BYD’s family EV gets a major overhaul: is it enough to rival the Skoda Elroq?
Don’t worry: the new BYD Atto 3 Evo is not another unfamiliar, unusually named entrant into the Chinese brand’s burgeoning line-up, but instead simply an overhauled version of the first car it brought to the UK. In the three years since the Atto 3 first landed on our shores, the electric car market has moved on significantly. No longer is a 260-mile range quite so competitive in a near-£40,000 family SUV, and no longer does its rounded design gel with its newer, sharper-looking stablemates.Hence this significant redevelopment for 2026, which goes so far as to basically make this a second-generation car rather than a typical facelift. Headline changes include edgier looks, a shift from front-wheel drive to rear-wheel drive and various practicality-boosting tweaks, aimed at keeping the Atto 3 on a par with a swathe of newer rivals including the Ford Explorer, MG S5 EV and Skoda Elroq. Range at a glanceThe Atto 3 Evo will be offered with two trims in the UK, each corresponding with a different drivetrain.Design gets a single rear-mounted motor with 308bhp, giving a 0-62mph sprint time of 5.5sec and a range of 316 miles. Excellence adds a second motor on the front axle, giving four-wheel-drive, 443bhp and a sports car-baiting 0-62mph time of 3.9sec. It does suffer a significant penalty in range, however, with a maximum of 292 miles on offer. Both versions use the same 74.8kWh lithium-iron-phosphate battery, which can be recharged at up to 220kW, enabling a 10-80% refill in 25 minutes.As for kit, Design gets front and rear parking sensors, a 360deg parking camera, heat pump and electric front seats, among other features. Stepping up to Excellence nets a panoramic sunroof, a head-up display and heated rear seats.Pricing for each has yet to be confirmed, but Design will cost under £40,000, while Excellence will just tip over that mark.
