On Thursday the BYD brand was launched in Malaysia, with the first model to be introduced being the Atto 3. Yep, it’s yet another electric SUV, and this one has the Hyundai Kona Electric in its sights. We’ve detailed the new car in our comprehensive launch coverage, but for those who prefer their info in video form, you can now watch it down below.
The Atto 3 is available in Standard Range and Extended Range models, their names obviously corresponding to their different battery sizes. Pricing is as follows:
- BYD Atto 3 Standard Range – RM149,800
- BYD Atto 3 Extended Range – RM167,800
The company is offering an impressive six-year/150,000km warranty, an eight-year/160,000km battery warranty and an eight-year/150,000km motor warranty. During the launch period, you’ll also get a free portable charger, a vehicle-to-load (V2L) extension cable and complimentary charging credits worth RM1,000.
The Atto 3 is powered by a front-mounted electric motor that produces 201 hp and 310 Nm of torque. The Standard Range model also gets a 49.9 kWh battery that provides a combined range of 345 km. If you need more range, you’ll have to pay extra for the Extended Range model, which comes with a 60.5kWh battery. This enables the Atto 3 to travel up to 420 km on a single charge.
Speaking of charging, the Atto 3 supports up to 70 kW of DC charging power, with the Extended Range model bumping that up to 80 kW. As such, the larger battery takes 45 minutes to be charged from zero to 80%. The Atto 3 can also be charged at up to 7kW using an AC wallbox, taking 9.5 hours to fully charge the bigger battery.
On the outside, the Atto 3 is fairly good looking—the sharp design features slim headlights, L-shaped taillights and distinctive silver D-pillars. One area where the BYD perhaps shows its lack of maturity is the “Build Your Dreams” (yes, that’s what BYD stands for) spelt out in big chrome letters across the tailgate. The only real difference between the Standard and Extended Range models are the wheels—17-inch as standard, 18-inch on the Extended Range variant.
Inside is where the Atto 3 goes a little wild. No matter which colour you buy, the cabin gets a two-tone blue and grey colour scheme. You’ll also find some steampunk design details, such as the storage compartments in the doors made up of red strings that look like they came straight out of a guitar.
But the piece de resistance is the 12.8-inch touchscreen, which can be rotated at the touch of a button. It has built-in navigation and Spotify, and you can even split-screen the both of them. However, it is missing Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, which is only coming via a software update in the second quarter of next year. By the way, the Atto 3 will support wireless Android Auto, but not Apple CarPlay.
Other features include keyless entry, push-button start, power-adjustable seats, a panoramic sunroof, a 360-degree camera and automatic air-con, again controlled through the touchscreen. The Extended Range model adds eight speakers, a powered tailgate, Qi wireless charging and multicolour ambient lighting that pulsates to music.
As alluded to earlier, the Atto 3 also features a V2L function that lets you plug in devices such as laptops and even appliances like a fridge through the included extension cable connected to the charging port. This makes the BYD the cheapest EV in Malaysia with such a feature, significantly undercutting the Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Kia EV6—although those two can output up to 3.6kW versus the Atto 3’s 2.2kW.
Measuring under 4.5 metres long, the Atto 3 sits between the Proton X50 and X70 in size and offers plenty of legroom and a reasonable amount of headroom. There are also lots of storage compartments behind the front seats. The boot measures a decent 440 litres, but there’s no dedicated storage for the charging cables under the floor, and there’s no front boot, either.
The Atto 3 offers lots of safety features as standard, including autonomous emergency braking, adaptive cruise control and lane centring assist for level 2 semi-autonomous driving. There’s also blind spot monitoring and a door opening warning to prevent you from opening a door into traffic.
