Mercedes-Benz X250 vs BYD Atto 1

What's the difference?

The X was an opportunistic shot at a market segment new to Benz. With even apprentices able to afford to buy a well-specced Hilux, it's become harder to separate the foreman from the kids. I, like Mercedes, thought this would be the boss's car. Mercedes saw the gap and went for it, thinking it could grab sales from top end utes from VW, Toyota and Ford, while maybe saving a few folks from buying a RAM or an F150.

The problem is, the target market knows its utes. And in a rough-and-tumble workplace, the perception is that if you've spent up big on this Merc, you've actually just paid too much for a Nissan Navara. Still, like those flawed movies I enjoy, the X-Class is a fine thing - and I don't blame Mercedes for trying. It just costs too much, and yet isn't Mercedes enough to justify that price.

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.

Despite being a Japanese ute in drag, the X-Class isn't immediately rumbled as resembling a Nissan, which certainly should count in its favour. Everyone who asked about it had little idea it wasn't a Daimler from the ground up, until you pointed out various details. Up here in the higher reaches, it's a really quality-looking thing, with beautiful paint and enough differentiation to make it look like a Merc. The headlights do seem a tad small next to the rest of the Mercedes range, but the whopping great three-pointed star in the grille leaves no one in doubt. 

It's fairly tasteful in silver, too, and with a few carefully chosen options it looks pretty tough.

Once you're inside you see where it starts to get confused about itself. The hard, scratchy plastic dash pokes out from behind a huge slab of metallic trim. The centre console is clearly a brother from another mother, as is the overall dash layout. The cabin lacks the thoughtfulness and quality of a Mercedes design - you can't just slap on those signature air vents and expect to get away with it. Every piece that comes from Mercedes appears glued on, and it's jarring. 

This might have been less of an issue if the car was significantly cheaper and not likely to be purchased by people who are familiar with the brand.

Fun fact. Designer Wolfgang Egger was responsible for the gorgeous Alfa Romeo 156 of 1997 among others, as well as some Audis and Lamborghinis later on. You can definitely see the latter’s influence in the Atto 1’s angular face.

Based on the Dolphin architecture and badged the Dolphin Surf elsewhere (as well as Seagull but that name wouldn’t fly here), the BYD’s boxy proportions are pure supermini and is about the size of the previous-generation Honda Jazz.

However, the designers have added some crossover cues to the styling, including plastic cladding around the wheel arches, to give it a pseudo SUV look.

Inside, though, the Atto 1 is unashamedly hatchback in layout and appearance, with a contemporary, minimalist dash, big central touchscreen with precious few buttons and loads of storage.

In other words, a typical modern small car from China.

I really can't imagine how anyone signed off on the most annoying features of the X. Front-seat passengers get a solitary, shallow cupholder (the second one is unusable), and big door bins that could hold a bottle if you didn't mind it getting smashed from sliding around (they're unlined), and nowhere to put your phone. Like, nowhere, except maybe the glove box. Even the centre console bin is shallow and not much good for anything, apart from as an armrest.

The front seats are reasonably comfortable but the rears are way too high (in the name of a better view) and rammed hard against the rear bulkhead. The rear doors are also pretty narrow, so entry and egress can be a bit of a challenge if you're large or toddler small. Once you're in the seats, legroom is limited and headroom marginal. At least you get air-conditioning vents, but you don't get an armrest in the rear. On a nearly $80,000 ute. Even the dark-ages Colorado has one of those.

Anyway, that's enough said about the interior flaws.

The tray is a big boy, but it's worth knowing that the roller cover does rob a bit of space, as it does on any ute. The optional tray liner looks good and with Mercedes-Benz stamped in it, reminds you again what you've got. All told, it's 1581mm long, 1560mm wide (1215mm between the wheelarches) and you can load up nearly a tonne of people and things into the X350. You can also tow a massive 3500kg braked and still be able to carry a payload of 490kg. Gross vehicle mass is 3250kg (tare is 2190kg).

The BYD’s boxiness sure pays dividends accessing the Atto 1's interior, aided by tall doors, a high roof and lofty seating.

Initial impressions are very positive.

Lots of space, a decent driving position (in the Premium at least; the Essential has rake-only steering adjustment), grippy little wheel and a solid look and feel impart a sense of quality. This does not seem built down to a price.

The elevated centre console/fixed armrest provides ample storage below and easy reach of USB ports, sturdy cupholders above and a raised smartphone rest that doubles as a charger (again, only on Premium), allowing for quick downward glances without having to touch the device. Helpful.

