BYD e6, Track Test

The BYD e6 is the future I fear. It’s a future in which the car is an appliance on wheels – a white good for the road. It’s perfectly usable transport, but it’s got about as much character as your dishwasher.

Now, with that purely subjective perspective out of the way, let’s talk facts. BYD, or Build Your Dreams, is a global leader in electric vehicles. It’s so good at what it does that Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway owns almost 20% of the Chinese automaker. The e6 was launched last year in India purely for the commercial and fleet market, and then earlier this year it was made available to individual customers as well.

Its 71.7kWh battery pack generates 95 horsepower and 180Nm and gives it a claimed range of 523 kilometres. It’s spacious, drives reasonably well and looks fairly modern as well. It would be nice, however, if BYD would add some pizzazz to the cabin – something to make it look and feel a bit special. After all, it will set you back almost ₹30 lakhs, ex-showroom.

That said, it’s quite comfortable and, with the amount of space it offers and the range it claims, it’s quite practical too – all of which is to say that it’s actually rather well suited to the commercial and fleet market. The truth is, if you want a zero-emissions vehicle to ferry people around comfortably and hold plenty of their stuff, this is it. But if you’re looking for something that will set your pulse racing, you’re looking in the wrong place.

This is a car for those who seek efficient and comfortable transport, no more and no less. If you want to maintain your resting heart rate and get from point A to B in a clean and quiet way, the BYD e6 is what you’re looking for. If you want any more than that, look elsewhere.

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