2019 Lamborghini Urus vs 2023 BYD Atto 3

What's the difference?

Lamborghini has nailed it. The Urus is a super SUV that’s fast, dynamic, and has Lamborghini looks, but just as importantly it’s practical, spacious, comfortable and easy to drive. You’re not going to find those last four attributes in a sentence about an Aventador.

Where the Urus loses marks is in terms of warranty, value for money and fuel consumption.

I didn’t take the Urus on the Corsa nor the Neve, nor Sabbia and Terra, but as I said in my video we know this SUV is capable on the track and that it can go off-road.

What I really wanted to see was how well it handled regular life. Any competent SUV can deal with shopping centre car parks, dropping kids off at school, carrying boxes and bags, and of course fitting and being driven as you would any car.

The Urus is a Lamborghini anybody could drive, pretty much anywhere.

Like its interior design, you may find the BYD Atto 3 Extended Range to be a divisive experience. On the one hand, I like how well it handles in the city and the playful design.

The car feels roomy and the boot is a good size but this is not an open-roader. If you plan on doing weekend escapes in this, think again. This is a car that likes the city and will complain if you venture outside of its limits.

I do like the affordable price tag, considering it's an EV, and the features you get but that open-road ride needs improvement.

Anything interesting about the Urus? That’s like asking is there anything tasty about that really tasty thing you’re eating there? See, whether you like the look of the Lamborghini Urus or not, you have to admit it doesn’t look like anything you’ve ever seen before, right?

I wasn’t a major fan of it when I first clapped eyes on it in pictures online, but in the metal and in front of me wearing that 'Giallo Augo' yellow paint I found the Urus stunning, like a giant queen bee.

As I’ve mentioned, the Urus is built on the same MLB Evo platform as the Volkswagen Touareg, Porsche Cayenne, Bentley Bentayga and Audi Q8. While that offers a ready-made base with great comfort, dynamics and technology, it would limit shape and styling, but nevertheless I think Lamborghini has done an excellent job of ‘dressing’ the Urus with styling that doesn’t give away its Volkswagen Group bloodline too much.

The Urus looks exactly how a Lamborghini SUV should – from its side profile with the sleek glasshouse and haunches which look spring loaded, to its Y-shaped tail-lights and tailgate lip spoiler.

At the front, as with the Aventador and Huracan, the Lamborghini badge takes pride of place and even that broad flat bonnet which looks just like the lid on its supercar siblings has to skirt around the emblem almost out of respect. Below is the giant grille with its enormous lower air-intake and front splitter.

You can also see a few hat tips to the original LM002 Lamborghini off-roader from the late 1980s in those squared-off wheel arches. Yes, this isn’t Lamborghini’s first SUV.

The optional 23-inch wheels do look a bit too big, but if anything can pull them off, I feel the Urus can because so much else about this SUV is over the top. Even everyday elements are extravagant – the fuel cap on our car was carbon-fibre for example.

But then everyday objects which I think should be there, aren’t – like a rear windscreen wiper.

The Urus’s cockpit is just as special (and Lamborghini) as its exterior. As with the Aventador and Huracan the start button hides beneath a red flip-up cover fighter-jet rocket launcher-style and the front passengers are separated by a floating centre console which is home to more aircraft inspired controls – there are levers for selecting drive modes and there’s a giant one just for selecting reverse.

As we’ve covered above, the interior of our car had been optioned to the hilt, but I have to mention those seats again – the Q-Citura diamond stitching looks and feels beautiful.

It’s not just the seats, though, every touch point in the Urus has a quality feel – actually even places that never come in contact with passenger such as the headlining look and feel plush.

The Urus is large – look at the dimensions: it’s 5112mm long, 2181mm wide (including the mirrors) and 1638mm tall.

But what’s the space like inside? Read on to find out.

The exterior is quite understated and you might not necessarily pick this out as being an EV at first glance. It has a nice-looking profile that immediately identifies it as a medium SUV and it should appeal to owners who want something that looks smart but won't stand out on the road.

There are some cool design elements like the textured chrome panelling on the C-pillar and bonnet, which enhances the BYD badging. The LED strip lighting for the daytime running lights and tail-lights do lean more towards the futuristic vibe that EVs usually showcase.

The interior is where the fun has been had but it's likely to be divisive. The three-tone synthetic leather trims have some pizzazz but not everyone will like the black, white and navy combo.

