Skoda Karoq vs BYD Atto 2

What's the difference?

This new entry-level Karoq gives the already accomplished mid-size SUV an even sharper value-for-money edge. On top of that it's space efficient, hugely practical and economical. Safety's up to speed, the ownership package is solid and it's a quiet, refined drive. Before joining the RAV4 queue, we'd suggest giving this Skoda some serious thought.

Note: CarsGuide attended this event as a guest of the manufacturer, with accommodation and meals provided.

The BYD Atto 2 isn't just the cheapest electric SUV in Australia, it's also one that doesn't feel all that cheap, which is a hell of a magic trick. If it's easy, comfortable city motoring you're after, the Atto 2 delivers in spades. But if your blood type is high octane, there are better driving EVs out there.

Note: CarsGuide attended this event as a guest of the manufacturer, with meals provided.

Note: The author, Andrew Chesterton, is a co-owner of Smart As Media, a content agency and media distribution service with a number automotive brands among its clients. When producing content for CarsGuide, he does so in accordance with the CarsGuide Editorial Guidelines and Code of Ethics, and the views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author.

Skoda's distinctively broad, vertically slatted grille stands the brand apart, and even after six years in market the Karoq looks crisp and contemporary with chiselled character lines and jagged head and tail-lights blending successfully with more gently curved surfaces along the car's flanks and turret.

It might be a subconscious side-effect of knowing Skoda is part of the VW Group, but I can't help seeing hints of Tiguan here and there, particularly around the side windows and rear end.

But cool touches like aero-influenced inserts in the 18-inch alloy rims reinforce the Karoq's individual look.

Move to the inside and while the 8.0-inch central media touchscreen and 8.0-inch digital instrument display are on the pace the overall design shows the car's age.

Quality trim materials lift the tone, the cloth seats with contrast stitching look (and feel) great, but the understated dash design in particular is 'traditional', the vibe accentuated by liberal use of piano black highlight elements.

That said, the mix of on-screen functions and physical controls works well ergonomically and the leather-trimmed, partially-perforated, flat-bottom steering wheel is hard to fault.

I think it’s a sharp-looking thing, this Atto 2. Kudos to BYD for not making the design look like it’s trying too hard, or like the Atto 2 is something it isn’t. It’s just smooth, sensible small SUV with styling that looks like it will age gracefully.

I like the chunky black moulding which makes it look a bit tougher than it is, plus the LED DRLs and swept back (and spoiler-equipped) roofline add a bit of visual drama.

Inside, BYD has made two pretty good choices. The first is that the cabin feels toned down from the one in the Atto 3 (which is all chunky wheel-style controls and vents). 

This one feels far more sedate and conventional in its design, which I think is a win.

The other good decision is to equip the Atto 2 with soft plastics, rather than hard scratchy ones, in places like the door panels. In some cheaper cars, you feel your elbows constantly rubbing against cheap-feeling plastics, but that’s not the case here.

Too much stuff is still controlled through that central screen, and BYD has an awkward way of shortcutting functions. They call it a three-finger swipe, meaning that if you run three fingers across the screen horizontally you can adjust the climate-control’s fan speed, while swiping horizontally adjusts temp, but it feels like a weird movement.

In terms of dimensions, at just under 4.4m long, a bit more than 1.8m wide and a fraction over 1.6m tall the Karoq is a relatively small medium SUV.

Yet, its 2638mm wheelbase means there's enough space between the axles for generous accommodation front and rear with enough room left over for a decent boot.

There's ample room for me, at 183cm, in the front with plenty of breathing space between driver and co-pilot. Not to mention heaps of storage including big door bins with room for large bottles, an open area in the centre console under an extending and height-adjustable centre armrest, various coin and oddments slots, a good size glove box, a broad lidded dash-top compartment and a drop down box near the driver's right knee.

Move to the rear, and sitting behind the driver's seat set to my position, I've got good head, leg and shoulder room. Best for two adults, although three would be possible for (cozy) short trips.

