What's the difference?
The Genesis GV80 SUV has cultivated a quiet but firm following since its debut but there's a new variant on offer - the coupe.
Offered in one highly-specified grade level for our market, the GV80 3.5T Luxury AWD Coupe proves to be a fierce competitor with luxury and handling for it's European rivals - the BMW X6, Range Rover Velar and Mercedes-Benz GLE Coupe.
However, the price point is starting to creep a little closer to its rivals, which might not be to everyone's fancy.
I've been family testing the GV80 for a week to see if it gets the seal of approval from my little family of three, read on to find out how it went.
Back in 2010, Mitsubishi released Australia’s first mainstream electric vehicle (EV) in nearly a century.
That model, the i-MiEV, was a four-seater city-sized Kei car from Japan that cost $48,800, before on-road costs, or from roughly $70,000 in today's money. Little wonder it bombed. That was four times more than petrol-powered equivalents of the time.
Now, in 2026, the new BYD Atto 1 is the first EV sold here since the i-MiEV’s 2013 departure to be considered a four-seater city car.
It’s also the least-expensive EV money can buy, being even cheaper than many internal-combustion engine alternatives like the Mazda 2 and Toyota Yaris hybrid. The fact is, there’s nothing remotely near the Chinese supermini’s base price that’s electric.
But is the Atto 1 any good?
The Genesis GV80 Coupe is a rare breed – it comes packed to the gills with features, has great ownership benefits and can easily accommodate a large family in comfort.
The fuel economy isn’t great but it looks and acts the part of a true luxury SUV. My husband and son were impressed and enjoyed all of the features it has.
The BYD Atto 1 has already earned its place in history as the cheapest new EV ever sold in Australia. And the good news is that, on the strength of bigger-battery Premium version, it rarely puts a foot wrong as a city car, exceeding performance, efficiency, refinement and comfort expectations. The Atto 1 really delivers around town.
But the baby BYD’s price is too close to larger EVs with better range, while extended exposure reveals issues with seat comfort, touchscreen access/distraction, ADAS interference and nervous steering feel at speed. Australian road tuning is required to rectify these.
Still, as a cheap urban EV runabout, the Atto 1 Premium still (just) stands alone. A glimpse into the future, someday, all city cars will likely follow in the bold BYD’s footsteps.