The BYD Seal is a 530PS streamlined rival to the Tesla Model 3

To look at, it's a mix of the streamlined Hyundai Ioniq 6, the Porsche Taycan and the Tesla Model 3. It has a 354-mile range, while top-end models produce a gut-squashing 530PS (390kW). BYD has also promised us the Seal will be fun to drive.

BYD Seal: exterior design

The Seal is BYD's best-looking effort to date, even if the design is fussy in places.

There's plenty of Model 3 resemblance to the clean design of the front of the BYD, which is easily distinguishable by its claw-shaped DLRs, headlights, and gill-like lower LEDs.

In profile, you get flush-fitting door handles and a body line that flows into an arrow-shaped (fake) air vent that combines to look like the contrail from a fighter jet, while at the back, you'll find a wraparound light bar that gives the Seal a cut-price Lucid Air flavour.

It's a smart – if not entirely original – design, but it's the aero (perhaps the reason for the homogeneous look) that counts; the Seal's low 0.219Cd drag coefficient is fractionally more than the Volkswagen XL1, the most aerodynamic car ever sold.

BYD Seal: Performance and handling

BYD's press release promises that the Seal will be "athletic, sporty and dynamic" to drive, a bold claim the specifications appear to back up.

Even the basic Design version has 313PS (230kW), which translates into a nippy 5.9-second 0-62mph, courtesy of a single motor driving the rear wheels. The (modestly titled) Excellence-AWD slots another motor under the bonnet for all-wheel drive, 530PS and 0-62mph in a frantic 3.8 seconds.

There's cause for celebration in the chassis, too. Even the basic model gets double-wishbone front and five-link rear suspension, which is hung from a chassis that gets its strength from the battery, boasting 40,500Nm/degree torsional rigidity (a figure rarely mentioned in the context of family EVs) – or about the same as a 992 Porsche 911.

The AWD car goes a step further with BMW-style variable frequency dampers that passively adapt to the road surface and Intelligent Torque Adaption Control that can shift power around the car's four corners, "expanding handling limits" – sounds encouraging, but best taken with a pinch of salt until we drive the car.

If you don't fancy exploring the Seal's handling, a raft of autonomous features means it can more or less drive itself on the motorway and in queuing traffic, plus you get kit like a 360-degree camera and auto-dipping headlights.

BYD Seal: Range, battery capacity and charging speeds

Both versions of the BYD Seal use an 82.5kWh battery that can be fast charged at up to 150kW, allowing you to recharge the battery from 30-80% in 26 minutes using a public charger. There's a quoted 354-mile range for the basic rear-wheel drive model, that drops to 323 miles in the case of the Excellence-AWD.

BYD Seal: interior design, infotainment and practicality

The flowing design of the BYD's interior matches the exterior. It has leather and Alcantara-look trim pieces on the dashboard and doors, you get quilted leather seats, and the colour palette is more conservative than the garish themes found in BYD's cheaper models. The shiny black plastics on the centre console aren't quite as inspiring, but likely aren't any worse than what you see on a low-level Mercedes.

A 10.25-inch screen takes the place of conventional dials behind the steering wheel, and you get a 15.6-inch display on the centre of the dashboard that, as a party piece, can rotate between portrait and landscape orientations. The BYD gets Apple CarPlay, Android Auto and a 12-speaker Dynaudio sound system fitted as standard.

While you'd never know it from the pictures, the BYD has a longer wheelbase than a Skoda Superb, so expect the interior to have plenty of room for four tall adults, with a standard-fit panoramic sunroof that should make it feel light and airy on the inside. Other standard features include an electrically adjustable driver's seat with lumbar support and double-glazed side windows up front.

Your luggage is also well-catered to. As well as having 20 smaller storage spaces dotted around the cabin, the Seal has a 400-litre boot with an extra 53 litres of storage under the bonnet. We'll have a full review of the BYD Seal before it goes on sale in November.