BYD Seal EV Charging Cable

Where the socket really is

The flap is on the offside rear quarter, roughly where a fuel filler would be on a petrol car. That means reversing onto the drive is what shortens the cable run, not nosing in.

We are emphasising this because it is commonly stated wrongly, including on retail listings. Three independent sources put the Seal's inlet at the rear offside: one major database records it as right side rear for both AC and DC, the German technical catalogue gives the same position, and a right-hand-drive market charging guide adds the practical observation that it "can cause some issues for kerbside charging". That last point is the one owners notice. At a public kerbside charger the socket faces the road rather than the pavement.

Two versions, one charger

Design rear-wheel-drive and Excellence all-wheel-drive share the same 82.5 kWh battery, quoted at 354 and 323 miles respectively, and the same 150 kW DC connection. BYD gives thirty to eighty per cent in 26 minutes; the independent measure of ten to eighty is about 36 minutes.

Eleven kilowatts on the specification sheet means three phases behind the socket. BYD publishes no single phase figure at all, so treat 7.4 kW as a well-founded expectation and buy the 32A lead that covers it. The published three phase time is 516 minutes to full, which on an 82.5 kWh pack is around ten kilowatts average and consistent with the rating. Worth noting that for the Seal specifically, unlike the Atto 3 and Sealion 7, the technical data declares no single phase mode at all, which is why the home figure here is a well-founded expectation rather than a quoted one.

How long a full charge takes

The arithmetic is simple: kWh over kW, 13 per cent on top for losses, rounded to the nearest quarter hour. Miles per hour is worked at 3.5 miles per kWh, a figure that survives a cold morning. Thirteen and a quarter hours from genuinely flat, which is the arithmetic rather than an experience. Nobody drives an 82.5 kWh car to nought.

The useful way to read the table is the last column. At 7.4 kW the Seal gains about 26 miles for every hour it is plugged in, so a seven hour cheap-rate window covers a 180 mile day. Two such nights a week is most people's entire charging routine.

Which length for a Seal

The Seal is 4.8 metres long with the socket at the back offside corner. If you reverse onto a driveway with the charge point near the house and on the right, five metres will reach. Any other combination and you are running the lead most of the length of the car.

For that reason we would treat ten metres as the sensible default on this car and fifteen as the answer for a detached garage or a charge point across a shared drive. Work it out from where the car genuinely sits, not where it could sit, and leave slack.

How these cables are built

Built to IEC 62196-2 and CE marked, with an IP55 rating that covers rain and dust on an exposed driveway, and a working range of -30C to +50C.

The three pin cable is built to IEC 62752, CE marked, sealed to IP67 and rated from -30C to +60C. Two year manufacturer's warranty, free next working day UK delivery and 30 days to send it back.

Related: BYD Atto 2 EV Charging Cable, and BYD charging cables for every other model we cover. For a wall box or public post the lead is the Type 2 to Type 2 charging cable.

BYD Seal charging cable questions

Where is the charge port on a BYD Seal?

Offside rear, on top of the rear wheel arch, in roughly the fuel-filler position. It is not at the front, whatever some listings say.

What cable does a Seal need?

A 32A single phase Type 2 to Type 2 cable, on both Design and Excellence.

How long does a Seal take to charge at home?

About thirteen hours from empty at 7.4 kW on the 82.5 kWh battery. Each hour plugged in is worth roughly 26 miles.

What length should I buy?

Ten metres for most driveways, because the socket is at the rear offside corner of a 4.8 metre car. Five metres only if you reverse in and the charge point is close to that corner.