Three up to teenage kids will be fine back there, but if your kids are in a capsule, child seat or booster you'll be good with two but three will be a bridge too far.

Again there are door bins with enough room for oversize bottles, three cupholders in the fold-down centre armrest (one is 'venti'-sized) as well an oddments tray at the back of the front centre console and map pockets on the front seat backs. Adjustable ventilation is another plus.

With all seats up the Karoq offers a healthy 588 litres (VDA) of storage space, expanding to 1810L with the 60/40 split rear seat folded. A rear seat 'ski-port' style door also increases flexibility.

There are numerous bag and tie-down hooks as well as thoughtful storage spaces around the boot space. A full-size (speed limited) spare sits under the floor and while the tailgate misses out on power assistance, there's a typically useful dangling grab handle to help with closing.

For those keen on towing the FWD Karoq is rated up to a 1.5-tonne braked trailer (750kg unbraked).

The Atto 2 measures 4310mm in length, 1830mm in width and 1675mm in height and it rides on a 2620mm wheelbase. It also sits on BYD’s fully-flat EV platform, which helps to maximise space in the back seat.

I’m 175cm tall and could get comfortable behind my own driving position, with enough knee and headroom to ensure I didn’t feel cramped.

There are two ISOFIX attachment points, one in each window seat in the back as well as USB-A and -C connection points.

Boot space is a not cavernous, but also not tiny, 380L with the rear seats in place, growing to 1320L with the rear pews folded flat. Both models also offer a V2L (Vehicle to Load) connection, too, so you can power up household devices.

This thing really is cheap. The BYD Atto 2 arrives with a two-model range kicking off with the Dynamic, at $31,990, before on-road costs, before stepping up to the Premium at $35,990 BOC. They both get the same motor and battery, by the way, so the extra money comes down to extra kit.

The Dynamic rides on 16-inch alloys wrapped in cheaper Westlake rubber, scores LED headlights and DRLs and gets rain-sensing wipers and heated wing mirrors. Inside, there’s a 10.1-inch central touchscreen, an 8.8-inch driver display, synthetic leather seats with manual adjustment up front and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto linked to a four-speaker stereo.

The Premium rides on 17-inch alloys wearing better Hankook rubber, and there’s a panoramic glass roof with a shade and roof racks. Inside, the central screen grows to 12.8 inches, and there’s an eight-speaker stereo and a wireless charge pad. Your seats are now electronically adjusted and heated and cooled. Plus there’s some extra safety stuff, but we’ll cover that off in a second.

The Karoq is powered by a 1.4-litre, all-alloy, direct-injected, turbo-petrol four-cylinder engine sending 110kW (at 6000rpm) and 250Nm (from 1500-3500rpm) to the front wheels via an eight-speed automatic transmission.

Both Atto 2 models share the same powertrain - a front-mounted electric motor producing 130kW/290Nm which is sent to the front tyres. It feels fairly sedate, even under flat-footed acceleration, though BYD reckons you can knock off the sprint to 100km/h in 7.9 seconds.

Skoda's official combined cycle fuel economy number for the Karoq is 6.5L/100km, the 1.4-litre turbo-petrol engine emitting 147g/km of CO2 in the process.

On the launch drive program for this new entry-level model, covering city, B-road and freeway running along the coast south of Sydney, NSW, we recorded an average of 7.6L/100km.

That's useful for a conventional combustion engine without the benefit of electric hybrid assistance. Worth noting, however, minimum fuel requirement is the pricier 95 RON premium unleaded.

You'll need 50 litres of it to fill the tank which equates to a theoretical driving range of 770km using the official figure or around 660km using our on-test result.

Both models also share the same battery, a 51.1kWh LFP unit, which should unlock a WLTP driving range of 345km. AC charging is pegged at 7.0kW, so a good match for a standard home wallbox, while DC fast charging is 82kW. Using the latter, BYD says you should go from 10 to 80 per cent charged in 38 minutes.

