Continuous Development
It’s not exactly easy to keep track of all the different Chinese car models. It’s probably hardest with BYD, China’s largest car manufacturer – model changes happen so quickly that even the Chinese themselves probably don’t know what they were offering yesterday, let alone what won’t be available the day after tomorrow. Take the BYD Atto 3 (known as the Yuan Plus in China), which was launched in China in February 2022 and has been available in Europe since January 2023. In 2025, there was a minor facelift; now the Chinese are launching the significantly improved Atto 3 Evo in Europe (we’ll come back to that later) – and at the same time, in China, a completely new Yuan Plus, i.e. Atto 3, has been unveiled, significantly larger and with improved technology (including ‘Flash Charging’ – we’ll come back to that later too).
Well, it’s the usual problem: development times in China are now so short that it is entirely possible for individual models to become obsolete by the time they’ve gone through production, shipping and delivery to European dealers. And this must also be noted: many a Chinese manufacturer brings vehicles to Europe that are no longer even on offer in China – thereby reducing overcapacity. Surprisingly, however, these ‘outdated’ vehicles are not offered at rock-bottom prices, but are in some cases twice or even three times as expensive as they once were on the Chinese market. The fact that this still works – albeit only in relatively small quantities – is simply because even five-year-old ‘Chinese’ cars are technologically on a par with most European models. And that base prices in China are at a truly extremely low level. (Which could then lead to the question of why the current vehicles from, let’s say, the established manufacturers are so incredibly expensive. But we’d better not ask ourselves that question right now.)
The Atto 3 Evo (i.e. not the brand-new model, but simply the latest version for Europe) has made significant technological strides compared to its predecessor, which looks exactly the same. 800V architecture, 75kW battery (previously: either 50 or 60 kW), optional all-wheel drive, delivering 449 hp and 560 Nm of maximum torque, with a 0-100 km/h sprint time of 3.9 seconds. The base model comes with front-wheel drive, 313 hp, 380 Nm – and a price starting at 43,900 Swiss francs. That includes a great deal, naturally every conceivable driver-assistance feature, but also fantastic extras like ‘vegan leather’ (some people never learn). 490 litres of boot space (maximum 1,360 litres), plus a front boot with a further 95 litres of capacity – that’s very good for a 4.46-metre-long vehicle with a 2.72-metre wheelbase. The space is generally good. And the interior design is, as with almost all Chinese cars: very minimalist; virtually everything is controlled via the 15.6-inch touchscreen above the centre console.
Yes, it drives. It drives quite decently; you certainly get from A to B safely (range according to WLTP: 510 kilometres, maximum charging speed: 210 kW). But it drives exactly as it looks: just another (visually bland) SUV. It’s difficult to feel any emotion whatsoever, whether regarding the design or the driving dynamics. The Atto 3 does all this to full satisfaction; it’s a bit like a country inn: schnitzel, potatoes, greens and sauce, large portions, a relatively fair price – you leave feeling well-fed, not unhappy, but somehow something is missing – and no, it’s not the Coupe Dänemark. On the other hand: these are difficult times – and perhaps we need this kind of boring reliability more than ever. Yes, the BYD seems decent, with a clean finish, and the battery comes with an eight-year or 250,000-kilometre warranty.
But let’s return once more to the all-new Atto 3, the one due to launch in China in a few weeks’ time. This will then be one of the models that can benefit from BYD’s latest ‘Flash Charging’ development. The Chinese are already one step ahead again; the latest charging stations deliver up to 1,500 kW, which means a charging time of 9 minutes from 10 to 97 per cent with the current ‘Short Blade Battery 2.0’ (83 kW). Yes, this technology should come to Europe as soon as possible; perhaps it will arrive even faster than the vehicles that can utilise it. That’s how quickly things can move.
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