Sealion 7: turn on adb over Wi-Fi and install an app

Every article on this site that says adb shell needs this first. The Moroccan Sealion 7 has no developer-options screen, but a hidden page behind the Factory reset row starts adbd on TCP port 5555. This guide turns it on, connects a computer over Wi-Fi, and installs an APK. Nothing here roots or modifies the head unit: it flips a switch Android already has (adb_enabled).

Before you start#

• adb on the computer. Follow Install adb on Windows, Linux and macOS first; adb version must work.
• Car and computer on the same Wi-Fi network. Connect the head unit to your home Wi-Fi or your phone’s hotspot (Settings › Connectivité), and the computer to the same one.
• Parked, with 15 minutes. The head unit stays on with the car in P.
• The right kind of APK. This head unit runs Android 11 (API 30) on arm64-v8a, and it has no Google Play services — apps that need them will crash or refuse to start. An APK needs an arm64 build (or no native code) and minSdk of 30 or lower.
• Know what the switch exposes. With adb on, anyone on the same network can reach port 5555. The unit enforces adb authentication (ro.adb.secure=1), so a new computer must be accepted on the car’s screen — but that dialog can be accepted by anyone sitting in the car. Turn it off when you are done (Step 8).

On the car#

Step 1 — Open Settings › Système › Version#

Zoom

The screenshot is from the car this guide was tested on, taken over the same adb connection you are about to set up.

Step 2 — Tap “Réinitialisation d’usine” seven times, quickly#

Tap the words on the left of the last row — Réinitialisation d’usine (Factory reset) — seven times at a steady pace, roughly two taps per second. Keep your finger away from the blue Réinitialiser button on the right. Nothing on the screen acknowledges the taps until the sequence is complete; if it did nothing, wait a second and try again at a more even rhythm.

Step 3 — Turn the screen to portrait#

Rotate the display to portrait with the rotate button at the bottom right of the bar. The hidden page is laid out for the tall orientation; in landscape you may not see its controls.

Step 4 — Tap the first button and wait for “adb is on”#

On the hidden page, tap the first button. A message confirms that adb is on. From that moment adbd listens on port 5555 on the car’s Wi-Fi address; Android’s own settings show adb_enabled = 1 (its Android 11 wireless debugging toggle stays off — this is classic adb over TCP). Owners of other BYD models describe the same page as TestTools or Debug mode with a Wireless adb debug switch; on this build the switch is simply the first control.

Step 5 — Find the car’s IP address#

Settings › Connectivité › the network you are connected to shows its details, including the address, of the form 192.168.x.x. If your build does not show it there, your router’s or phone hotspot’s client list does — the head unit appears as a new device.

On the computer#

Step 6 — Connect#

adb connect 192.168.1.20:5555
adb devices

Replace the address with the car’s. adb connect answers connected to 192.168.1.20:5555, and adb devices lists the car:

List of devices attached
192.168.1.20:5555	device

If the state is unauthorized instead of device, look at the car: a dialog asks whether to allow debugging from this computer. Accept it, ticking always allow so you are not asked again. The key that dialog trusts is ~/.android/adbkey on your computer — treat it as a password.

Step 7 — Install the APK#

adb install -r app.apk

-r replaces an existing installation, so the same command updates an app. The reply is Success. The head unit runs the stock Android launcher (com.android.launcher3), so the app appears in the app list like any other, and you can also start it without touching the screen:

adb shell monkey -p com.example.app -c android.intent.category.LAUNCHER 1

This is how we installed our own Sealion 7 Pilot 0.1.0 on this car, and how the other third-party apps on it got there — the unit has no app store.

Step 8 — When you’re done#

adb disconnect

That only closes your computer’s session; the car keeps listening on 5555. We have not yet tested whether the switch turns itself off when the head unit restarts (see Limitations), so for now: do not leave the car on a network you do not control with adb on, and repeat Steps 1–4 to check the state when in doubt.

If it doesn’t work#

• cannot connect to 192.168.x.x:5555: Connection refused or a timeout — adb is not on (redo Steps 1–4), the address is wrong, or the computer is not on the same network. Phone hotspots sometimes isolate clients from each other; home Wi-Fi does not.
• unauthorized — the dialog is waiting on the car’s screen.
• Nothing happens after the seven taps — taps too slow, or on the wrong element. It is the label text, not the blue button. On some newer BYD builds in other markets, owners report that this page no longer opens and describe a dialer-code method instead (*#91532547# in the phone app, with an IMEI-based code) — we have not verified any of that, and on build 51.1.4.2606220.1 the taps work.
• INSTALL_FAILED_OLDER_SDK — the APK requires a newer Android than 11.
• INSTALL_FAILED_NO_MATCHING_ABIS — the APK has native code but no arm64-v8a build.
• INSTALL_FAILED_UPDATE_INCOMPATIBLE — the same package is already installed with a different signature. adb uninstall com.example.app, then install again.
• Installs, then crashes or shows a blank screen — usually Google Play services, which this unit does not have. Nothing to fix on the car; pick an app that does not need them.
• Installed but no icon — the app has no launcher activity. Start it with the monkey command in Step 7, or from the app’s own settings entry.

What we tested#

Sealion 7, Moroccan market, head-unit build 51.1.4.2606220.1 (Settings › Version shows V3.1.0), Android 11, arm64-v8a, Qualcomm automotive platform; Settings app com.byd.carsettings 1.18.2, launcher com.android.launcher3; no Google Play services or Play Store present. Verified 26 Aug 2026 by following Steps 1–7 on the car and installing Sealion 7 Pilot 0.1.0. The environment snapshot below and the screenshot in Step 1 were taken over the resulting Wi-Fi adb connection:

adb shell getprop ro.build.fingerprint
adb shell getprop ro.build.version.release
adb shell getprop ro.product.cpu.abi
adb shell getprop ro.adb.secure
adb shell settings get global adb_enabled
adb shell settings get global adb_wifi_enabled

BYD Auto/DX_BYD_AUTO/DX_BYD_AUTO:11/RQ3A.211001.001/eng.scm.20260622.154401:user/test-keys
11
arm64-v8a
1
1
0

Limitations#

• One car, one market, one build. Other markets and builds differ; the community reports above suggest some newer builds removed the tap method.
• Not tested: whether adb stays on after the head unit restarts or the car sleeps overnight; how to turn it off other than by restarting.
• The hidden page’s own labels were not recorded on this build — the author navigated by position (“the first button”). A screenshot of that page will be added.
• USB adb was not tested; this guide is Wi-Fi only.