BYD Atto 1 Test Drive

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As part of the ongoing saga of reconstructing my mouth after surgery, I had to go to the dentist this morning. She made the mistake of asking me what I would be doing for the rest of the day, which gave me a perfect opportunity to chat about the BYD Atto 1 (Seagull/Dolphin Mini in other markets). I led with the statement that the little BYD was cheaper than the petrol competition. That really sparked her interest. And I told her what I would be writing about today — our Atto 1 test drive.

The Atto 1 began deliveries a couple of weeks ago in Melbourne (2000 km south). Wanting to give our readers a taste of what was happening in Australia, I wrote up a sneak peek based on the Atto 1 Facebook page. You can read it here.

But last weekend we got the phone call that the Seagull (Atto 1) had landed in Brisbane and the local BYD agent invited us to visit and take the car for a test drive. It is exciting to see an electric car that not only outperforms its petrol competitors on tech and grunt, but also on price (and might I also say, design). The media continues to stoke an imaginary rivalry between Tesla and BYD but totally misses the point that it’s EVs vs ICEVs and the ICE is melting.

Walking across to the Atto 1 parked in the dealer’s lot, we were impressed by the exterior styling. It was obviously designed to appeal to the young and the young at heart. The black accents played well against the base colour. The dealer only had one demonstrator and it had had a busy day. The mini-SUV (CUV) is expected to sell well once more stock arrives in the country. The Atto 1 sat in a sea of its BYD siblings, Seals, Sea Lions, and Atto 3’s.

The sales representative knew his vehicle. The company has made the sensible decision to allow reps to take cars home on the weekend so they learn the ins and outs of the new stock. He confided in us that his partner doesn’t like it if he brings home a petrol car. She much prefers the electrics. Our rep came from a background as a salesperson for a mobile phone company. Makes me wonder whether there are experienced fossil fuel car salespeople who are feeling the pinch. He was well aware of other EVs on the market.

Before we took to the road, we had a good look inside and outside the car, noting the charge cables in the boot. Majella felt that the seats were as comfortable as the ones we are used to in our 2019 Tesla Model 3. They had a sporty two-tone look. The console in between the seats came with large cupholders and a non-slip phone holder.

The sweep of the design takes the eyes from the cup holder up to the tactile controls. Like other BYDs, the Atto 1 comes with physical roll controls. You don’t have to search through menus on a screen. For some, that will mean greater ease of use. Two charge ports are provided under the AC vents providing easy access.

The inside door panels have been designed for comfort — just the right place and shape to rest your arm. For me anyway. Majella had to be told to use the push button start. We just aren’t used to this. Not sure what the value of a button to start is.

The SD card had not yet been loaded, so we had no navigation or maps on our test drive. All new electric cars launched in Australia seem to have some tech missing. It gets rectified in time. The Atto 1 Premium that we were driving has an advertised acceleration of 0–100 km/h in 9 seconds. This is about the same as the Suzuki hybrid it is frequently compared with. A little slower than we are used to, but enough to challenge similar cars at the lights. We got to have one launch. Sadly, we were beaten off the line by a sporty Corolla. They had to roar off with valves bouncing! Lots of sound and fury signifying nothing — except perhaps a waste of energy.

We missed the one-pedal driving. Majella found it irritating to have to use the brakes. The Atto 1 has a hold button for waiting at the lights. “Auto hold” on the dash. When we got the green, the car pulled away without having to press any other buttons. The Atto 1  felt solid on the road, like the MG 4 we had driven a few years earlier. Majella commented: “When I get into the Tesla, I know I am driving an electric car. Driving the Atto 1, I felt like I was driving a petrol car due to lack of one-pedal driving and the lack of some safety features — like the animation that shows who is beside you.” There is an alert on the screen behind the steering wheel if someone is beside you in multi-lane traffic.

I am sure we would have found more gadgets and gizmos if we could have had a longer drive. With all the EVs we check out, there is so much to learn and explore that the old 30-minute test drive just doesn’t cut it.

The Atto 1 Facebook page has news of some lucky people taking delivery and many keenly still waiting. This comment caught my eye — the customer has ordered and is awaiting delivery. He spotted a car carrier unloading 8 Atto 1 vehicles and talked the truckie into letting him sit in it. Reminds me of how things were with the Tesla Model 3 in 2019. The excitement continues. The only negative comment I found was that the hard plastics on the interior of the car were easily scratched. Reminds me of my Hyundai Accent.

One reviewer calls the Atto 1 an easy-to-park urban weapon, perfect for the city commute, school runs — replacing the petrol “second car”), and appealing to the green conscious Gen Z. Will it sell? Like hotcakes, I expect. Note that in global markets the Atto 1 was #5 in November!

The Royal Automobile Club of Queensland (RACQ) has just published a “6 of the best Cheapest Cars to Own in Queensland.” This report was written before the launch of the Atto 1 and 2, which will certainly be in next year’s edition, beating the current light car category winner — the Suzuki Swift. But it is worth noting that two of the current six are electric, and BYD. In the small passenger and SUV category, it is the BYD Dolphin Essential BEV, and in the light commercial (ute) 4-wheel-drive category, the winner is the BYD Shark PHEV.

Geely is planning to launch the EX2 in the Australian market in the second half of this year also. The CUV segment is looking like the next niche conquest in the rEVolution. With great sales figures for the Atto 2 already, I am looking forward to the stats on sales for January when it is joined by the Atto 1. The future is electric and compact.