208,785 vehicles, well ahead of the 170,722 coming from Japan.
Leading the way is BYD (aka Build Your Dreams) which has moved into second
place behind Toyota in July 2026 YTD sales.
Our review thus week is on the Atto 2, a fully-electric compact SUV.
Atto 2 joins the slightly larger Atto 3 which pioneered the BYD brand back in 2022
and the smaller Atto 1 and comes in two variants, Dynamic and Premium, priced at
$31,990 and $35,990 +ORCs respectively.
Both variants are powered by a 130kW electric motor delivering 290Nm of torque,
paired with a 51.3kWh Blade Battery that offers up to 345km of WLTP range.
Fast DC charging from 10-80% takes approximately 39 minutes, with a peak
charging rate of up to 82kW.
The extra four grand for the Premium provides extra equipment including LED
lighting, larger wheels (17-inch over 16-inch), panoramic glass roof, roof rack, 360-
degree camera, front parking sensors and powered side mirrors.
Inside, there a larger touchscreen, power-adjustable front seats with heating and
ventilation, wireless smartphone charging, and an immersive 8-speaker audio
system.
BYD’s six-year 150,000 km vehicle and eight-year 160,000 battery warranties apply
to the Atto 2.
STYLING
First time EV buyers not looking to stand out from the crowd will be perfectly happy
with the conservative styling of the Atto 2. Design is more old-school SUV, tall and
square, without the sloping roofline of its Atto 1 and Atto 3 siblings.
There are full LED projector headlights above slim daytime running lights and turn
indicators, also LED.
At the rear there’s a full-width LED lightbar with a twirly bit on either end.
The Premium spec adds roof rails, panoramic glass roof with a sunshade and
powered side mirrors.
There’s a choice of four exterior colours, again likely to suit conservative buyers: Ski
White is standard; Grey Mist, Harbour Grey and Cosmos Black are all cost options.
INTERIOR
No colour choice inside, just darkish grey. The front seats are manual in the
Dynamic, powered in the Premium.
The glass roof on the Premium variant is fixed but does come with a powered
sunshade.
Premium adds powered front seats with heating and ventilation.
Rear occupants are well catered for with a flat floor, dual map pockets, adjustable air
con controls, USB-A and USB-C inputs, a wide folding armrest with twin cupholders
and a parcel shelf behind the seatbacks.
Boot space is 380 litres to 1320 litres. There’s no power tailgate, not that a car of this
size really needs one.
There’s no front storage area (aka Frunk or Froot) although the boot floor does lift off
for a lower level to keep charging cables and the like.
POWERTRAIN
Power is sent to the front wheels via a lithium iron phosphate (LFP) BYD Blade
Battery. The name comes from its long, thin and flat blade-shaped cells that are built
into the structure of the vehicle and lower its centre of gravity.
Outputs are 130kW and 290 Nm with a zero to 100 km/h speed of 7.9 seconds
Battery capacity is 51.13 kWh and can charge using a 7kW Type 2 AC port from
zero to 100% in 8.2 hours.
Using a CCS2 DC charging port that drops to 38.6 minutes from 10% to 80% or from
zero to 100% in 68 minutes.
For campers or picknickers, vehicle to load (V2L) is standard and both a V2L
discharge adapter and Mode 2 charging cable are provided.
The charge port is at the front on the driver’s side which will probably suit most
owners but not for those charging from the roadside.
SAFETY
Atto 2 has yet to be tested by ANCAP but all other BYD vehicles, including the Atto 1
and Atto 3, have received the maximum five-star rating.
Atto 2 comes with BYD’s Cell-to-Body technology which integrates the vehicle’s
battery with its body for increased structural safety.
Standard are six airbags, adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking, lane
departure warning and correction, automatic emergency braking, forward and
collision warning, intelligent cruise control, intelligent speed limit warning and control,
blind spot detection, rear parking sensors, rear-view camera, tyre pressure
monitoring and ISOFIX child seat anchor points.
Premium adds front parking sensors and a 360-degree camera.
INFOTAINMENT
Atto 2 Dynamic has a 10.1-inch touchscreen and Premium 12.8-inch. Both are
landscape, the portrait rotation gimmick no longer in fashion.
Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are both wireless with a wireless phone charger in
the Premium.
The sound system in the Dynamic is basic with four speakers, six in the Premium.
DRIVING
For a relatively small car, access is easy with large doors, tall roof and slide-over into
the seats with a minimum of stooping and bending.
While many of the controls, as is the norm nowadays, are operated through the
touchscreens, most come with an array of shortcut tabs.
Even better, there are sensibly positioned physical controls on the driver’s door and
steering wheel, with an audio volume control roller and brake regeneration toggle
button on the central console.
The digital instrument cluster is easy to read and can be customised to suit.
Atto 2 is easy to manoeuvre around town with light steering and the smooth and
linear acceleration expected from an EV.
There are the usual intrusive features that annoy keen drivers such as lane
interference, speed sign alerts and driver attention warnings. No doubt many will be
quite content with them, otherwise they can be turned off – temporarily.
There are three driving modes, Normal, Eco and Sport. As we expect most buyers to
do, we spent most of their time in Normal.
Driving range under the WLTP standard is listed at an acceptable 345 kilometres
with many of its competitors, albeit more expensive, covering more than 400 km.
SUMMARY
While it’s not likely to be a vehicle on which owners will build their dreams, the neat
little Atto 2 is likely to be a big seller for the booming Chinese carmaker.
And, fortunately, BYD no longer sees the need to plaster that phrase across the rear
windows of their vehicles as they did when the Atto 3 pioneered the brand back in
2022.
Savvy urban buyers in particular will be drawn to Atto 2’s its functional body style,
clean energy credentials and sharp pricing.
With BYD snapping at the heels of Toyota the Atto 2 is looming as a potential
alternative to Corolla especially with the imminent arrival of a Plug-In Hybrid (PHEV)
version called the Atto 2 DM-i, for Dual-Mode Intelligent.
Pricing and specs are yet to be released but it is likely to be in the low to mid
$30,000s.
RATINGS:
Looks: 7/10
Performance: 8/10
Safety: 7/10
Thirst: 9/10
Practicality: 7/10
Comfort: 7/10
Tech: 8/10
Value: 9/10
AT A GLANCE
MODEL RANGE
Atto 2 Dynamic: $31,990
Atto 2 Premium : $35,990
Note: These prices do not include government or dealer delivery charges. Contact
your local BYD dealer for drive-away prices.
SPECIFICATIONS (BYD Atto 2 fully-electric five-door wagon)
POWERTRAIN
Engine Motor Output: 130 kW & 290 Nm
Battery type: Blade lithium iron phosphate (LFP)
Energy Consumption: 17.1 kWh per km
AC Charging Speed: 7 kW
DC Charging Speed: 82 kW
Driving Range (WLTP): 345 km
DRIVELINE:
E-CVT single-speed automatic transmission, front-wheel drive
DIMENSIONS, WEIGHT AND CAPACITIES:
Length: 4310 mm
Wheelbase: 2620 mm
Width: 1830 mm
Height: 1675 mm
Turning Circle: 10.5 metres
Kerb Mass: 1590 kg
Ground Clearance: 150 mm
BRAKES:
Front: Ventilated disc
Rear: Solid disc
STANDARD WARRANTY:
Vehicle: Six years / 150,000 kilometres
Battery: Eight years / 180,000 kilometres
