BYD ATTO 3 review

Driving position 

While BYD’s aim is to make incredibly technologically advanced electric cars, the ATTO 3 does the basics just as well. 

Finding your desired driving position is really easy. We like to sit nice and low in a car, which can be tricky in some electric cars due to the batteries under the floor, but the ATTO 3 goes low enough for our liking. A bonus mark for BYD. 

There’s also lots of adjustability in the steering wheel, so you shouldn’t struggle getting comfortable in the driver’s seat. 

Once you’re in your chosen seating position, there’s decent all-round visibility, though the rear window is a tad narrow and high up, meaning smaller cars can be tricky to see at night. Thankfully, you can spot them in your side mirrors. 

As for the seats themselves, we don’t have any gripes with them. They’re comfortable, supportive, and we didn’t even find our backs aching when stuck on the M25 for two hours – something we’d get in many other cars at this price. 

Tech and features 

BYD ATTO 3 trims 

– Comfort 

– Design 

There are two different trims available: Comfort and Design. Our test car is the top-spec Design trim, which comes with a few extras such as ambient lighting and the larger 15.6-inch rotatable screen (over the Comfort’s 12.8-inch display). 

Both versions get wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, but like all BYDs, you can’t use them when the screen is in portrait mode. So, if you’re a diehard phone maps user, you’re better off keeping it in landscape mode. 

Both cars also get a little five-inch digital driver’s display behind the wheel, which shows all the info you’d need to know, such as your speed, battery percentage, remaining range, speed limits, etc. It's smaller than most rivals’, but it still does the job. 

What’s less conventional, though, is the cabin’s design. BYD says it’s designed with gyms in mind, so the air vents are shaped like dumbbells, and the central armrest has lines on it that resemble a treadmill.  

But wait, there’s more. What do you do at the gym? That’s right, you listen to music. So, what better than to put three guitar strings in each of the doors so you can play as you go along.  

Each string is connected by a screw. Tighten or loosen them, and you get a different note. It’s quite a silly gimmick (and will definitely be annoying in a car full of young ones), but could also be the start of the next Jimi Hendrix... 

As for the rest of the cabin, it’s really well finished, has lots of plush vegan leather, and there’s plenty of space. It doesn’t feel too cramped, which is helped by the large panoramic sunroof. 

Electric motors and power 

BYD ATTO 3 performance stats 

– Power: 204hp 

– 0-62mph: 7.3 seconds 

– Top speed: 99mph 

– Driven wheels: front-wheel drive 

All versions of the BYD ATTO 3 come with the same 204hp electric motor, which isn’t loads but plenty of poke for the average driver. 

With this, and its front-wheel drive (FWD) setup, it can hit 62mph from a standstill in 7.3 seconds. Not fast by any means, but brisk enough – especially with the instant torque that comes from the electric motor. 

There are a few different drive modes on offer: Eco, Normal and Sport. To be honest, we found ourselves leaving it in Normal most of the time, which is where most people will leave it. 

But Eco would also be ideal if you want to maximise range on the motorway. Sport mode? It's nothing special, but has its place when overtaking, for example. 

Handling and ride comfort 

The ATTO 3 rides well around town. Its suspension is supple, but not too soft. It’s well-judged and is ideal at slow speeds. The odd bump and pothole may unsettle it, but that’s nothing we didn’t expect. 

When you’re manoeuvring at slow speeds, there’s a competent 360-degree camera, which can be activated via a shortcut button on the steering wheel. It’s high-quality during the day and at night, so when you’re navigating those tight parking spaces, you’ll be just fine. 

The steering is light and its 10.7-metre turning circle makes it ideal in towns and cities on mini roundabouts or tight corners down narrow streets. 

One thing we did notice is when you’re at junctions or roundabouts, there’s a significant amount of wheelspin when you set off – even in Eco mode. Something to watch out for, especially in the wet. 

When you take it on the motorway, it feels steady at speed and isn’t unsettled by bumps in the road, like we found with the Ford Puma Gen-E. 

Though the ride is a little crashy at times, which is usually the case with cars new and unfamiliar to UK roads. European brands like Mercedes are wise to this now, so we expect new and emerging brands like BYD to catch on soon enough, and they have with the SEALION 7. 

