NZ Car of the Year award goes to surprise electric SUV

Thursday, 16 February 2023

Meet the BYD Atto 3 (otherwise known as the Yuan in China), the latest EV to launch in New Zealand.

The New Zealand Motoring Writers’ Guild has awarded its New Zealand Car of the Year prize to a somewhat left-field contender. The award, in its 35th running, has been handed to the BYD Atto 3 – a quirky fully electric SUV from China.

The Atto beat out a decorated list of co-finalists; the BMW iX, Ford Everest, Hyundai i20 N, Kia EV6, Kia Sportage, Lexus NX, Mercedes-AMG EQS 53, Mercedes-Benz C-Class, Mitsubishi Outlander, Polestar 2 and Tesla Model Y.

“BYD Auto New Zealand is incredibly proud to receive this award,” said Warren Willmot, BYD national brand manager.

The BYD Atto 3, pictured with BYD brand manager Warren Willmot, has been crowned New Zealand Car of the Year for 2023.

“Our customers have taken a leap of faith with a new brand, of which most wouldn’t have heard of seven months ago. This award cements their purchasing decision was in line with expert opinions.

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The BYD Dolphin is slated to launch in New Zealand in Q3, and could become the country's cheapest new EV.

“Every BYD Atto 3 on the road potentially replaces an internal combustion engine vehicle, moving us towards a greener future and BYD’s ultimate global goal of cooling the Earth by one degree.”

The Motoring Writers’ Guild is composed of motoring journalists from all over the country, and includes Stuff’s Matthew Hansen and Nile Bijoux, as well as a selection of regular Stuff motoring contributors.

Having only launched in New Zealand last year, BYD (which stands for Build Your Dreams) hit the ground running.

Whilst it’s only launched one model so far, the Atto 3, the model was a smash hit – often featuring at the pointy end of the EV sales charts, and breaking into the national top 10 sales charts in its first month on sale.

BYD’s products have quickly grown a robust reputation in western markets thanks to their value and how advanced their ‘Blade’ battery technology is. The brand is set to supply Blade batteries to the likes of Tesla in the coming years.

The Chinese BYD is set to launch two new electric models in 2023; the Dolphin hatchback and Seal compact sedan.

“Atto 3 has won category awards, including in this country, but our award appears to be the maiden national car of the year for this model and for BYD,” said Guild president Richard Bosselman.

“Securing the country’s most prestigious, longest running, and important industry award is huge, but this is particularly special recognition.

“NZ was one of BYD’s first export destinations – the brand was little known, Atto 3 is their only car here and has been on sale for less than a year. For it to have made such a powerful impact so immediately is quite something.”

“Atto 3 resonates as a product competing for the attention of budget-minded buyers through offering good range from an advanced battery,” Bosselman added. “The Guild also recognises it as a solidly-engineered car, offering good technologies and an interesting styling approach.”