glassy new aesthetic with a translucent design. And you'll be able to send Tapbacks to texts – they're the quick emoji reactions that are already available in the Messages app on iPhone. There's support for widgets on screen, as well as Live Activities (which could show sports scores, for instance). 7 The new CarPlay will also let you watch telly while parked Credit: Apple And Apple has also finally debuted CarPlay Ultra, which is the supercharged version of CarPlay only currently available with one car brand. Instead of just replacing your infotainment screen, CarPlay Ultra also serves as a customisable instrument panel (showing your speed and fuel and so on), as well as allowing you to control car functions like heating. During next generation of CarPlay, which we just brought out for the first time about a month ago." Joz continued: 'CarPlay is this beautiful ability to use the features of your phone. 7 CarPlay Ultra is an even more advanced version of CarPlay that lets you view and control core car functions Credit: Apple 'We wanted to have an experience with CarPlay Ultra that allows you – through that same interface that you can control your phone – to also control the aspects of your car 'Whether it's the seat heaters or the heating system in general, or even the car radio. 'Things that are outside of normal iPhone capabilities. To control these with CarPlay Ultra. 'We're very happy with the initial rollout of that. Some of the first vehicles started coming out last month. There's plenty more brands working on it.' 7 The new CarPlay Ultra offers a customisable instrument panel Credit: Apple CarPlay Ultra is currently available in new models from British motoring giant Aston Martin, but it's expected to arrive in other vehicles in the future too.
Irish Times
a day ago
- Irish Times
BYD brings EV price wars to small cars in Europe
BYD has launched its cheapest and smallest electric vehicle (EV) in the UK, as it takes Chinese carmakers' battle for affordability in Europe into a compact-car segment that has remained stubbornly reliant on the internal combustion engine. The Dolphin Surf, with a starting price of £18,650 (€21,874.03), is the British equivalent of BYD's popular Seagull hatchback, which is priced at less than £6,000 in China amid a price war in the world's largest car market. 'Compact cars are the next frontier for electrification in Europe,' BYD's executive vice-president Stella Li said at a recent launch event in Rome, noting the electric transition had been slower for small cars than for bigger sport utility vehicles. According to the International Energy Agency, of the 360 EV models available in Europe last year, only 33 were in the small car segment. An additional 23 compact models are expected to be launched this year. READ MORE Compact cars have taken longer to shift away from petrol engines due to thin profit margins and the difficulty of making them both affordable and moneymaking with the high price of batteries. BYD, the leading EV maker, announced an assault on the Japanese small-car market last month, with plans to release a low-cost battery-powered Kei car next year. The boxy minicar would be cheaper than the compact Dolphin, which sells for 2.9 million yen (€17,839) in Japan. [ New car owners increasingly opting for electric or hybrid over petrol or diesel Opens in new window ] Even before Dolphin Surf's European debut a few weeks earlier at a price below €23,000, rival compact EV offerings from the Renault 5 and Citroën ë-C3 to the Dacia Spring had already hit the markets with similar or lower prices. Chinese brands have adopted a pricing strategy in Europe that is more restrained than in their home market, especially with Brussels imposing higher tariffs on imports of Chinese-made EVs since last year. Still, BYD's expansion into all car segments in Europe is set to accelerate its overseas growth. The market share of BYD and other Chinese brands in the UK and on the continent has grown from 2.9 per cent in the first quarter of 2024 to 4.8 per cent in the first four months of 2025, according to Schmidt Automotive Research. Will rent reform make building apartments viable? Listen | 40:12 The UK, which has not imposed higher tariffs on Chinese EVs, now accounts for nearly a third of all Chinese-brand models entering western Europe. According to UK online marketplace Auto Trader, stocks of Chinese EVs for sale between January and April increased tenfold year-on-year, with more than 3,300 cars for sale. That represented nearly 3 per cent of new car stock for sale on the marketplace compared with 0.2 per cent a year earlier. Analysts say there is more room for prices to come down for smaller electric cars as western carmakers use cheaper lithium iron phosphate batteries to compete against Chinese rivals, which are increasing local production in Europe to avoid the tariffs. [ EV Q&A: Why doesn't Ireland use roadside furniture for charging electric vehicles? Opens in new window ] Renault and Volkswagen are using Chinese engineering expertise as well as components made in China to speed up vehicle development and lower the costs of compact EVs due to be launched next year. 