BYD Sealion 7 BEV pulled out of the Chinese domestic market, more buyers now want PHEVs and EREVs

BYD has decided to stop local sales of its Sealion 7 BEV in China, and the reason is quite interesting.

According to CarNewsChina, BYD has quietly removed the BEV SUV from its domestic consumer apps, shifting its assembly lines entirely toward international shipping hubs.

Reduced government incentives in China have effectively closed the price gap between BEVs and hybrids, which has caused BEV sales to drop as more buyers are now switching to plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) and extended-range EVs (EREVs).

While BYD’s hybrid counterparts like the Sealion 06 PHEV are racking up close to 19,000 deliveries a month, monthly registrations for the pure-electric Sealion 7 dwindled to just 100 to 300 units in China.

Instead of fighting a brutal, low-margin BEV price war at home for minimal volume, BYD decided to stop the Sealion 7's domestic sales, turning it into an 'export-only' model.

For Malaysian buyers, this can be viewed as a big win but with a tight deadline, because now is arguably the best time to buy a Sealion 7 locally due to a major regulatory change.

Malaysia has implemented strict new CBU BEV import regulations effective 1 July 2026, enforcing higher pricing and power-output requirements that will eventually push imported BEV prices significantly higher.

The revised policy mandates that all fully imported (CBU) BEVs must hit a minimum power output of 180 kW alongside a baseline Cost, Insurance, and Freight (CIF) value of RM 200,000, which effectively establishes a retail market floor of around RM 300,000 when duties and taxes are added.

However, BEVs that are already in stock at dealerships and local ports, or currently in transit, are fully exempted, as the current inventory can still be sold under the old tax exemptions until stocks are completely exhausted.

For our local market, the BYD Sealion 7 BEV is available in two variants - Premium and Performance. The Premium offers 313 PS and 567 km of range (NEDC) from RM 183,800, while the Performance pushes things up to 530 PS, but with 542 km of range (also NEDC) from RM 199,800.