Review: The 2025 BYD Sealion 6 — Brunei's Best-Seller, And You Can See Why
More than 600 BYD Sealion 6s now wear Brunei plates, making it the country's top-selling new car. After a night drive around Bandar in the Arctic White spec, we wanted to know whether the popularity is earned or just timing.
When a Chinese brand becomes the best-selling new car in Brunei, it's worth pausing to ask why. Maju Motors, the sole BYD distributor here, has now sold more than 600 BYD Sealion 6s. We grabbed the Arctic White spec for a night-time drive around Bandar to see whether buyers are onto something, or just chasing the deal of the moment.
What’s good
- 1,100km combined range Plug-in Hybrid from a 1.5L engine and 18.3kWh Blade Battery — Bandar to KK and back without filling up.
- Cabin feels well above the price, with quilted leather, soft-touch surfaces and a rotating 15.6-inch infotainment screen.
- Generous standard kit: 10-speaker Infinity audio system, double-glazed acoustic glass, panoramic sunroof and ambient lighting.
- Easily Brunei's largest community of new owners, which will strengthens the service story.
What’s not so good
- Five seats only — families needing three rows will need to look elsewhere.
- Maju Motors operates from one site, so service bookings need a bit of planning.
First Impressions
The Sealion 6 follows what BYD calls its "marine design" language — which sounds like a brochure line until you walk up to one. It looks like a Lambo Urus. Proportions are honest midsize SUV, and the stance reads premium rather than aggressive. Parked outside Yayasan or in Kiulap, it doesn't look out of place.
Five colours are sold here: Harbour Grey, Stone Grey, Delan Black, Azure Blue and Arctic White. The Harbour Grey we tested previously has slightly more presence under daylight, but the Arctic White on this drive cleans up beautifully under the streetlights and is the safer pick for resale.
Inside the Cabin
This is where the Sealion 6 starts winning arguments. Soft-touch materials sit where your hand actually lands, the quilted synthetic leather seats look properly premium, and the dashboard is dominated by a rotating 15.6-inch touchscreen — a button flicks it between portrait and landscape. The driver gets a separate 12.3-inch digital instrument display.
The kit list is long. A 10-speaker Infinity premium audio system is unusual at this price, and it's flattered by double-glazed acoustic glass that keeps Bandar traffic noise impressively muted. Add the panoramic sunroof, dual-zone climate, eight-way power driver's seat, four-way passenger adjust, ambient lighting and a wireless charging pad up front, and the cabin feels closer to something a tier above.
Practicality holds up. The five-seater layout offers 425 litres of boot space, expanding to 1,440 litres with the rear seats folded — which gives a really big space. The sunroof is genuinely large — useful on a slow cruise along the Empire Hotel stretch at night, and there are charging points scattered around the cabin.
The Driving Experience
Under the bonnet sits BYD's Xiaoyun 1.5L engine paired with an 18.3kWh Blade Battery. Combined output is 215hp and 300Nm of torque, channelled through four selectable driving modes. The headline figure is the one BYD owners love repeating: 1,100km of combined range on a full tank and full charge. That's Bandar to Kota Kinabalu and back, give or take a coffee stop.
On the road, the Sealion 6 drives like a hybrid that doesn't want you to think about being a hybrid. The handover between electric and engine is quiet, throttle response is smooth, and the cabin stays calm at highway speeds — that double-glazing earns its keep on the run out to KB. Around Gadong and the tight carparks at The Mall, the steering is light and the 5.5m turning circle helps. Body roll is well-judged for a car this size. It's not a corner-carver, but for the school run, weekend Miri trips, and long, comfortable cruises, it's hard to fault.
Safety and Tech
The safety package is properly comprehensive. You get seven airbags (driver, passenger, side and full-length curtains), electronic stability control, ISOFIX child anchors, and a 360-degree camera that turns Mall carpark manoeuvres into a non-event. ADAS (advanced driver-assistance systems) is standard, including adaptive cruise control, lane keep assist, blind spot monitoring, and front and rear cross-traffic alert with auto-braking. For a midsize family SUV at this price, this is the level of kit you'd hope for.
Value for Money
Stack the Sealion 6 against the Honda CR-V e:HEV or Toyota RAV4 Hybrid in Brunei, and the BYD's pitch becomes obvious. It undercuts both on price, gives you significantly more screen, leather and tech, and the plug-in hybrid setup means daily driving can happen on cheap, quiet electricity if you charge at home. Brunei's subsidised petrol takes some of the sting out of running-cost comparisons, but the refinement of running on the battery alone is a genuine day-to-day upgrade.
Maju Motors is bundling a free BND 500 wall box charger installation with every Sealion 6, plus your choice of a complimentary 2-year service package or tinting and coating. The first 100 customers also get an entry into the BYD Grand Draw, with the upcoming BYD Seal 5 as the prize.
Final Thoughts
You don't sell 600 cars in Brunei by accident. The Sealion 6 has quietly become the default modern SUV pick because it does the basics very well — a cabin that feels expensive, a hybrid system that genuinely works, a tech load-out that embarrasses pricier rivals, and a service story that's only getting busier. It's not for buyers needing seven seats, and it's wasted on anyone who'll never plug it in. For everyone else, it's earned its place at the top.
You can view the Sealion 6 at the Maju Motors / BYD Brunei showroom on Jalan Telanai, Beribi, with test drives bookable through the same site.