There is expensive, and then there is Kia Sorento GT-Line PHEV expensive. I collected a Sealion 8 Ultimate today, and wowsers! The BYD Ocean series continues to dazzle and show why the brand is on its way to overtake Toyota. Laugh if you like, but Holden did that, and POOF!
For roughly $95,000 drive-away, Kia wants you to accept a 14kWh battery, glacial 3.3kW AC charging, no DC fast charging at all, and modest performance next to BYD’s Sealion 8 Ultimate AWD. The BYD, meanwhile, rocks up at just under $77,300 drive-away with nearly double the power, nearly triple the electric range, and charging hardware that belongs in this decade rather than the last one.
That is not a small gap.
The differences shot to sharp focus with our recent Kia Sorento PHEV being so brilliant but shockingly expensive.
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ABOVE: BYD Sealion 8 exterior and cabin shots, plus a Kia Sorento PHEV image from the GCB media library.
The old pricing spell is broken
The Sealion 8 does not simply edge the Sorento out on a line-item spreadsheet, although it certainly does that convincingly. It makes the Kia’s drive technology look like something rescued from a dusty cupboard marked 2015 rejects. BYD gives you a 35.6kWh Blade battery, 74kW DC charging, 11kW AC charging, 152km of NEDC electric range, and 359kW/675Nm dual-motors. Kia counters with a thoroughly modest 195kW/350Nm AWD, 55km of NEDC electric range, and the sort of charging spec that makes a public charger about as useful as a chocolate teapot.
Then there is the pace. BYD claims 0-100km/h in 4.9 seconds. The Sorento takes 8.4. That is not merely slower, it is glacial by comparison.
Charging reality
The most embarrassing bit for Kia is not the acceleration, though that gets a proper spanking. It is the charging reality. To be fair we were able to use home charging to keep topped up and used only 0.6L/100k for the week. Had we not had a plug for 15 hours worth of waiting about it would have been different. The Sorento’s tiny battery and 3.3kW AC charge ceiling mean you wait ages to refill very little reward. BYD, by contrast, can gain 100km of range in about 20 minutes on a DC charger, ehich is still slow but not enough time for dinner, a sleep, and breakfast. That turns the Sealion 8 into an electric-first family bus rather than a dinosaur burner with elecgtricity as an afterthought. The Sorento still feels like a petrol SUV doing a nervous community theatre impression of a plug-in hybrid future. The BYD is more like a range extended EV, better in every way.
Kia’s defenders will point to warranty, badge familiarity, and a slightly lighter kerb weight. That’s lovely, but at nearly eighteen grand dearer, the Sorento simply does not have the numbers to swan about with its nose in the air any more. Not when BYD also brings 2000kg of braked towing, 685kg of payload, 21-inch alloys, a 15.6-inch rotating screen, a 26-inch head-up display, and a superb 21-speaker Dynaudio system just to rub salt in the wound.
The Drive
`This is what legacy brands should be afraid of. It isn’t vague disruption or consultants muttering about headwinds, but a Chinese seven-seat plug-in hybrid with more battery, more power, more charging capability, and quite simply more everything, except price. I used to ask how Kia could do it for the price, now I ask where the old Kia went. It is the automotive equivalent of arriving at a black-tie in a T, shorts, and thongs.
Kia has not built a bad SUV, in fact it is great. The Sorento GT-Line PHEV is still a premium-feeling family car if viewed in siolation. But premium feelings only go so far when the rival is objectively better in the places that now matter most. Battery. Charging. Electric range. Performance. Value.
And that, darling, is where the Sealion 8 does not just beat the Sorento. It makes the old pricing logic look faintly absurd.
Sealion 8 only popped the engine on when the hybrid drive needed extra boost. It is a kind of e-CVT mixed with an EV’s 1-speed reduction drive that permits EV-like operation and feel. In fact, we didn’t notice the engine cut in when the loafer was smashed to the floor. Embarrassingly, I had to pull into silence wretched bongs that were driving me insane. No, that’s actually not the embarrassing bit, that would be the fact that the bongs that sounded like warning chimes were part of the beat of the SBS CHILL classic playing through the excellent speakers. What a chump!
In order to get back to business I glued my foot to the floor to re-enter the freeway. As you know, Sydney traffic stops for nobody. This is where that odd shudder was felt as the “engine has been started for extra power” or similar.
2026 AWD Flagship Comparison
| Specification | BYD Sealion 8 Ultimate AWD | Kia Sorento GT-Line PHEV AWD |
| Powertrain | 1.5T DM-p PHEV (Dual Motor) | 1.6T PHEV (Single Motor + Rear) |
| Combined Power | 359kW | 195kW |
| Combined Torque | 675Nm | 350Nm |
| 0-100km/h | 4.9 Seconds | 8.4 Seconds |
| Transmission | 1-Speed E-CVT | 6-Speed Automatic |
| Battery Type | LFP Blade Battery | Lithium-Ion |
| Battery Capacity | 35.6kWh | 14kWh |
| EV Range (NEDC) | 152km | 55km |
| AC Charging (Max) | 11kW | 3.3kW |
| DC Fast Charging | Yes (74kW) | No |
| Charging (10-80% DC) | ~25 Minutes | N/A |
| V2L Support | Yes (3.3kW) | No |
| Kerb Weight | 2580kg | 2117kg |
| Towing (Braked) | 2000kg | 1350kg |
| Payload | 685kg | 583kg |
| Fuel Tank | 60L | 67L |
| Length | 5040mm | 4815mm |
| Wheelbase | 2950mm | 2815mm |
| Seating | 7 Seats | 7 Seats |
| Wheels | 21-inch Alloy | 19-inch Alloy |
| Infotainment | 15.6-inch Rotating Screen | 12.3-inch Dual Display |
| Head-Up Display | 26-inch W-HUD | 10-inch HUD |
| Audio System | 21-Speaker Dynaudio | 12-Speaker Bose |
| Panoramic Roof | Yes (Electric Shade) | Yes |
| Warranty | 6 Years / 150,000km | 7 Years / Unlimited km |
| Battery Warranty | 8 Years / 160,000km | 7 Years / 150,000km |
| List Price (MSRP) | $69,990 | $86,040 |
| Drive Away (NSW) | $77,296 | $94,868 |
| Price Difference | -$17,572 | +$17,572 |
Stay tuned for reports through the week, and of course, our video review. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, BYD is on the way up, and current number one, Toyota, is on the way down. Toyota boss recently told 484 suppliers that the brand is wounded, perhaps mortally.
The problem is rampant across the industry as bloated mastheads simply sit uselessly by as China kicks them in the bollocks, and just keeps kicking. It no longer matters whether or not all the Chinese newcomers survive, it is the old guard won’t survive unscathed. They may even be scathed into oblivion.
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Alan Zurvas is the founder and editor of Gay Car Boys, Australia's leading LGBTQI+ automotive publication. Before launching GCB in 2008, Alan's automotive writing was published in SameSame.com.au and the Star Observer. With over 16 years of hands-on car reviewing experience, Alan brings an honest, irreverent voice to every review — championing value and innovation over brand loyalty.
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