See all New Car Reviews
Pros: High-quality cabin, space, comfort, likely price, touchscreen
Cons: Short range (for the early version), lack of driver appeal
BYD Atto 2 Design
Having concentrated more on its aquatic-named lineup (Dolphin, Seal, Seal U, Sealion 07), Chinese car-making giant BYD is now returning to the Atto model range with which it initially launched in Ireland. We’ve become used to the sight of lots of the mid-sized Atto 3 electric SUVs on our roads (taxi drivers, in particular, seem to love them) but now here’s the Atto 2, a more compact SUV, still all-electric, and looking to take on the likes of the new Opel Frontera Electric and even the hybrid Toyota Yaris Cross.
Style-wise, the Atto 2 is a little more subdued than the Seal lineup. It carries over the slim-grille look of the Atto 3, but it looks more chiselled and more modern than the larger car. There are hints of Honda around the headlights, a touch of Citroen C5 Aircross about the lower doors, and a bit of Smart #1 around the rear roof pillar, but on the whole the Atto 2 is a quietly handsome car, with nice surfacing that gives it a classy look. Alloy wheels of 17-inch diameter are standard, as is a panoramic glass roof, and buyers can choose from four colours — simple black, grey, white and the cheery ‘Hiking Green’ paint which we think really suits the Atto 2.
BYD Atto 2 Interior
Given that the Atto 2 is likely to be priced to compete with the Opel Frontera Electric and Citroen C3 Aircross, not to mention the Nissan Juke and Toyota Yaris Cross, its interior is a bit of a revelation. The Opel, Citroen and Nissan all have quite cheap (albeit also fairly cheerful) interiors, and even the Toyota’s is a bit plastic, but the Atto 2 comes with a really nice cabin, one that looks a whole lot classier than its competitors’.
And that’s not just because we were driving a high-spec version. Even the basic ‘Active’ model of the Atto 2 will come with synthetic leather seats (and comfortable, high-backed bucket seats they are, too), big screens (a 10.1-inch central touchscreen as standard, 12.8 inches optionally) and a sense of high-quality materials. Yes, there are some cheap plastic bits but then that’s true of almost all cars these days. The fact is the Atto 2’s interior looks and feels classy.
It’s also roomy, with lots of storage space up front and plenty of legroom and headroom in the back, even for adults. There’s a decent 400-litre boot too, which expands to 1,340 litres if you fold down the back seats.
The big screen in the centre of the dash has come in for some improvement since its debut in BYD’s other cars. It still does the (slightly pointless) trick of rotating from horizontal to vertical layout and back again, but the software has been updated so that it’s now easier to find your way around the menus, there are more customisable shortcuts, and you can even change the cabin temperature or fan speed simply by using a ‘multi-touch’ three-finger swipe, which works anywhere on the screen.
BYD is also giving the Atto 2 some handy ways to while away a charging break, including built-in YouTube and Zoom, and even a karaoke system.
BYD Atto 2 Performance & Drive
When the Atto 2 goes on sale initially, which will be in the summer for Irish buyers, it will come with a 42.4kWh (net) lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) battery, giving it an official range of up to 312km on the combined cycle. That’s not a massive range, but the good news is that it seems like a realistic one, as even in chilly conditions (single-digit temperatures) and with a bit of high-speed motorway running, we were seeing a range of at least 280km on a full charge.
Better again, BYD’s LFP batteries are reckoned to be more robust, reliable and resistant to damage than other designs, and they come with a longer warranty than most too, stretching to eight years and 200,000km. There will be a longer-range Atto 2 Comfort model later in the year which will have a bigger battery and a 435km range.
The Atto 2’s front-wheel-drive electric motor develops 170hp and 290Nm of torque and it gives noticeably smooth and progressive acceleration. It’s not a high-performance car or anything, but it does the job fine.
The Atto 2 has been more or less specifically designed for in-town driving, and with a tight turning circle and reasonably good all-round visibility it seems ideal for zipping through gaps in the traffic. The ride quality is soft, and just a tiny bit bouncy, and it’s particularly good at dealing with sharp speed bumps.
On the open road, that soft suspension and the light steering mean that there’s not much in the Atto 2’s performance for keen drivers, but it corners fine, feels surefooted and didn’t misbehave in any sense. It’s not a fun car, but instead is a comfortable, refined and easy-to-drive commuter car.
BYD Atto 2 Pricing
We won’t know pricing for the Atto 2 until closer to the Irish on-sale date, which will most likely be in July. However, early indications are that prices should start just below €30,000, with the mid-spec Boost version costing around €31-32,000. The bigger-battery Comfort model might stretch to €35-37,000.
For that kind of money, the Atto 2 is well equipped, with a panoramic roof, 17-inch alloys, synthetic leather upholstery, air conditioning, adaptive cruise control, a 10.1-inch rotating touchscreen, built-in entertainment apps, and blind-spot monitoring all as standard.
Carzone Verdict
If BYD can bring the Atto 2 into Ireland with truly competitive pricing, then it could be a game-changer both for the brand and the Irish car market. Compact SUVs are hugely popular, and that popularity continues to grow, but for the most part so far, this corner of the market has been dominated by hybrid-engined models. The Atto 2 has the classy looks inside and out, the equipment, and potentially the pricing to convert a sizeable chunk of those small SUV buyers to electric power. It’s a very impressive small EV.