That said, I like the contrasting red detailing on the piping, stitching and elastic door pocket cords.

The curvy dashboard features a white panel that looks like a flexed muscle (and not in a Magic Mike way!). The air vents remind me of the Echo Base on planet Hoth in Star Wars, which will always be cool to me, but my husband thinks they look like stacked drink coasters.

The rotary door handles are a total vibe and the adjustable ambient lighting manages to tie it all together but while it's great that BYD has had fun in here, not all of it lands for me.

From the outside the Urus’s cabin looks like it could be a cramped place – it is a Lamborghini, after all right? The reality is the interior of the Urus is spacious and storage is great.

Our test car was a five-seater, but the Urus can also be ordered with just four seats. Alas, there is no seven-seater version of the Urus, but Bentley does offer a third row in its Bentayga.

The front seats in our Urus were snug but offered outstanding comfort and support.

Head-, shoulder- and legroom up front is excellent, but it’s the second row which is most impressive. Legroom for me, even at 191cm tall, is outstanding. I can sit behind my driving position with about 100mm to spare – take a look at the video if you don’t believe me. Headroom is good back there, too.

Entry and exit through the rear doors is good, although they could open wider, but the height of the Urus made putting my child into his car seat easy on my back. Also installing the car seat itself was easy – our is a top tether which hooked to the seatback.

The Urus has a 616-litre boot and that was large enough to fit the box for our new child car-seat (have a look at the images) along with several other bags – that’s damned good. Making loading easier is an air suspension system which can lower the rear of the SUV.

The big door pockets were excellent and so was the floating centre console which has storage underneath and two 12-volt power outlets. You’ll also find a USB port up front, too.

The centre console bin is the downfall – it’s only has space for the wireless charging pad.

There are two cupholders up front and another two in the fold down centre armrest in the rear.

The rear climate control system is outstanding and offers separate temperature options for left and right rear riders, with plenty of vents.

Grab handles, 'Jesus handles', call them what you will, but the Urus doesn’t have any. Both the youngest and oldest members of my family pointed this out – my son and my mother. Personally, I’ve never had a use for them, but they both feel it’s a glaring omission.

I’m not going to mark the Urus down for a lack of handles – this is a practical and family friendly SUV.

As soon as you slide in, you're pleasantly surprised by how roomy it feels. I have plenty of leg- and headroom in both rows for my 168cm (5'6") height. Which is impressive given the massive panoramic sunroof.

Both front seats are heated and electric with the driver's side sporting a six-way adjustment, while the passenger is only four-way.

However, due to the sports-like seat style, the headrests are fixed which may annoy taller drivers. There is no lumbar support either and, trust me, you'll notice it on a longer trip. Ouch.

Up front, the individual storage is good with an extra deep middle console and a shelf that sits underneath the 'e-shifter'. Plus, there is a glove box and a handy utility tray that houses the wireless charging pad.

The back seat is very comfortable and individual storage is adequate for the odd passenger with two map pockets and four device pockets available.

The drink bottle holders and cupholders (two in each row) are a tad skinny, though, and two regular-sized takeaway coffee cups will overlap at the lid.

Charging options are good throughout with each row getting an USB-A and USB-C port, the front also gets a 12-volt socket.

However, the ports are hidden in the shelf of the middle console and I'd prefer to have the media port up top as it's wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

The 12.8-inch touchscreen multimedia system looks massive on the pared back dashboard and it rotates, allowing you to choose portrait or landscape mode. However, this function is disabled while using Apple CarPlay.

The system is pretty simple to use and the graphics are clear but a lot of functions are buried in sub-menus. Like the heated seat function. I honestly kept forgetting it had them.

I like to drive with the headlights on, as a defensive driving technique, but that dims the screen during the day so much you can't really see it.

The Dirac sound system with eight speakers is sufficient but I noticed the sound quality on my calls was a bit tinny.

The 5.0-inch digital instrument panel's positioning on the steering wheel means you don't miss having a head-up display but the alignment is off by a millimetre or so. Just enough to annoy someone with mild OCD.

The boot space is the highlight for me, though, with its 440L of capacity. You can bump that up to 1340L with the rear seats folded and the rear seats have a 40/60 split-fold.

You'll be making do with a puncture repair kit as there isn't a spare tyre but the powered tailgate was super handy this week on my grocery run.

