BYD Atto 3 vs Hyundai Ioniq

What's the difference?

We appear to have reached a tipping point in the acceptance of electric vehicles in this country. The early adopters have made their switch but the technology has become more widely accepted, so now carmakers need to woo buyers with conventional means. 

That means the tried and tested methods for making any car more appealing to a customer - lower cost and more equipment.

No car demonstrates this better than the BYD Atto 3, which is one of the most popular electric vehicles in Australia. But after an initial surge of buyers happy for a more affordable EV, BYD needs to find fresh ways to attract new customers.

So, for this updated 2024 Atto 3, BYD has made it cheaper and added some key new equipment, while retaining its previous strengths in terms of value and technology.

Hyundai's Ioniq range is nothing if not a flex in the face of Toyota.

Sure, Toyota has a dominating position in the Australian market, with its well-received range of hybrid models, but what happens after hybrid? Hyundai takes on the blocky Prius formula with not only a directly competing hybrid model, but a plug-in and a fully electric version, too.

This expansive range is as though Hyundai is trying to demonstrate it's ready for any future, near or far, and guess what, Toyota? Anything you can do; the Korean juggernaut thinks it can do better.

These cars aren't really designed to sell so much as they are offerings for early adopters, but a few years after its launch, with a host of rivals set to take it on, and an entire sub-brand based on the Ioniq just around the corner, is Hyundai's top-spec Ioniq electric  worth a look? I took one for a week to find out.