Further points are won due to the very clean and minimalist dash presentation, with an electronic instrument display ahead of the driver (not a given nowadays thanks to Tesla’s minimalism-gone-mad influence), offering all the information you need in a concise and notably colourful manner.

That 10.1-inch central touchscreen, meanwhile, is probably one of the better examples from China, possessing superficially logical operation, clear markings and a row of fast-access icons for climate, audio, vehicle function, home screen and other controls.

However, the more time you spend in the Atto 1, the more the cabin doesn’t stand up that well under scrutiny.

The shapely tombstone-style front seats, which look a million dollars, are comfortable on short journeys but disappoint during longer drives, revealing a lack of sufficient back and thigh support.

There are no regenerative braking paddle shifters for single-pedal driving, just an on/off tile requiring a distracting and time-consuming touchscreen-menu deep-dive.

In fact, most functions demand at least one or two eyes-off-the-road-ahead prods of the screen, which is annoying and potentially hazardous.

Using the climate control is a good (bad) example.

Infernally fiddly screen slide controllers that are hard to pin-point with a hovering finger while the car is moving, let alone modulate, leads to temperature-selection fury. And those vinyl seats are clammy regardless of humidity levels and their perforations don’t help. Setting the desired climate environment is an utter faff.

And why must BYD’s synthetic leather smell so pungent? The off-gas odour can be nauseating for some on warmer days.

Worse still, even a glance towards the touchscreen sets off the distraction nannies. Frustrating. So is the intrusive lane-keep assist tech, unless you keep the car perfectly centred, with its constant nudging of the wheel while it nags away. More like Aggro 1.

Inevitably, turning these and other ADAS warnings off requires several menu deep-dives, leading to more driver-distraction paranoia. It’s a circle of stupidity for tech that’s meant to protect. And every new drive defaults to ‘on’. It's an infuriating mess.

Meanwhile, the Atto 1’s (two-person-only, remember) rear seat area also starts off promisingly, with easy entry/egress, adequate space (even for long legs and big feet) and a backrest and cushion combo offering sufficient comfort and support.

Amenities include useful door storage, overhead grab handles and map pockets, while the back of the centre console provides a cubby area just wide enough hold a bottle or larger keep-cup. That’s necessary because there is no folding armrest or subsequent cupholders back there, nor reading lights or USB ports.

And while the upward sweep of the window line means the rear can seem dark, the shape of the front seats allows some vision around and even through them for rear occupants.

Further back, the boot area is larger than the BYD’s diminutive size suggests, at 308 litres with backrests erect and 1037L with them folded forward.

The deep floor hides an even deeper cavity that’s large enough for charger cables, laptops and other paraphernalia that should be out of sight. That almost negates the need for the AWOL luggage cover.

But there's also a tyre repair kit instead of a spare wheel in there, and regular readers will know how incorrect that is. Every vehicle sold in Australia should come with one. Even city cars.

Loading/unloading is easy and there are hooks to secure things to, but clearing the high lip may be an effort for some.

And, though an EV, the is no extra storage to be found under the bonnet. The Atto 1 has no front boot, or froot.

And… what a perfect time to release Australia's cheapest new EV!

Sat alongside the base Essential from $23,990 (all prices are before on-road costs unless otherwise stated) is the Premium as tested here, starting from $27,990 and representing a $4000 difference.

But oh, what a difference.

The cheaper Essential comes with a 30kWh battery, providing a WLTP range of just 220km. Usefully, the Premium’s battery is 44 per cent larger at 43.2kWh, boosting range to a more-comfortable 310km, while power jumps by 77 per cent.

Every Atto 1 includes synthetic leather-trimmed seats, a 10.1-inch central touchscreen, rear camera with sensors, adaptive cruise control as part of some Advanced Driver Assist Systems (ADAS) tech (more on safety later on), wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and even Vehicle to Load (V2L) functionality, so you can use your hairdryer on the fly. Handy!

However, the Premium ups the ante with a surround-view monitor, powered and heated front seats, reach as well as rake adjustment for the steering wheel, a wireless charger, LEDs rather than halogen headlights and 16-inch alloy wheels instead of 15-inch steelies with hubcaps.

But… both are four-seaters only. And neither offers an exterior temperature gauge, remote keyless entry from the passenger side (you’ll always need to press a fob), a luggage cover or a spare wheel – just the totally-unsatisfactory tyre repair kit.

Plus, there’s no heat pump so, in winter, turning the temperature up will drag range down noticeably, while a lack of liquid cooling for the battery will do the same during a hot Aussie summer, since the AC has to work overtime doing that job instead.

And we’re not convinced the Atto 1 represents such great value.

