Bhisma Nambiar
The recent launch of the BYD Atto 3 proved to be a success as it reached 1000 orders in 10 days. However, keep in mind that BYD is a newcomer in the Malaysian market (but a giant in the Chinese one). The official BYD SD Motors Malaysia (yes, SD refers to Sime Darby) is offering two variants of the Atto 3. RM149,800 for the Standard Range (SR) paired with a 49.92 kWh battery offering 410 km of range (NEDC, 345 km WLTP), and RM167,800 for the Extended Range (ER) paired with a 60.48 kWh battery, rated for 480 km (NEDC, 420 km WLTP).
Enough of the technical stuff. Are there any cool features (maybe quirky too)? Well yes!. The BYD has a 12.8-inch rotating touchscreen display. If you’re not a fan of a verticle display, fret not. With a push of a button and it rotates. Nifty, for sure. The Atto 3 also has a unique door handle design with ambient lighting. The air-con vents look like something out of a sci-fi robot, and the interior uses elements never before seen in a car. It’s a bit much, but not a boring minimalist interior most manufacturers get away with. It even has a door pocket with guitar strings! (Well not actually made of guitar strings, but look like them to hold the items in your door pocket, neat).
Besides the full suit of ADAS, Isofix and a 5-star Euro NCAP rating, the Atto 3 has a unique centre airbag (which is why it is 7). Other features include 8 speakers with “Dirac HD” tuned sound, PM2.5 filter (dust or particulate matter filter) and wireless charging. Speaking of wireless, Android Auto and Apple Carplay are also present (wirelessly).
Would you consider the Atto 3 over the Kona electric? Or wait for upcoming cars like the Han or even a Tesla. One thing’s for sure, the price of EVs is becoming more affordable to the average joe, making EV adoption much quicker among Malaysians.