Jeep Gladiator vs BYD Atto 1

What's the difference?

If you believe there should be a ute version of everything, Jeep has long been there for you with a tray-backed Gladiator version of its iconic Wrangler off-roader.

But the Gladiator has hardly attracted the same love as its mainstream ute rivals, preferring a more lifestyle-oriented vibe, which it leans into extra hard for this 2026 update.

While it might look pretty much identical from the outside, Jeep has made some pretty significant changes underneath to make it a better overall offering, with a nice reduction in price, too.

So is it now worth your consideration? Read on to find out.

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?