BYD Atto3 scores a 5-star rating in Euro NCAP; Safest EV in India?

Just a day after its unveiling in India, the BYD Atto 3 has scored a commendable 5-star rating in the Euro NCAP crash tests. While the model used in the test had a left-hand-drive configuration, the rating is applicable for the right-hand-drive configuration as well, which has been announced for the Indian market. Euro NCAP took the base-spec Active variant of the BYD Atto 3, which comes heavily equipped with an ample amount of safety features like seven airbags, ABS with EBD, seat belt pre-tensioners, ABS with EBD and even a comprehensive ADAS package.

In the crash tests conducted by Euro NCAP, the BYD Atto 3 has received a 91 per cent rating for adult occupancy, scoring 34.7 points out of 38. The Atto 3 showcased adequate levels of protection to both front occupants in the front offset barrier test and full-width rigid barrier test. While it scored the highest points in the side impact test, the results were just about adequate in the side pole test.

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In the child occupancy protection tests, the BYD Atto 3 received 44 out of 49 points, thus scoring 89 per cent. While the Atto 3 has posed good results for adult and child occupancy, the pedestrian protection rating of the SUV is below average, with it scoring just 37.5 points out of 72. It was rated that the bonnet of the SUV offered adequate protection to the pedestrian’s heads, though with poor areas on the pillars of the windscreen.

BYD Atto3 launched in India

BYD has launched the Atto 3 in India with a single 60.48 kWh blade battery pack option, which claims an ARAI-certified range of 521 km. The global market also gets a smaller 49.92 kWh battery pack option, which has been given a miss for the Indian car market. This battery can be charged from 0 to 80 per cent in just 50 minutes using an 80 kW DC fast charger. However, the standard 7 kW type 2 AC charger provided with the car charges the battery from 0 to 100 per cent in 10 hours. The initial buyers are also getting an additional 3 kW AC charger for charging external appliances, free of cost.

The car comes with 6-way electrically adjustable driver seat and a 4-way adjustable c0-driver seat. There are seven airbags and a tyre pressure monitoring system as standard.

The front-mounted electric motor of the BYD Atto 3 produces 201 hp of maximum power and 310 Nm of peak torque. This motor enables the Atto 3 to claim a 0-100 km/h acceleration time of 7.3 seconds. BYD has started accepting the bookings for the Atto 3, with the deliveries set to commence in November 2022.

The 60.5 kWh battery pack offers a longer driving range of 521 km as per ARAI. The range drops to 480 km according to the NEDC cycle. This battery pack can be charged from 0-80 per cent in 50 minutes through an ultra-fast charging method. On a regular AC charger, it takes about 10 hours to fully charge the battery pack. It is quick as BYD claims that the car can do 0-100 km/h in just 7.3 seconds.

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