Subaru Crosstrek vs BYD Atto 3

What's the difference?

The Crosstrek is good to drive with great ground clearance and an excellent all-wheel drive system for light off-road adventures. I’m also a fan of the styling and features for the money. But The letdowns comes in the form of limited boot space and cabin storage, a short warranty and pricey servicing. Still, it’s great to see Subaru has updated the car's safety systems, the most important part of any car.

BYD hasn’t made dramatic changes to the Atto 3 for 2024, but has it done enough to lure in more buyers? 

The additional equipment, namely the larger infotainment screen and new tyres, will certainly help make the Atto 3 more appealing. And the technology behind EVs is more understood by the average motorists, so the barriers to making the switch to electrification are dropping.

But the single biggest factor is likely to be the price. At a time when inflation (and other reasons) is driving the cost of new vehicles up, having your updated model go in the wrong direction will only help make potential buyers take notice.

Especially when you consider Toyota’s closest rival to the Atto 3, the bZ4X, starts at $66,000, while the Tesla Model Y is priced from $55,900, making both significantly more expensive propositions. Heck, the cheapest Toyota RAV4 hybrid model starts at $42,260, only marginally cheaper than the Atto 3 Standard Range.

So, if BYD can make its value argument strongly it will help lure more new buyers to take the plunge into the world of EVs.