We also found the lane-keep assist to be particularly aggressive, pulling you across the lane if you stray ever-so-slightly when on a tight country road. Luckily, it’s easy to turn off by swiping down on the central screen, like with the speed limit bongs. 

Boot space 

BYD ATTO 3 boot space: 

– Boot space: 440 litres 

– Incl. Rear seats folded: 1,338 litres 

– Front boot (froot): N/A 

The BYD ATTO 3 gets a 440-litre boot, which is pretty good, but rivals such as the MGS5 EV (453 litres) and Kia EV3 (460 litres) just pip it. 

It’s quite a narrow boot, but this is partly because of the added side storage you get – it’s useful for plant pots and muddy shoes, etc. 

Fold down the rear seats, however, and you get 1,338 litres. They fold almost completely flat, which means you can slide longer items in with no bother. 

Sadly, there’s no front boot (froot) in the ATTO 3, but there is a false boot floor, so there’s a bit more space to store the charging cables, etc. 

Rear seats 

The ATTO 3 is proud to be a small SUV, which often comes with shortfalls in the back-seat department, but not this time. 

We found there to be good knee room and plenty of space for your feet under the seat in front of you (even in the lowest setting). There’s also a completely flat floor, so the unlucky middle seat passenger still gets enough space. 

Headroom is also decent (even for six-footers), though you’ll want to open the sunroof blind to get a little extra space if your head’s brushing the ceiling. 

Rear-seat passengers also get a USB-A and a USB-C port to cater to everyone’s needs. 

Forgotten your iPad? No problem. There are also guitar strings in the rear doors, so you can pluck away to your heart’s content – plus, they double up as netting for the door pockets. 

Storage solutions 

Overall storage is pretty good, but not the best we’ve ever seen – the Kia EV3 has better. 

But saying that, you do still get a deep central storage area under the armrest, and storage under the drive selector, though it’s quite shallow so things may slide out if they’re accidentally nudged or you tackle a tighter-than-expected roundabout. 

In the back, you have three seat pockets in each front chair you can use, and small door pockets behind the guitar strings. 

BYD ATTO 3 dimensions 

– Height: 1,615mm 

– Width: 1,875mm 

– Length: 4,455mm 

– Weight (gross): 2,160kg 

Safety 

The BYD ATTO 3 was independently safety tested by Euro NCAP in 2022, and scored a full five stars, with particular attention paid to both adult and child occupancy safety, scoring 91% and 89% respectively.  

This is thanks to onboard safety features standard across the range, such as blind spot detection, traction control, adaptive cruise control, traffic sign recognition, automatic emergency braking, lane-keep assist and rear collision warning. 

BYD ATTO 3: electric range, battery and charging 

– Range: 261 miles 

– Battery size: 60kWh 

– Max charging speed: 88kW 

– Charge port location: Front right, under the driver’s side mirror 

– Charge time (AC): 0-100% in 9 hours, 42 mins using a 7kW charger 

– Charge time (DC): 10-80% in 44 minutes using a 150kW charger 

– Efficiency: 4.0mi/kWh 

– Charging cost: From £4.34 

Both versions of the BYD ATTO 3 come with the same 60kWh battery, giving you 261 miles of range and a maximum charging speed of 88kW. 

The range is bang on the money, but the charging speed could be closer to rivals with up to 150kW at their disposal. 

But even at a slower pace, the ATTO 3 can get from 10 to 80% battery in less than 45 minutes, which is good if you’re out and about. Ideally though, you’d charge at home and make use of the incredibly cash-efficient home rates on a 7kW charger. 

BYD claims the ATTO 3 gets 4.0mi/kWh, and this is very accurate. We averaged 3.9m/kWh, so we’re chuffed. 

Reliability 

Being electric, the ATTO 3 is almost always going to be more reliable than an internal combustion engine because it has fewer moving parts that could fail.  

Up until now, BYD has had solid reliability since its 2023 launch in the UK.  

It also offers an impressive warranty on the ATTO 3 at six years/93,750 miles and eight years/155,350 miles for the battery pack.