Despite riding on sizeable 18-inch alloys (shod with 215/50 Goodyear Eagle F1 rubber), first impressions behind the Karoq's wheel are dominated by how composed and refined it is.

Even on coarse, irregular B-roads the car remains supple yet balanced and well buttoned down in the corners. The steering is nicely weighted and road feel is good.

Skoda says the Karoq will accelerate from 0-100km/h in 9.2 seconds, which isn't ferociously fast but the 1.4-litre turbo four delivers its peak pulling power from 1500-3500rpm, which means you're never short of mid-range urge.

The smooth eight-speed auto also helps keep things on the boil although power delivery isn't always linear. Squeeze the throttle and the engine can take half a beat before responding in something of a rush.

Shift from 'Normal' to 'Sport' mode and the transmission will respond more urgently, holding on to ratios longer and changing down more readily. And if you want full control, move the lever over into the 'Tiptronic' manual position for satisfyingly rapid changes on-demand.

The engine remains quiet, only making its presence felt at higher revs, the supportive front seats remain comfortable over lengthy stints and the brakes (vented discs front, solid rotors rear) deliver firm, progressive stopping power even under the pressure of an enthusiastic twisty backroad run.

Under the heading of miscellaneous observations, the multimedia system is easy to navigate and quick to respond, the extending, height-adjustable front centre armrest is brilliant and the adaptive cruise system responds to changes quickly yet calmly.

Your drive experience in the Atto 2 very much depends on what you ask of it.

Or to put it another way, the first half of my drive route was a breezy run through the city and suburbs, then onto the freeway, before arriving at our destination. 

It was probably 60 kays or so, and across it all the Atto 2 felt quiet and comfortable, with enough power at its disposal to easily get up to speed and stay there. 

In the second half, though, I hunted down some twisting roads and cracks started to appear. The ride is pretty solid and there isn't huge amounts of body roll during more enthusiastic cornering. 

But the steering is vague and there's plenty of slack – you can turn the wheel a fair bit without eliciting much response from the tyres.

Interestingly, turning the wheel with a bit of aggression also produced a weird sound up front, like you could hear the mechanicals shifting the tyres.

The tyres make a difference, too, with the Premium's more expensive Hankook rubber far happier to hang on without squealing than the Dynamic's Westlake tyres. 

But context is key here. The Atto 2 is an accessible, affordable city-focused EV, and it performs those duties admirably. But if you're sold on a car-driver connection, there isn't much of that on offer here.

The Atto 2 is yet to be assessed by ANCAP but there’s no shortage of stuff. The entry-level car gets six airbags, rear parking sensors and all the usual traction tech. Then there’s active cruise, lane departure warning, blind spot monitoring, cross-traffic alert in both directions - the list goes on. In fact, the only things the Premium adds on top are a 360-degree camera and front parking sensors. 

Skoda is ahead of the mainstream pack, offering a seven-year, unlimited kilometre warranty, which is two years up on the majority of the Karoq's competitors.

Roadside Assist is complimentary for the first year, renewed annually if you have your Karoq serviced at an authorised Skoda dealer.

The main service interval is 12 months/15,000km, which is in line with most of the competition, and Skoda offers a seven-year service pack for $2750, or $393 per workshop visit, which is competitive with much of the segment but some way off the Toyota RAV4 non-hybrid at $215 per service on a capped-price deal.

On top of that, through Skoda Choice you can opt for a Guaranteed Future Value offer ranging up to five years, with variable deposit and finance currently at a 6.99 per cent rate.

At the end of the term you can trade-in for a new Skoda, pay out the balloon amount and keep the car or simply hand it back.

BYD’s warranty is an okay six years but just 150,000km, which is underwhelming compared to the best in the business. The battery is covered for eight years or 160,000km.

BYD vehicles typically have 12 month, 20,000km service intervals with capped price servicing, but the details are yet to be confirmed for the Atto 2.