Curiously, there is no 'frunk' storage, despite there being plenty of room for one.

There's something appealing about BYD's simple and straightforward marketing and purchasing strategy - what you see, is what you get.

There are only two models to choose from, the Standard Range and, our model, the Extended Range. As the name suggests, our model has the longer driving range but there's not that much difference in the specifications between the two outside of that.

One colour - 'Ski White' - is no cost, while 'Parkour Red', 'Surf Blue', 'Boulder Grey' and 'Forest Green' cost $700 extra.

Our model will now cost $51,011 to purchase (before on-road costs), that's a $3630 price hike since the start of the year! Even with the new price, it's more affordable than its nearest rivals with the MG priced at $55,990 and the Leaf e+ at $61,490.

However, you do get a decent number of features for your cash, like heated front seats, electric front seats, a panoramic sunroof, synthetic three-tone leather trims, adjustable ambient lighting, wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and some decent tech (more on that later).

All external lights are LEDs, with headlights having an automatic function and there are two levels of regenerative braking to choose from.

There are some great practical features, too, like a darkened headliner, powered tailgate and 'lock charging port' function (in case you need to leave you car while it's on charge).

The Lamborghini Urus has a 4.0-litre twin-turbo petrol V8 engine making 478kW/850Nm.

Any engine which can make 650 horsepower has my attention, but this unit, which you’ll also find in the Bentley Bentayga, is superb. The power delivery feels almost naturally aspirated in how linear and controllable it feels.

While the Urus doesn’t have the same screaming exhaust note as a V12 Aventador or the V10 found in the Huracan, the deep V8 grumble on idle and crackle on the down shifts let everybody know I’d arrived.

An eight-speed automatic transmission can change its personality from a brutally hard-shifter in Corsa (Track) mode to gelato smooth in Strada (Street).

The Atto 3 Extended Range is a full EV with a single motor powered by a 60.48kWh lithium-ion blade battery. It is a front-wheel drive and has a maximum power output of 150kW and 310Nm of torque.

So, it’s not the most powerful on the market but will certainly get you from A to B with ease and you can go from 0-100km/h in just 7.3 seconds.

A V8 combustion engine that makes 478kW is not going to be frugal when it comes to fuel consumption. Lamborghini says the Urus should use 12.7L/100km after a combination of open and urban roads.

After highways, country roads and urban commutes I recorded 15.7L/100km at the fuel pump, which is close to the serving suggestion and good considering there weren't any motorway kays in there.

That’s thirsty, but not surprising.  

Let’s talk charging. The Atto 3 has a Type 2 Combo CCS charging port and the on-board DC charger has up to 80kW of capacity.

What does that mean? Well, if you were to plug it in at home on a 7.0kW AC charger, you'd be able to go from flat to a full charge in roughly 10 hours.

Plug it into a 50kW fast charger, and you'd see that time drop to around one hour to get from 10 to 80 per cent charge. However, that capacity means it can't accept the faster 350kW charging speeds on ultra-fast chargers.

The official energy consumption is 16kWh/100km and my on-board figure was 14.7kWh.

It has an official driving range of 480km NEDC (420km WLTP), which is better than some on the market but I got major range anxiety this week!

It feels like it chews through its power. Since it's school holidays, I’ve been doing mostly longer open-road drives and have had to charge it three times already! Over three road trips, I've averaged a little over 200km of driving and saw my percentage go from 100 down to an average of 34 per cent at the end of each trip. 

The Lamborghini Urus is a brute, but not brutal, in that it’s big, powerful, quick and dynamic without being hard to drive. Actually, it’s one of the easiest and most comfortable SUVs I’ve ever driven, while also being the fastest I’ve piloted.

The Urus is at its most docile in the Strada (Street) drive mode and for the most part I drove it in this setting which kept the air suspension at its cushiest, the throttle calm and steering light.

The ride quality in Strada even on Sydney’s pot-holed and patchy streets was outstanding. Remarkable, given that our test car rolled on giant 23-inch wheels wrapped in wide, low profile tyres (325/30 Pirelli P Zeros at the rear and 285/35 at the front).

Sport mode does what you’d expect – firms the dampers, adds weight to the steering, makes the throttle more responsive and dials back the traction control. Then there’s 'Neve' which is for snow and probably not hugely useful in Australia.