Yes, that small-battery Essential undercuts every hybrid bar Suzuki’s (mild-hybrid) Swift, including the MG3 Hybrid+ and Toyota Yaris HEV, and even the ageing Mazda 2 petrol costs more, but its limited range means it’s better as an inner-urban, small-distance-only commuter proposition. Best as a second or even third car.

Meanwhile, the bigger-battery Premium is priced perilously close to significantly larger EVs with greater range, including BYD’s own Dolphin from $29,990, the MG4 Urban from $31,990 drive-away, GAC Aion UT from $32,990 drive-away and the coming Geely EX2.

And, alongside cheaper-still petrol-powered alternatives such as the Kia Picanto, MG3 and MG5 sedan, there are also smaller SUVs that slip beneath the bijou BYD, like the Chery Tiggo 4, Haval Jolion, Hyundai Venue, Mahindra XUV 3X0 and MG ZS.

What we’re saying is, unless the Atto 1’s sub-four-metre length and narrowness are paramount, it’s behind the eight-ball for value against an array of more-substantial alternatives costing not much more.

Still, we get this is that rare thing today, a truly-new city car and we’re here for that.

The X350d has something very Mercedes about it - the engine and transmission package. With 3.5-litres of turbo-diesel V6, you get 190kW at 3400rpm and a thumping 550Nm between 1400 and 3200rpm. These kind of figures at least put it up there with the brawnier VW Amarok.

Feeding the power to all four wheels is Mercedes' own seven-speed automatic. A centre diff apportions power front to rear and you have a choice of three modes - automatic, high range and low-range.

The Atto 1's electric motor is offered in two output choices. Either way, it can be found under the bonnet and driving the front wheels via a single-speed transmission.

The Essential scores a low-power version making 65kW and 175Nm of torque, which is enough for a 0-100km/h sprint time of a still-decent 11.1 seconds, while the Premium’s high-power unit ups those to 115kW and 220Nm respectively, shaving two seconds off in the process. Top speed is said to be 135km/h.

Note that, while the latter grade’s 43.2kWh battery adds 96kg overall compared to the smaller 30kWh model, it still enjoys a way-superior power-to-weight ratio of 82.7kW/tonne versus just 50.2kW/tonne.

The X350d did pretty well in the week I had it - the official figure of 8.8L/100km was never going to happen but with a long motorway run to the Blue Mountains and the rest bashing about town, the 10.5L/100km I did achieve without trying was not bad at all. The 80-litre tank should give you a decent range of 750km, or thereabouts.

The official consumption average for the Essential is 15.5kWh/100km and its 30kWh 'Blade' LFP (Lithium Iron Phosphate) battery offers a WLTP range of 220km.

The 43.2kW Premium bumps the energy use figure up to 16kWh/100km but offers 310km WLTP.

We came close to latter claim, with 263km of mixed driving and still showing about 10 per cent of range left, while the car’s consumption readout averaged 13.7kWh/100km overall. That rose to 16.5kWh/100km during a stint of harder, highway-heavy driving.

Charging times vary. With an 11kW AC capability on both grades, the Essential needs up to 16 hours and the Premium 22 hours plugged into a regular socket, and five and seven hours respectively using an optional 7.0kW Wallbox.

Meanwhile, switching to DC fast charging, the Essential’s 65kW capability means a 10-80 per cent top-up can be achieved in under 40 minutes, against the 85kW Premium’s 30 to 50-minute requirement.

One of the weirder things to make it into the X-Class is the world's second most irritating column stalk, which is asked to pack in indicators, headlights and wipers. Thankfully, the world's most irritating column stalk, the Mercedes automatic shifter, wasn't inflicted on the X-Class. But the obvious problem is the key, which clearly isn't a Mercedes unit - even the star is ill-fitting and will probably fall off after a while. This is not a premium experience.

Thankfully, the big turbo-diesel wipes away a lot of the complaints about this car not being Mercedes enough. Brawny and super quiet (twin balance shafts will do that), the X is a very easy car to live with. While not especially lively, it's easygoing in the city and very refined.

On the open road it cruises almost silently and the ride is way above what you might expect from an unloaded tradie-mobile. It doesn't feel as high as some utes, which makes it feel a bit more car-like, and will no doubt appeal to some who might have to swap in and out of a traditional SUV and into the X, for whatever reason.

It is by far the most civilised ute I've ever driven and was worlds away from the Colorado I drove last week, to the point where I could almost - almost - see a justification for the unbelievably hefty price tag.