'Once they start coming to the market, we will see price deflation,' said automotive analyst Matthias Schmidt. Cao Li, senior vice-president of Stellantis-backed Chinese carmaker Leapmotor, told journalists on Wednesday that the convergence of car prices for EVs and petrol cars was a broad trend in the European market. Some Chinese car executives fear the bruising price war in their home market could spill over into Europe. However, rising trade tensions between China and the European Union (EU) are seen as changing the pricing dynamics in Europe. Beijing and its carmakers have offered to introduce a system of voluntary price controls to replace the EU tariffs, but it remains unclear whether Brussels would accept this minimum pricing approach. People close to discussions said Beijing offered a €35,000 minimum regardless of the model in earlier negotiations. At that level, cheaper cars such as those offered by BYD and Leapmotor would be excluded from the market. But even if the price cuts are more limited in Europe, analysts say consumers will probably be drawn to Chinese offerings due to the high quality of their technology and software. BYD's Li recently told Belgian media, for example, that the Chinese group plans to bring its superfast charging technology to Europe within the next 12 months. While the price war in China is considered destructive for the domestic car industries in the UK and Europe, greater competition may help boost vehicle demand, which is still below pre-pandemic levels. 'Increasing levels of competition and some new standout performers now seen in our market will likely create wider pricing pressures that will be good for car buyers in the short term and which will hopefully also fuel further innovation and market growth in the midterm,' said Ian Plummer, commercial director at Auto Trader. – Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2025
The Irish Sun
2 days ago
- The Irish Sun
BYD Dolphin Surf is a small, simple £18k motor packed with things that please… it knocks its rivals out the park
I'M a big fan of small and simple cars because I like value for money more than I do screens and gadgets. This Advertisement 4 This BYD Dolphin Surf is small and simple 4 The Dolphin Surf has four seats, three with ISOFIX anchor points and a surprisingly practical boot Just press and go. It's value for money at £18,650. And yet it's got a rotating touchscreen and all those gadgets thrown in anyway. Where's the catch? Advertisement read more on motors I can't see one. It knocks a Finance from £269 a month with £269 deposit. Or £199 a month with about £3k deposit. It'll cost pennies to run. Advertisement Most read in Motors I reckon many will be bought as second cars but end up being the one owners use the most. Dolphin Surf has four seats, three with Japanese giant unveils its new bargain EV with quirky 'bug eye' headlights Properly comfy seats by the way. Made of 'vegan leather' whatever that means. Big drink holders. Phone storage tray. Advertisement Apple CarPlay. Reversing camera. Adaptive cruise control for your out-of-town runs. All things that please and all included in the price. You can even use your little BYD bud as a mobile power bank – running everything from party lights to a fridge. Advertisement Now I should spell out that Dolphin Surf comes in two The entry-level Active gets you a 137-mile battery by the WLTP test and a big enough e-motor to keep you swimming in quick traffic. Then there's the £22k Boost nudging 200 miles from the 43kWh 'BRIM THE BATTERY' Both use lithium iron phosphate (LFP) chemistry for higher levels of durability and safety. Advertisement So you can 'brim' the battery every time without depleting it. Both roll on Hankook tyres. Another positive. Even the lime green paint job is free. How safe is it? It's engineered to attain a four-star safety rating. Advertisement The body uses 68 per cent high-strength steel and the car is brimming with anti-crash gear. The car will be made in Hungary soon – and avoid tariffs. I told you BYD would quickly chime with UK drivers and the Chinese are already outselling Honda, Citroen, Fiat and more. There are a load of plug-in hybrids coming next, including a junior SUV and a pick-up truck called Shark. Advertisement Key facts: BYD DOLPHIN SURF Price: £18,650 Battery: 30kWh Power: 87hp 0-62mph: 11.1 secs Top speed: 93mph Range: 137 miles CO2: 0g/km Out: Now 4 The Dolphin Surf boasts a rotating touchscreen 4 There's also a phone storage tray, Apple CarPlay and a reversing camera Unlock even more award-winning articles as The Sun launches brand new membership programme - Sun Club.