Our car was fitted with optional extra drive modes – 'Corsa' for the racetrack, 'Terra' for rocks and dirt, and 'Sabbia' for sand.

Alternatively, you can ‘build your own’ mode using the 'Ego' selector which lets you adjust steering, suspension and throttle in light, medium or hard settings.

So, while you still have the Lamborghini supercar looks and colossal grunt, with the ability to head off road you could pilot the Urus all day as you would any large SUV in Strada.

In this mode you’d really have to plant your foot for the Urus’s reaction to be anything other than civilised.

Like any large SUV the Urus gives its occupants a commanding view, but it was a strange feeling looking out over that very Lamborghini bonnet but then pulling up next to the No.461 bus and glancing over almost at head height with the driver.

Then there’s the acceleration – 0-100km/h in 3.6 seconds. Combine that with this height and piloting it feels like watching one of those videos of a bullet train shot from the driver’s seat.

Braking is almost as astonishing as the acceleration. The Urus has been equipped with the largest brakes ever for a production car – sombrero-sized 440mm diameter discs at the front with giant 10-piston calipers and 370mm discs at the rear. Our Urus was fitted with carbon ceramic brakes and yellow calipers.

Visibility through the front and side windows was surprisingly good, although seeing through that rear glass was limited as you’d expect. I’m talking about the Urus not the bullet train – bullet train rear visibility is terrible.

The Urus has a 360-degree camera and an excellent reversing camera, too, which makes up for the small rear window.

The driving lets this down for me. It's not as zippy as other EVs I've sampled and can even feel a bit sluggish when you accelerate from a full stop. However, it has enough kick for open-road driving, if you're desperate.

Desperate is the key word, though, because this is a total city-slicker. Around town, it handles itself well in tight streets and corners (that 11m turning circle is a charm) but isn't as confidently placed on the road at higher speeds.

And if you happen to be driving on the open-road on a blustery day, it's no fun at all. It shifts and squirms in the lane, with the cabin noise rising to din levels.

Ride comfort is generally good with suspension that feels cushioned but not floaty around the city. Different story on the open-road!

The controls and e-shifter are all well-placed in the middle console but I'd prefer the start-button to be located somewhere else. I mistook it for the ‘Park’ button a few times, which annoyed me.

The regenerative braking can be adjusted to two levels, low and high. Even on the highest setting, it doesn’t have a big physical presence but there's enough to know it's working.

The Atto 3 earns back a couple of points for being stupidly easy to park. The 360-degree view camera system is super clear and I didn’t have to be too choosy with car spaces either because of its size.

This has a good list of safety features coming as standard, like blind-spot monitoring, lane departure alert, lane keeping aids, rear cross-traffic alert and braking, adaptive cruise control, traffic sign recognition, 360-degree view camera system, as well as front and rear parking sensors.

It has autonomous emergency braking with forward collision warning and features car, pedestrian, cyclist and junction turning assistance. It's operational from 4.0-85km/h (up to 150km/h for car detection).

The Atto 3 was awarded a maximum five-star ANCAP safety rating in 2022 and has seven airbags, including a front centre airbag.

If you have a couple of kids, you’ll like the ISOFIX child seat mounts on the rear outboard seats and three top tethers, but two seats will fit best. 

Curiously, there is evidence of ISOFIX mounts on the front passenger seat which need to be removed for our market, instead of just being 'disabled'.

This is the category which brings the total score down. The three-year/unlimited kilometre warranty on the Urus is falling behind the norm with many carmakers moving to five-year coverage.

You can purchase the fourth year of the warranty for $4772 and the fifth year for $9191.

A three-year maintenance package can be bought for $6009.

BYD backtracked from its original warranty launch offer of seven years/unlimited km and the Atto 3 now comes with a six-year/150,000km main warranty.

But the battery has an eight-year/160,000km warranty, which is more in line with the market.

You can choose between two servicing plans – 'Light’ for those who do under 12,000km per year and a ‘Standard’ plan for those who do more. 

Given my open-road and charging experience, I'd say it's a good bet you'll be on the light plan.

On the light plan, services are capped at $189 per year for five-years or up to 60,000km – whichever occurs first.

On the standard plan, which spans eight-years or up to 160,000km, you can expect to pay an average of $299 per service. 

Both plans are fairly affordable but the recommended servicing intervals are every 12 months/20,000 which is a term you often see on a fuel-based car, not an EV.