Aussie BYD exec reveals the one word the company doesn't want you to use to describe its ultra-affordable Atto range

The Atto family of Chinese price fighters is now complete and promises more than just tasty showroom stickers. The trio of BYD models, starting from $19,990 driveaway, are claimed to set new standards for electrified action in Australian showrooms.

The Atto 1-2-3 group covers the cheapest electric car, the cheapest car overall and the cheapest plug-in hybrid in the country. But BYD is resisting any push to slap the company as a budget concern, pushing instead for it to be recognised for affordability.

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“We’re good value for money. We want to make electrified cars accessible to any Australian,” the chief operating officer of BYD Australia, Stephen Collins, told WhichCar by Wheels.

“There’s a lot of difference between value and cheap. What we’re trying to do is position ourselves as a brand of choice. We’re using the value we can bring, and the technology.”

As BYD grows the Atto line-up it admits some people might be confused by the name, since other models in its range – the Shark, Dolphin, Seal and Sealion – have badges plucked from the ocean.

In contrast, Atto means a tiny measurement – officially one quintillionth – although it can also mean an act or deed in Italian and is an affectionate term for father in J.R.R. Tolkien’s Elvish language.

Regardless of the literal meaning, Atto means big numbers for BYD in Australia.

It is the most successful Chinese arrival down under and came within 243 sales of trumping Toyota for top spot on the sales charts in June while sitting regularly towards the head of the Top 10 sales charts each month.

Its latest push is with the Atto family that sits at the bottom of its line-up.

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BYD is highlighting the $19,990 drive-away pricing of the Atto 1, a deal which runs until December and makes it both the cheapest electric car and cheapest new car overall in Australia.

The Atto 2 was previously only battery electric but is coming with a plug-in hybrid drivetrain at a $24,990 showroom sticker, with a claimed range of up to 895 kilometres. The Atto 3 is getting its first facelift.

Apart from the cars, Collins said BYD is now putting growing emphasis on its dealer network, one of the pressure points for all Chinese arrivals.

“We currently have 120 dealers and by the end of the year we will have 150. By the middle of 2027 we want it to be 200,” he said.

He also forecast further growth in sales numbers and said BYD is looking to win sales from a broad range of rivals: “We’re probably taking volume from all the top 10. But there is still daylight between us and Toyota.”