Credit for the refined ride and handling goes to the coil-spring rear end, much maligned in some quarters. While that style of suspension is not the ultimate in load-lugging, it's way more comfortable for passengers and, given the likely buyer profile, probably more agreeable than a cart-sprung rear-end.

I would cheerfully drive long distances in the X and it feels like it could go anywhere.

Sadly, we cannot comment on how the 65kW/175Nm Essential drives, but with 77 per cent more power and 25 per cent more torque, the 115kW/220Nm Premium’s performance is one of its calling cards.

Lively off the mark, even in Eco, it thrives in inner urban environments, with instant throttle response for effortlessly zippy and smooth acceleration, as you’d expect of an EV.

And it just keeps on keeping on at speed, giving the Premium a terrific breadth of performance flexibility. We’re now very curious to see how the Essential goes.

Armed with light and alert steering, the Atto 1 can weave in and out of traffic gaps with confidence and precision, and is backed up by a super-tight turning circle to boot, so parking manoeuvres around town is a doddle.

BYD’s decision to set up the chassis for a soft, long-travel suspension is appreciated, since the Premium takes most bumps and humps in its stride, making this one of the comfier city cars around.

Road and tyre noises are omnipresent, but aren’t not too bad overall by supermini standards, while the Hankook 185/55R16 tyres deliver sufficient grip, even over some rain-soaked roads we endured.

Most of these Atto 1 attributes also translate well at freeway speeds, with the Premium offering ample muscle for overtaking, slick steering responses and a planted chassis feel.

But, once you hit some faster corners, the BYD’s reactive steering, lofty seating and cushy suspension conspire to create considerable body movement, especially through tighter bends, scrubbing the front wheels as it turns wide (understeer).

Yet, press on a bit harder, the Atto 1 can instantly change its attitude to oversteer, feeling darty as weight shifts from the rear, making the steering suddenly too sharp and the car too nervous, Even experienced drivers might hesitate to carry on. And this happened on dry roads.

Of course, the BYD is a city car so not designed for sports-car handling, but it does lack the confidence and control of a hard-driven Mazda 2 or Suzuki Swift. Strangely, it seems more SUV-like than supermini, dynamically.

Most owners won't care, but they will have to live with the infuriating ADAS tune, with inexplicably sudden braking when the adaptive cruise control is on, and lane-support systems that all-too-often tug and bleat endlessly like an agitated goat, becoming too distracting, and requiring far-too-fiddly touchscreen menu diving to silence, especially as they default back on with every restart.

The driver-attention warning is also in a semi-permanent state of nerves, squawking all-too-regularly unless the driver is sat perfectly still, and will easily escalate the danger level to “take-a-break” should you dare move about in your seat. Which would be regularly, due to the latter’s lack of enduring support. A literal and metaphorical pain.

Clearly, then, the Atto 1 can really do with some Australian road tuning and on a number of fronts at that. Until this happens, these are the dark clouds blighting the blue skies that this car’s otherwise sunny disposition delivers with every urban drive on a daily basis.

Or, in other words, stick to the urban jungle.

The Atto 1 debuted in China back in 2023, but this is a facelifted, international-market version evolved mainly for European consumers, so crash-tested by Euro NCAP only last year, and scoring a maximum five-star ANCAP rating.

Note, though, that while the baby BYD includes Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB) with forward collision warning, lane-departure assist and adaptive cruise control as standard, there is no blind-spot monitor or rear cross-traffic alert. Odd for a city slicker.

Six airbags are fitted, including curtain protection for all outboard occupants, while there are two rear-seat sited ISOFIX anchorage points and child-seat tether points behind each backrest.

Mercedes offers a three year/200,000km warranty for the X, which isn't too bad. It also throws in roadside assist for the duration. Also worthy are the 12 month/20,000km service intervals. 

A basic capped-price service scheme will hit you for $1950 (pre-paid) or $2,555 if you pay when you front up for each of the three services covered. The servicing isn't super-cheap, as you can see, but at least you know what you're up for.

Here’s where the BYD slips up a bit.

Yes, it comes with a better-than-industry-standard six-year warranty, but many rivals offer between seven and 10-year coverages, while the Atto 1’s mileage warranty is capped at 150,000km when most others include unlimited mileage. And roadside assistance is only for one year, as well.

Service intervals are every 12 months or 20,000km. Capped-price servicing is available, but no precise figures were available at the time of publishing.

Estimates are from under $200 for the first and third annual services, and from $500 and $650 for the second and fourth yearly visits, respectively. Please check with BYD for updated figures.

Currently there are about 105 BYD service outlets throughout Australia, with 30 more expected by the middle of 2026. This should address one of this brand's biggest concerns – sufficient after-sales care.