BYD’s electric ATTO 3 crossover SUV was awarded the coveted maximum five-star safety rating by the European New Car Assessment Program (Euro NCAP) on Wednesday. BYD is the latest Chinese automaker to receive top marks as it strives to create a foothold in Europe’s competitive auto industry.
The eCitroenC5 X, which was manufactured by a joint venture between Stellantis and Dongfeng, and the Mobilize Limo, which was an electric sedan manufactured by Renault jointly with Jiangling Motors, both achieved ratings of four stars. Both of these vehicles were manufactured in China.
Since the European New Car Assessment Programme (NCAP) does not issue certifications for vehicles to be driven on public roads, its ratings are not legally obligatory. However, consumers in Europe pay close attention to the results of Euro NCAP’s safety testing, and automakers promote vehicles with high ratings in a proactive manner.
Great Wall Motor, a competitor in China, obtained five-star ratings for both the hybrid SUV under the WEY brand name Coffee 01 and the electric sedan under the ORA brand name Funky Cat last month.
This past week, BYD unveiled the ATTO 3, which is known as the Yuan Plus in China. The launch took place in India.
The German car rental firm Sixt announced a week ago that it had committed to acquire around 100,000 electric vehicles from the Chinese company BYD over the next few years.
The Mercedes-Benz EQE electric sedan was one of the other vehicles that earned a perfect score of five stars on Wednesday.
According to Euro NCAP, the vehicle’s driver assistance system earned it the highest score possible for assisted-driving functions, making it the highest-scoring car so far for assisted-driving functions. The system includes a feature that moves the car to the slowest lane on a highway and brings it to a stop if the driver becomes unresponsive.
