BYD M6 Extended Review: A Very Practical All-Electric Proposition

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The BYD M6 really just ticks all the right boxes at being an affordable all-electric people mover.

Now 2024 had been a big year for BYD in Malaysia, with the Chinese automaker bringing in no less than 3 models within the last 12 months. But between the hype that both the Seal and Sealion 7 got, it had to be said that the M6 MPV it debuted locally in October felt a tad bit like a by-the-way.

That said though, those who were keeping track of local car sales figures for November might have noticed that the M6 was the best selling EV that month. And while this could be attributed to BYD bringing in cars by batches, spending a few days with one over Christmas had nevertheless brought to light the reason as to why so many people have placed an order for one of these all-electric 7-seaters in the first place.

A Practical Proposition

Now kicking things off with a mention of one of the biggest guns in the M6’s arsenal, this BYD is actually a pretty unique car in the local auto market right now, as it is the only EV around with 7-seats that costs less than RM 200,000. In fact, the next-cheapest option for those who wish to (legally) stuff that many people into a car and use no fuel is the RM 269,888 Maxus MIFA 9.

Let it further be noted that thanks to it being a proper MPV (instead of an SUV that just so happens to have two jump seats behind), the M6 can actually fit 7 (admittedly scrawny) adults in relative comfort for journeys that are more than just a pop to the shops.

And traveling further than the nearest shop isn’t to be a big problem with this BYD too. Such is as, especially for this higher-end Extended variant tested here, its driving distance on a single charge is almost as capacious as the space within this MPV. During this writer’s time with it for instance, the M6 comfortably managed over 450 km on a single charge, and this was even when the driver had a rather heavy right foot.

Decent Driving Dynamics

As expected from it featuring fully electric powertrain under the hood, the noise and vibration that is typically tolerated from a car of at this price point is a complete non-issue in the M6. Indeed to the average motorist, the overall silence and smoothness this BYD EV offers could actually see for them to say that it feels like driving a car that costs twice its price.

Further feeding into this elevated level of driving refinement with the M6 meanwhile is for this Chinese car to actually have a decent-enough ride around our Malaysian roads, be it with only the driver on board or when fully laden. Though perhaps even more pleasant when discussing the driving dynamics of this MPV is that despite its size, the expansive glass area it offers and low window line meant that it isn’t exactly a barge to manoeuvre around town too.

As for taking the M6 out of town on the other hand, this sensible people mover is decently stable at speed too, and can more than happily sit at a fair few clicks above the speed limit on the highway without the passengers even noticing that the scenery is going by faster than it legally should.

And while speaking of speed, the M6 actually has reasonable amounts of it. It is admittedly not as lightning quick as other EVs (or the BMW that it shares the same name with), but this 7-seat people mover could still get up to a decent amount of speed in a short enough span of time, even when fully loaded up. (Between you and me too, it also just has enough torque steer when matting the throttle to make it fun off the line, but not enough to actually be an uncontrolled menace on the road.)

And yes, for some unknown reason, the BYD M6 actually has an acceleration stopwatch feature.

Some Thoughtful Touches

With the M6 being a Chinese car, it should already go without saying that it is of course to be chock full of creature comforts and technology. The extensive kit list on this MPV includes the BYD signature rotating 12.8-inch screen up front (with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto), rear row air vents, a vehicle-to-load (V2L) function with a 3.3 kW peak output, an NFC Digital Key, as well as all the active and passive safety kit that one could possibly expect.

The M6’s cabin in general is also a pretty nice place to be. There expectedly are more than a few bit of hard plastics around, but general material quality in this BYD is decent enough, especially when considering its price point.

Perhaps most worthy of being highlighted here however in regards to life within the BYD is just the many thoughtful touches there are around the cabin of this M6. What was written below was previously posted on the Automacha Facebook page (please go give it a follow!), but here is a quick recap:

The screen in the instrument cluster displays what the wiper setting currently is when the stalk is adjusted.
There is a volume scroll wheel on both the steering wheel and right beside the gear lever on the centre console. Perfect for when wanting to quickly lower the volume in large intervals.
While the M6 starts up automatically like every other EV, it also has a decidedly old-school start stop button to turn it off. This is good though as it means that you tell it when you want it to switch off, instead of it arbitrarily killing the air con for other passengers in the car when there is no one in the driver’s seat.
The BYD M6 has an opaque sun shade for its full-length panoramic sunroof, but even better than that is for it to automatically close when the car is switched off!
Spoken directions for the navigation in the BYD M6 only comes from the front right speaker. Just sufficient then for the driver to know where they are going, while allowing the other passengers to continue listening to the music being played.
When speaking to anyone on the phone paired to the car’s bluetooth, the M6 will automatically reduce the fan speed during calls, thereby making it just that little bit easier for the party at the other end to hear what the driver is screaming about.

