BYD’s smallest plug-in hybrid has arrived in the UK at the same moment the brand is trying to make September its biggest sales month yet. The BYD Dolphin G DM-i starts at £23,990, first customer deliveries are due this month, and from 10 to 21 September BYD is running a nationwide sales event that puts the entry-level car on a £250-a-month finance deal. This is a petrol-electric plug-in hybrid, not a battery-electric car, and it should not be confused with the all-electric BYD Dolphin that has been on sale in Britain since 2023.
What the Dolphin G DM-i is
The Dolphin G is a B-segment hatchback, the same size class as the Renault Clio and Toyota Yaris, and BYD says it is the first plug-in hybrid offered in that segment in the UK. BYD’s UK press office describes it as the first of a wave of cars designed in Europe for European buyers rather than adapted from a Chinese-market product.
Under the bonnet is BYD’s DM-i “Super Hybrid” system: a 1.5-litre petrol engine working with an electric drive motor and a generator. The car defaults to electric running and uses the engine mostly as a generator, which is why BYD quotes both an electric-only range and a very long combined range.
Trims, prices and the two battery sizes
According to BYD’s UK pricing announcement in July, cross-checked against Auto Express and Electric Cars Report, the four trims break down like this:
- Active, £23,990: 7.4 kWh battery, 24.8 miles of WLTP electric range, 176 PS, 3.3 kW AC charging only.
- Boost, £26,990: 18.3 kWh battery, up to 65 miles electric range, 212 PS, 6.6 kW AC and up to 39 kW DC charging.
- Comfort, £28,490: same 18.3 kWh powertrain as Boost, adds a 360-degree camera and a larger display.
- Sport, £29,490: same powertrain, sportier styling; still under £30,000.
The battery choice matters more than the trim badge. The Active’s 7.4 kWh pack gives a real but short electric window, roughly a school run and a supermarket trip before the engine joins in, and it cannot rapid-charge. The 18.3 kWh cars are a different proposition: 65 miles of electric range covers most UK commutes on a single overnight charge, and a 39 kW DC top-up from 10 to 80 per cent takes about 26 minutes according to Auto Express. BYD quotes a weighted WLTP figure of 201.7 mpg for the bigger battery and 108.6 mpg for the Active, with combined ranges of 646 and 633 miles. Weighted plug-in figures assume regular charging, so drivers who never plug in should expect far lower economy.
Performance is identical across the range: 0 to 62 mph in 8.3 seconds and a 112 mph top speed. Boot space is 425 litres, which is generous for the class because the battery sits under the floor rather than eating into the load bay.
The September sales event
BYD UK announced on 4 September that it is running what it calls its biggest-ever sales event from 10 to 21 September, with savings of up to £2,500 across its electric and DM-i ranges. The plug-in hybrid offers are the ones the company is leading with:
- Dolphin G DM-i Active: £250 per month, £1,999 deposit, 1.9% APR.
- Atto 2 DM-i Active: £274 per month, £1,999 deposit, 0.9% APR (Boost trim at £284 per month with 0% APR).
- Seal U DM-i: £349 per month, £1,999 deposit, 0% APR.
Steve Beattie, BYD UK’s deputy country manager, said in the announcement that the company wants “to make this year’s event our biggest yet”. Electrek reported the same day that BYD’s electric models were also being offered on reduced monthly rates, though those figures were not part of the official release.
Why a plug-in supermini matters in the UK right now
Plug-in hybrids were the fastest-growing powertrain in Britain last month. As we covered in our August registrations report, SMMT data showed 13,707 plug-in hybrids registered in August, a 14.5 per cent share and a rise of almost 40 per cent on the same month in 2025. Battery-electric cars took 29.8 per cent. Most of that PHEV volume sits in family SUVs and executive saloons priced well above £35,000. A sub-£24,000 plug-in hatchback is aimed at a part of the market that has had no plug-in option at all.
Pricing is the sharp end of the story. Auto Express noted the Active undercuts the Geely Starray EM-i, previously the cheapest plug-in hybrid on sale in the UK, by £500, and that every Dolphin G trim comes in below £30,000. One caveat buyers should know: the government’s Electric Car Grant applies to battery-electric cars, so unlike the £23,945 Volkswagen ID.Polo that reached showrooms this week with £1,500 of grant support, the Dolphin G’s price is the price.
The event also says something about BYD’s position in the UK. The company reports more than 110,000 registrations since its first UK deliveries in March 2023. Electrek put the 2026 running total at more than 48,000 cars through August, up 98 per cent year on year, and Chinese brands collectively took roughly a fifth of the August market according to ChinaEVHome’s reading of the SMMT data. BYD’s UK line-up now spans battery-electric models such as the Dolphin, Seal and Sealion 7 alongside a growing DM-i plug-in range, which is why the brand can run a single promotion across both powertrains.
Who should look at it
The Dolphin G makes most sense for drivers who can charge at home, cover 30 to 60 miles a day, and still want to do the occasional long trip without planning around chargers. For that buyer the £26,990 Boost is the sweet spot: it is the cheapest way into the 65-mile battery and DC charging. The £23,990 Active is the headline number, but with under 25 miles of electric range and no rapid charging it behaves more like a conventional hybrid with a plug than a car you can run electrically most days.
If the daily pattern is short and you can always charge, a pure battery-electric supermini remains the cheaper car to run, and several now cost about the same after the grant. Compare the full plug-in hybrid catalogue on our PHEV listing, browse every current BYD model, or see what else is on sale in the UK market.
Sources: BYD UK Media Site (Dolphin G DM-i pricing, 9 July 2026; September sales event, 4 September 2026); Auto Express; Electric Cars Report; Electrek (4 September 2026); SMMT August 2026 registrations via ChinaEVHome. Figures are manufacturer WLTP claims unless stated.
