By Dylan Afuang
ROLLING VIEWS of hills and vistas are the backdrop of the winding national highways connecting General Santos City and Davao City. The tarmac and the discipline of Mindanaoan motorists seemed smooth and impeccable, too. And these all added to the enjoyment of driving BYD’s range of capable cars to the BYD Davao City dealership.
This was when BYD Cars Philippines brought members of media from Manila to witness the grand opening of the ACMobility-led company’s first dealership in Mindanao. Aside from the occasion, the company had us test-drive the electric vehicle brand’s Dolphin, Atto 3, and Tang models.
The company also debunked misconceptions Philippine consumers may feel toward EV ownership, like the high maintenance costs of such vehicles, short range, and charging infrastructure.
For the drive, other members of the group received the electric vehicle brand’s Dolphin subcompact hatchback and Tang luxury crossover, while we lucked into the Atto 3 Premium (P1.798 million). The crossover is the EV brand’s best-selling model here, according to ACMobility Corporate Communications Manager Mikko David.
A single electric motor (delivering 204hp and 310Nm of torque) drives the Atto 3’s front rollers. The 60.5-kWh, 400-V lithium iron phosphate cell is a Blade Battery kind — which, BYD boasted, is its signature battery design whose modules are packed in an array within structure in order to make a smaller and lighter package that results in a manufacturer-claimed range of 420km.
Our trip spanned only roughly 160km, but we did feel reassured to drive spiritedly in an EV that carried an abundance of energy reserve. On long, almost empty stretches and during overtaking, the Atto 3 willingly got up to speed with a hint of torque steer. The car’s brakes bit hard as they wrested energy back to the battery, and this was matched with a stable ride quality.
Besides proving its driving attributes, the Atto 3 represented the answers regarding the misconceptions on EV ownership. Mr. David enumerated these during the opening of the BYD Davao City outlet located on the city’s JP Laurel Avenue.
The executive explained that with the Atto 3 (priced from P1.598 million for the Dynamic model), a motorist could save 70% or P69,069 in maintenance costs over five years compared to an ICE vehicle. To make these estimates, the company compared the prevailing prices of electricity per kWh versus prices of fuel per liter.
Also, since an EV employs fewer moving parts than an ICE, costs of routine servicing for the former could be lower, too. Within five years, the Atto 3 would necessitate its owner to shell out P221,273 — compared to P755,169 for a conventionally powered model, per the ACMobility executive.
The Atto 3 had also dispelled the supposed limited range of an EV, and that the charging stations in the Philippines are few and far between.
The Atto 3, without recharging, was able to travel over 300km from Manila to Baguio, one way, in a media drive held this year. ACMobility’s nationwide charging network now has a total of 70 charge points in 31 locations, the company noted in a release.