The Karaoke System

When it was first announced, the gimmick of an in-car karaoke setup with the M6 was thought (by this writer anyway) to really be just that. Though after an admittedly enjoyable session of belting a few ballads while parked by the side of the road, it has to be said that the party piece of this particular BYD was actually quite fun to at least have around.

The Stingray Karaoke app is actually to be leaps and bounds ahead of the buggy and laggy touchscreen in say a Red Box. There is also somehow a greater song selection in the M6 as well, with everything from the most obscure classics to anime OPs all being able to be searched for.

And as for the actual singing bit meanwhile, the six-speaker sound system was actually more than decent providing the karaoke feel of letting everyone in the car hear how bad the one currently on the mic can butcher Mamma Mia.

Oh, just as a side note here too, the M6’s expansive rear 7-seater cabin (allegedly) makes for a decently workable space to do all the other stuff most people rent out karaoke rooms for…

A Few Minor Quibbles

Having had a few of the same people spend a not-insignificant portion of time in the M6 over the test duration, one of the biggest critiques that was sounded out was for its seats to not be the most comfortable. Flat and unsupportive were among the keywords thrown around in this regard, but this writer also felt the driver’s seat to be a tad lumpy for some reason.

And in continuing on the comfort front for just a bit more, another quibble would be that there was a fair bit of wind noise on this test car at least (that sounded like it was coming in between the door seals) when cruising slightly higher than the speed limit. Then again, the rustling was not all that intrusive, and the overall noise levels in the cabin is still to be significantly lower than its ICE equivalents that all have buzzy engines up front.

Though while on the topic of it being an EV, it was a interesting to note that it is not possible to set a percentage charge limit on the M6. This therefore makes it somewhat annoying when trying to save some money at a public charger, but at least BYD themselves have previously stated that its Blade batteries were meant to be fully charged on a regular basis in the first place.

Some other really minor complaints with the M6 meanwhile include the intriguing omission of a dead pedal for the driver to rest their left foot. Also, on this test car at least, the recirculating air function for the climate control seems to be nigh on useless, as all the foul smells from outside still somehow worms it’s way in (like the windows weren’t properly sealed or something. Hmm…)

It has to be admitted here too that the cargo capacity with all the seats up isn’t exactly capacious. The twin-lever seat operation mechanism for the second row seats to enable access into the third row is a tad more convoluted to use than the fantastically simple one-touch tumble systems perfected on other Japanese people-movers as well.

But really, that’s all these is to gripe about this BYD. And honestly, none of these are really to be deal breakers for the M6.

Fantastic Value For Money

Finally, having perhaps buried the lede here a little bit on why the BYD M6 is actually a rather hot seller over here, it simply boils down to it being quite a lot of car for the money.

Just looking purely at the price first, this 7-seat all-electric MPV could be yours for RM 109,800 for the Standard spec, and RM 123,800 for the Extended trim. And for those who have been paying attention to the EV scene here, you might have noticed that those figures are to be exactly the same as what Proton is charging for both available trims of its newly-launched e.MAS 7.

But while it can be argued that the Proton is perhaps a more premium vehicle with that little bit more pizzazz and oomph, the BYD is without question the infinitely more practical proposition to those looking at an all-electric family car. The ability to fit another two people in the BYD might be sufficient to sway buyers over to it, while the promise of a greater range on a single charge would see them sign the order form.

If comparing ICE apples to EV oranges on the other hand, the base BYD M6 is to be exactly the same price as the top-spec Mitsubishi Xpander. And without wanting to spoil the conclusion of an upcoming comparison, the all-electric Chinese people mover is really in a different league in almost every respect over the tri-diamond MPV.

So in short, for those with a large family and a modest budget, the BYD M6 is a really rather good all-electric people mover that could be considered. Though as mentioned above, it is not like there is any other choice in this particular segment right now anyway…